Yes, Edith Still Works Here!
Edith Guffey
Conference Minister
Those who know me well will not be surprised to learn that I had a plan in place for the months leading up to my retirement. The plan was heavily influenced by the promise I made in October 2018 to the Conference Council when they agreed for KO serve as Co-host for the General Synod that was to be in in Kansas City in July 2021. I promised that I would not retire until AFTER that General Synod. Thus the plans were put in place for me to retire sometime following the KO Annual Meeting that meets in October. Because I knew what it means to be a host Conference for General Synod and to plan and annual meeting and to begin to transition out of a role, I figured I would be swamped from April through the end of 2021 and that would be just fine with me. That’s the way I work best, overwhelmed, going at warp speed.
Just as a frame of reference for how my plans work out, the last time I had to have a big plan was late 2010 as my role as the Associate General Minister would end at the upcoming Synod in 2011 and everyone (including me) wanted to know what I was going to do. This was my plan: We had just built a new house; so no we were not returning to Kansas (in fact we were never returning to Kansas) and I was looking for a job outside the church. I planned to work for a non-profit organization, but definitely not the church.
One would think that nine years later preparing to retire in Kansas from the role of Conference Minister in KO Conference of the United CHURCH of Christ, I just might get the message that I’m not really in charge, but I guess I’m a slow learner. At least this time as my plans for 2021 have not materialized, I’m not the only person whose plans were interrupted. The pandemic has changed a lot for everyone. In the whole scheme of things my scheduling interruptions are minor and almost everyone can name a whole laundry list of things they have learned. One thing in particular stands out for me; and that is how hard times of transitions and change are or can be both for individuals and organizations.
If you have read my writing over the years, you know how often and strongly I have encouraged and written about the need for churches to change and how important it is for lay members and pastors to embrace and welcome change. And honestly, I like to think of myself as a person who welcomes change. But when my plans are interrupted or when I have to adapt my way of being or working; it’s really hard. It’s easier to write and talk about change than it is to actually change or accept change, or even to step aside and to make space for change.
This year, I have had to change. I have always been the person in charge, the person called on to know the answers, the key resource person. It’s a role I have loved because I like connecting people and part of me likes being the “go to” person. But this year it’s different; and if I am to be an effective leader for KO in this time of transition it means I have to be a different kind of leader. I have to change. So I have been especially focused on letting go; on giving information and background to others so they will be better prepared to lead into the future. It means stepping back and realizing that by stepping back space is made for others to step forward. Leading differently means that you are thankfully reading pieces in eNEWS written by others, it means that you are seeing opportunities to join morning prayers or book studies led by others in the KO; you are seeing more people are engaged in the life of the Conference and that bodes well for the future. Sometimes I wonder what would have happened here if I had made this change earlier; was the Conference ready for this change earlier and I wasn’t, or have things come together now at just the right time? It’s a question that I don’t really gain anything from, except perhaps regret or maybe guilt. But maybe others who are in different places in their ministry might ask and gain insight for their ministry setting.
I am not as visible these days in our most visible places, eNEWS and on Facebook, but that makes space for others to be more visible. I’m still here, but I am not rushing to my computer every time something happens. First of all, I find it’s too emotionally exhausting. And would you really be surprised to know that I am outraged by the shooting of Daunte Wright in Minnesota or that my heart breaks for Adam Toledo and his family in Chicago and the families of the those killed in Indianapolis? Would you be surprised to hear that I am disgusted by SB 55 that was passed by the Kansas legislature and a similar bill that just passed in Oklahoma? These bills are touted as a protection of girls sports when they are in-fact attacks on vulnerable transgender youth and their participation in sports.
So, what am I doing? I am still working with the Committees on Ministry, preparing to support the General Synod delegates for this first ever Virtual General Synod, we still have an Annual Meeting for KO to plan, there are still search committees, pastors and local churches with a variety of questions to respond to and support. And I am still serving and fully participating in the wider church responsibilities, with my colleagues on the Council of Conference Ministers, United Church Funds and the Insurance Boards. And now that congregations are beginning to resume in person worship and I am fully vaccinated, I look forward to seeing some of you in worship actually in your churches sometime in the next several months; it’s been a long time. Oh yes, I actually do still work here!