Lead what? Lead you!

Last week I had the opportunity to spend six days on the campus of Gallaudet University at Leadership University. I along with over four hundred other students, gathered in Washington D.C. to learn how to enhance our leadership skills and what it means to be a leader in the world around us.

In our very first session we were asked to think of the community in which we wish to be leaders. For some it was school, the arts, or a particular field. For me it was a little different. I want to be a leader in the Episcopal Church. Through everything I did, I kept the mind set of "how can this help me lead in the church".

The speech at our graduation spoke to me in terms of the amazing works that are happening in not only the National Church, but in the Diocese of RI. Mr. Anthony Sparks, one of our team leaders, got up and talked to us about being a light. Mr. Sparks, being a very religious man, had a spiritual under tone to his speech. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not overcome it." I could not believe he opened with the Prologue from John’s Gospel. He continued to talk about the verses he had recited particularly John 1:15, "The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not overcome it." The duration of his remarks had to do about light and what kind of light we are all called to be. There are some who are spot lights; refrigerator lights; night lights; and light houses. We, as young leaders, are called to be light houses. Light houses are the type of people who are always there no matter what to help guide others along their journey. The minute he said that I thought of the Church. We have been called to be Christ’s light in the world, and through that we are called to be light houses. To stand up for those who can not stand up for themselves. To guide others through the darkness. Yet how do we do this? We do this through mission. Like the group that went to New Orleans; and various MDG ministries. How can we in RI act more like light houses in are various ministries?

The Church is doing great things, and it is not all about sexuality and schism. We are witness, with some very good news to share. I think that right now we are a very good church. A good church does the right thing some of the time. A very good church does the right thing most of the time. Lets be a great church and do the right thing all the time. Lets truly be a mission minded people.