A Step Along the Way

2022 October Blog Rachel Drotar ~

This is what we are about.
We plant the seeds that one day will grow.
We water seeds already planted, knowing that they hold future promise.
We lay foundations that will need further development.
We provide yeast that produces far beyond our capabilities.
We cannot do everything, and there is a sense of liberation in realizing that.
This enables us to do something, and to do it very well.
It may be incomplete, but it is a beginning, a step along the way,
an opportunity for the Lord’s grace to enter and do the rest.
We may never see the end results,
but that is the difference between the master builder and the worker.
We are workers, not master builders; ministers, not messiahs.
We are prophets of a future not our own.

I first heard these words from Rich Clark, founder of Saint Martin de Porres High School, Cleveland’s Cristo Rey school. The words have followed the path of the growing school, providing a college preparatory education for young leaders in the city. As a former educator, the long term vision and consistent investment in the future of young people was often a center point of conversation. I am met again by these words as we continue the work we have been so carefully crafting at Centering Space.

I have deeply enjoyed serving as Advisory Board Chair these past two years and am grateful for the opportunity to see the inner workings of what makes this organization special. It is now a shared call for us all to see our future forward. One way I am continuing my relationship with Centering Space is by contributing to the Centering Space Day of Giving, an opportunity for me to sit and reflect on the ways this place has allowed me to slow down and look inward. I am excited to contribute to the future of this organization so that others may see the fruits of the planted seeds. I am proud to stay connected to this community and hope their community deepens and grows, and giving is one way I can help ensure this reality to live into the future.

Whether it’s a woman planting seeds for a towering oak tree under which she will never feel the shade, or community members of Centering Space breathing new life into the next stage of our beloved home, we are prophetic in our witness of what this place has meant to us. We are prophetic in the ways we see a welcoming environment for new members of all ages and beliefs.

In looking toward our 20th anniversary in 2023, we will continue to share new programming, events, and opportunities to contribute that not only integrate our mission into the community, but allow for space to grow toward a future we may not yet know. We are excited to be part of this birth and cannot wait to grow together into this new vision. I invite you to consider participating in the Centering Space Day of Giving on Tuesday, November 1st to be part of our shared future. In what ways are you bearing witness to the future of our shared home? Who are you welcoming on this journey?