Mosaic Mennonites

Missional - Intercultural - Formational

Articles

Three Congregations Discern New Directions

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Three congregations have withdrawn from Mosaic Mennonite Conference in recent months, each for different reasons and with different hopes for their future ministries.

In Philadelphia, Iglesia Cristiana Peña de Horeb concluded its membership in Mosaic and Pastor Dania Hernandez withdrew her ministerial credentials effective April 1, 2026. Over the past several years, the congregation has developed growing relationships with Spanish-speaking churches throughout Central and South America and has discerned a call to build an independent network of congregations.

Although Pastor Hernandez expressed deep appreciation for Mosaic Mennonite Conference and Anabaptist faith and practice, she and the congregation’s leaders determined that their evolving vision was best pursued outside the conference structure.

“I have enjoyed walking with Pastor Dania and the leaders of Peña de Horeb, and I pray that God will continue to bless them as they share the gospel of Jesus Christ and form support networks for pastors and congregations,” shared Leadership Minister Marta Castillo.

Deep Run West Mennonite in Perkasie, Pennsylvania, voted on February 8, 2026, to withdraw from Mosaic Conference with 90% support. Congregational leaders cited theological concerns, including disagreement with Mosaic’s approach to congregations that affirm LGBTQ inclusion.

Leadership Minister Jeff Wright expressed sadness regarding the congregation’s decision. “I wish that Pastor Rodger and the leadership at Deep Run West would have engaged with Conference leadership in a more formal discussion around their concerns,” he said. “I continue to hope that churches that self-identify as ‘conservative’ and churches that self-identify as ‘progressive’ can find ways to remain in mission together through a shared confession that Jesus Christ is Lord.”

A third congregation, Swamp Mennonite, arrived at its decision after several years of discernment and conversation. The congregation began discussing its fit within Mosaic in 2022 through conversations with its Leadership Minister and conference leaders. After more than two years of engagement at the leadership level, Swamp began exploring other Anabaptist communities in 2024 and entered a season of congregational prayer, conversation, feedback, and discernment. Through that process, the congregation concluded that affiliation with LMC was the direction that best fit its next season of ministry.

Swamp’s pastors shared, “We are grateful for our ongoing relationship with Mosaic as we have walked through this process of transferring our congregational membership.”

“We give thanks for the faithfulness, relationships, and witness we have shared together over the years with Swamp Mennonite,” shared Leadership Minister Josh Meyer. “As they begin this new chapter with LMC, our posture is one of blessing: we release them with gratitude, pray for their continued faithfulness to Jesus, and trust that the bonds we share in Christ remain larger than any conference affiliation.”

That spirit of blessing was reflected in Meyer’s prayer during Swamp’s May 31 worship service. In part, he prayed:
“Even as formal conference ties change, may the bonds of Christian fellowship continue. May there be no spirit of rivalry, resentment, or suspicion, but only the generous love of Christ. Teach us to bless one another freely, to release one another faithfully, and to trust that your kingdom is larger than any one congregation, conference, or institution.”

“We are disappointed in the withdrawals of these communities from Mosaic,” shared Executive Minister Stephen Kriss. “They remain our neighbors and friends in Bucks County and South Philadelphia. We hope that as they seek new alignments and relationships, the Spirit will continue to stir and bring life.”

Kriss observed that while the reasons for the withdrawals differ significantly, all three congregations are seeking greater autonomy and ministry relationships that they believe better fit their future direction.

“We will seek to live peaceably and open-handedly as Deep Run West continues to worship alongside Deep Run East; Peña de Horeb continues to worship in the meetinghouse of Indonesian Light Church; and as West Swamp and Swamp continue to be nearby neighbors in Quakertown though with different affiliations again.”

Mosaic values two-way communication and encourages our constituents to respond with feedback, questions, or encouragement. To share your thoughts or send a message to the author(s), contact us at communication@mosaicmennonites.org.   

Ministerial Committee Update – June 2026

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The Ministerial Committee makes decisions on ministry credentials and policies that promote the support, health, and training of credentialed leaders and safe church practices for congregations. They meet quarterly to act on recommendations from the credentials committee, review and revise current policies around credentialed leaders, and provide leadership in cases of misconduct.

Report from the June 2026 Ministerial Committee Meeting:

Licenses Approved

License Toward Ordination (LTO) – grants the person all the privileges and responsibilities accorded to an ordained person, except to ordain someone else. This license is issued for a three-year period with the purpose of testing the inner and outer call to ministry, further discerning of ministerial gifts, abilities and aptitude and may or may not lead to ordination.

  • Henny Vina Krisnadi – Whitehall (PA) Mennonite; Church planter
  • Yesenia Perez Morales – Iglesia Evangelica Menonita Shalom (Tampa, FL); Associate Pastor
  • Jacob Wibowo – Philadelphia (PA) Praise Center; Associate Pastor
  • Laura Alderfer – Salford (PA) Mennonite; Music Pastor

Ordination – grants the person the full range of ministerial privileges and responsibilities. This is a long-term, leadership ministry credential appropriate for all pastors, area conference ministry staff, chaplains, missionaries, evangelists, and those determined by the church to have a continuing ministerial-leadership role in, and on behalf of, the church.

  • Joe Paparone – Bethany Mennonite (Bridgewater Corners, VT); Community organizer/Pastor
  • Dave Moyer – Zion Mennonite (Souderton, PA); Associate Pastor
  • Eszter Bjorkman – Neffsville Mennonite (Lancaster, PA); Associate Pastor

License Extension (for 3 years) – Issued for a three-year period with the purpose of testing the inner and outer call to ministry, further discerning of ministerial gifts, abilities and aptitude and may or may not lead to ordination. It is extended for three more years as needed.

  • Kirby King – Souderton (PA) Mennonite, License for Specific Ministry – Bible Department Chair/Teacher – Dock Mennonite Academy (Lansdale, PA)
  • Joseph Brooks – College Hill Mennonite (Tampa, FL), License towards Ordination – Associate Pastor

Moved to Active without Charge – held by those not presently holding a ministry assignment

  • Hunter Hess (Neffsville Mennonite)
  • Mary Nitzsche (since 2024 when she resigned leadership minister role with Mosaic Conference)
  • Randy Heacock (Doylestown [PA] Mennonite)

Moved to Inactive – held by those who have been without a ministerial assignment for more than three consecutive years. This credential is not valid for performing ministerial functions.

  • Daniel Tran (Vietnamese Gospel [Allentown, PA])

Withdrawn

  • Nathan Good (Swamp Mennonite [Quakertown, PA])
  • Tracy Commons (Swamp Mennonite [Quakertown, PA])
  • Dania Hernández (Peña de Horeb [Philadelphia, PA])
  • Mike Spinelli (Perkiomenville [PA] Mennonite)
  • Bob Helverson (Salem Mennonite [Quakertown, PA])
  • Bruce Eglinton-Woods (Salem Mennonite [Quakertown, PA])

Moved to Active

  • Gwen Groff – Interim role at Taftsville (VT) Mennonite

Committee Updates and Discussions

Credentialing Leaders Profile – (Form that candidating pastors fill out, and the corresponding reference forms). The committee discussed further revisions of the profile and reference forms.

Credentialing Procedure Update – (Internal working policy for credentialing process for licenses and renewals). The committee will review in its September meeting

Abuse and Misconduct Policy and Procedure – (Policy and procedure for response to allegations of abuse). The committee was informed that GRACE has written the first draft of a policy for Mosaic Conference. It is currently being reviewed by a select group of people from the board, ministerial, and credentials committees then will be returned to GRACE for updates. Further review will be done through intercultural and language lenses, after which it will given to the ministerial committee and board for final approval.

Centering Posture Document application in Ministerial Committee and Credentials Committee – The committee was reminded that we have been asked to use the Mosaic Centering document (A Mosaic Identity: Clarifying Our Center) as a guide for our policies and actions. For example, the questions that the Credentials Committee asks have changed to reflect Mosaic priorities and values.

Congregational Change Updates

  • Peña de Horeb (Philadelphia, PA) is withdrawing membership in Mosaic Conference
  • Hope Church (Temecula, CA) is requesting to join Mosaic Conference
  • Iglesia Menonita Fuente de Agua Viva (Monterrey, Mexico) is requesting to join Mosaic Conference

Committee Members – The Nominating Committee is working to name new committee members, including:

  • The Chair of the Credentials Committee will join when affirmed by the Credentials Committee. The Credentials Committee will also name Spanish-speaking vice chair who may or may not join the Ministerial Committee.
  • Boendianto from JKIA (Jemaat Kristen Indonesia Anugerah [Sierra Madre, CA]) has been affirmed by the Nominating Committee and named to the Ministerial Committee.
  • Staff committee members – There are currently two committee members on the Ministerial Committee who have joined the Mosaic Conference staff during their committee term. According to our bylaws, staff members who are on committees would be non-voting members. The committee discussed options and gave input for addressing committee members who are conference staff (voting vs non-voting roles).
    • ACTION: The committee voted unanimously that Rose Bender Cook and Josh Meyer will become non-voting committee members when new members are selected and onboarded at the beginning of next year.

Mosaic values two-way communication and encourages our constituents to respond with feedback, questions, or encouragement. To share your thoughts or send a message to the author(s), contact us at communication@mosaicmennonites.org.   

Mosaic Conference Board Update – June 2026

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The Conference Board supervises the business of the conference, including conference committees, and does strategic planning to ensure that the conference is maintaining alignment with its vision and following the lead of the Spirit into areas of growth and change.

Report from the June 3, 2026 Board Meeting

Assistant Moderator Janet Panning (Plains Mennonite [Hatfield, PA]) welcomed those gathered and thanked them for their flexibility after the May 18 meeting was rescheduled due to a lack of quorum.

Intercultural Committee Chair Emmanuel Mwaipopo (Nueva Vida Norristown [PA] New Life) opened with a devotional centered on love in the life of the church. Drawing on the song Love Each Other by Graham Kendrick, he invited board members to reflect on both the beauty of Christian love and the places where the church continues to struggle with Christ’s call to love one another.

Assembly 2026 Planning

The board affirmed Psalm 116:1-2 as the centering scripture for Mosaic’s annual assembly, which will be held on November 7, 2026, in Souderton, PA.

The board also considered a proposal regarding virtual participation for delegates. At the request of the Executive Committee, conference staff prepared recommendations outlining how delegates with extenuating circumstances might participate remotely.

Following discussion and questions, the board approved a process that will allow delegates who are unable to attend in person because of extenuating circumstances to participate virtually. Congregations seeking virtual participation for delegates will work through their Leadership Minister, with final approval coordinated through the Associate Executive Minister.

Board Listening Session Reflections

Board members reflected on the spring listening sessions they attended and reviewed summaries from gatherings held so far. A final in-person listening session is planned in California later this summer.

Because the first virtual listening session reached capacity, staff recommended offering an additional online gathering. The board supported the proposal, with invitations being extended to English- and Spanish-speaking congregations that have not yet participated.

Several board members expressed appreciation for the healthy conversation guides used during the sessions and encouraged future opportunities for similarly structured dialogue. After the final session, a summary report of all 2026 listening sessions will be shared in a future issue of Mosaic News.

Congregational Membership Changes

The board formally acknowledged a letter from and accepted the withdrawal of Swamp Mennonite (Quakertown, PA) from membership in Mosaic Mennonite Conference, effective immediately, and sent the congregation with blessing.

Strategic Plan Updates

Ministerial Committee Chair Michael Howes (West Swamp Mennonite [Quakertown, PA]) shared updates regarding the credentialing process and changes implemented since the 2025 Delegate Assembly.

As part of the board’s ongoing strategic plan work, members discussed interest in reviewing how the Church Together conference documents – Faith and Life, Grace and Truth, and Going to the Margins – function within conference life. The board will form a group, which will be named at the Executive Committee meeting in July, to review the documents in light of Mosaic’s strategic plan and bring recommendations to a future board meeting.

March Board Retreat Reflections

The board reflected on the March board retreat and affirmed Maati Yvonne for the circle process that she led. Board members also received letters from the Inclusive Pastors Group expressing appreciation for opportunity for conversation at the March board retreat.

Leadership and Ministry Updates

In his report, Executive Minister Stephen Kriss shared that the Ambassadors summer program is underway with 16 participants and that fundraising efforts for the expanded Ambassadors program continue.

He also provided updates on congregations exploring membership in Mosaic Conference. Two congregations are pursuing membership conversations, as well as one potential Conference-Related Ministry. Board and staff are visiting these potential partners.

Kriss also shared updates on efforts to align staffing levels with current workloads and highlighted various ways congregations are engaging with conference ministries and initiatives.

A review for the Executive Minister, which had been planned last year but delayed until this summer, is underway. Carlos Romero, charged with the review process, will be reaching out to individuals across the conference in the coming months as part of the process.

The next meeting of the full Conference Board is scheduled for August 15.

Mosaic values two-way communication and encourages our constituents to respond with feedback, questions, or encouragement. To share your thoughts or send a message to the author(s), contact us at communication@mosaicmennonites.org.   

No Longer Strangers and Aliens but Fellow Citizens

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by Tim Weaver

So, then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone.

Ephesians 2:19-20, NRSV

I have been traveling to Honduras for more than 20 years to support initiatives to improve children’s health in under-resourced rural areas with the Conference-Related Ministry Healthy Niños Honduras. My commitment to this work is born out of living and serving in Venezuela in the 1980s, global economic inequality and disparity, and the growing awareness of being part of a global community of believers.

As conflicts in the U.S. over immigration have festered for more than 20 years, I have welcomed the opportunity to serve in a small way in one of countries most affected by inequality. I have seen poverty, malnutrition, and violence in Honduras.

Healthy Niños has a nutrition center where mothers and malnourished children can live for one or two months while the malnourished child receives attention from doctors, social workers, teachers, and faith leaders. There are also staff who identify and train community leaders to support this work.

I have worked alongside Hondurans who are committed to helping their fellow citizens better their living conditions. These Hondurans are not strangers or aliens to me but fellow citizens of the household of God.

I am also aware of the lost hope with which many Venezuelans and Hondurans currently live. Poverty and violence are a deadly combination. For some, it leads to seeking a better future through an arduous journey of immigrating to the United States. Contrary to popular opinion, most who make that journey are hardworking people seeking to escape violence and send money back to their families. The rate of violent crime among immigrants is significantly less than that of those born and raised in the U.S.

The day after I returned home from Honduras last January, the new president shut down the CBP One app which immigrants used to schedule asylum appointments at the U.S.-Mexico border. ICE is now permitted to enter “sensitive locations” including schools, hospitals, and churches. I know numerous immigrants in the agricultural, meat packing, and health care fields who are devastated by fear of what may happen next. They are not strangers or aliens but fellow citizens in household of God with me.

As a follower of Jesus, my travels to Central America as well as friendship with immigrants living in the U.S. remind me of several truths. First, I am a member of the global community of faith with many nationalities and languages. The color of my skin, the language that I speak, and the place where I live should not give me any preferred status or power in the global community of faith.

Secondly, I must resist the current political rhetoric that stereotypes immigrants as despicable, violent, and taking benefits away from me. Immigrants paid $51 billion in taxes last year and received nothing in return.

Thirdly, Jesus’ teachings invite our mission to be the same as his as stated in Luke 4:18-19, to “bring good news to the poor, release to the captive, recovery of sight to the blind, and let the oppressed go free,” NRSV. Jesus also reminds his followers how to live in the Beatitudes (Matthew 5 and Luke 6).

My life has been enriched by fellow citizens in the household of God whose skin color and language are different from mine as we share space around the table of Christ.

Fifteen visitors from the U.S. join 15 Honduran Healthy Niños staff and community members. Photo provided by Tim Weaver.

Tim Weaver

Tim Weaver is a Leadership Minister for Mosaic Mennonite Conference. His pastoral ministry included New York, Indiana, Pennsylvania, Central America and South America.  

Mosaic values two-way communication and encourages our constituents to respond with feedback, questions, or encouragement. To contact Tim Weaver, please email tweaver@mosaicmennonites.org.

Belonging: On Paper, In Community, and In God’s Image

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by Sharon K. Williams

We may take it for granted, but one of the keys to lifting people out of poverty is to possess one’s identity documents, such as birth certificates, state-issued photo IDs and driver’s licenses, Social Security cards, and voter registration. This has been the mission of Nueva Vida Norristown (PA) New Life’s (NVNNL) Photo ID Clinic for the past 13 years.

Along the way, we have assisted fire and flood victims; survivors of domestic abuse, addictions, and human trafficking; returning citizens; young people applying for their first jobs; and low-income families seeking housing and registering their children for school. We have built partnerships with various ministries in our city and trained other agencies to do what we do. It’s a great way to build connections and strengthen our ability to share the love of Jesus.

Society’s way of honoring each person’s presence and worth starts with these identity documents. Adam Russell Taylor, president of Sojourners, writes,

I always start with the concept of imago dei [the image of God]. Genesis 1:26–27 says that God created human beings in God’s own image and likeness. While democratic systems are always imperfect, I still strongly believe they provide the best way to honor and affirm every person’s dignity, prevent the abuse of power, and advance the common good. Voting [registration is based on these identity documents] is our voice; it’s what lends our democratic system its legitimacy and what enables us to hold our elected officials accountable. (“What Most Concerned Me About Trump’s State of the Union,” February 25, 2026)

Finding good, affordable housing in Norristown is a challenge, as it is in many places. We are praying with several people who are seeking better places to live. Recently, we went to special lengths to help a person in our congregation get an elusive birth certificate—only to discover that the birth had never been recorded. “But I’m a real person!” this person exclaimed. This situation is unimaginable but it’s not the first time we have encountered it. It resulted in the person’s inability to apply for government-aided senior housing. But God had another plan—an apartment owned by someone associated with our congregation. Talk about connections!

We are also praying for the Norristown Hospitality Center which, ironically, is seeking a new home for its ministry to the unhoused and persons with very low income. In 1990, NVNNL was one of the founding congregations of the Hospitality Center. Last year, the center lost its lease in a facility close to our church that is owned by the Episcopal Diocese of Philadelphia. The Hospitality Center actively partnered with us in the Photo ID Clinic, providing hosting, staff, and financial aid to supplement our volunteers and funding, including a Missional Operations Grant from Mosaic Conference. It was a perfect partnership. But the center’s tenuous situation in a temporary location has caused the clinics to be put on hold.

All of this is happening at a time when people in our pews and communities are being pushed and stretched more than ever. We are praying every week in an interfaith gathering for God’s protection and provision for the people of our city. Please pray with us for new, effective ways to extend God’s love to our neighbors and those in need.

Sharon K. Williams

Sharon K. Williams serves as the minister of worship with the Nueva Vida Norristown (PA) New Life Mennonite congregation.

Mosaic values two-way communication and encourages our constituents to respond with feedback, questions, or encouragement. To share your thoughts or send a message to the author(s), contact us at communication@mosaicmennonites.org.   

Sacred Listening – Interpreters Ministry Group

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by Marta Castillo

On May 2, 2026, sixteen Mosaic interpreters from eight congregations1 and representing seven languages2 gathered with the team from The Kaleidoscope Institute, led Eric Law, for a two-hour Sacred Listening training session. The gathering laid the foundation for an ongoing interpreters’ support community across Mosaic.

Slides from the Gathering
Slides from the Gathering

The purpose of this new group is to build a community of support for Mosaic’s gracious interpreters and to hear directly about the struggles and joys they experience in this work. We seek to name interpretation as a ministry and explore interpretation across different settings.

The community will focus on building one another’s confidence as gifted intercultural leaders, identifying shared best practices, understanding interpreters’ rights, and exploring the calling for this work.

All Mosaic interpreters will be invited to participate in quarterly gatherings. An additional training with Kaleidoscope Institute is planned for September 2026. If you are an interpreter, or know an interpreter in your congregation or ministry who would like to participate, please contact Marta Castillo.

Marta Castillo

Marta Castillo is the Associate Executive Minister for Mosaic Conference.

Mosaic values two-way communication and encourages our constituents to respond with feedback, questions, or encouragement. To contact Marta Castillo, please email mcastillo@mosaicmennonites.org.

  1. Whitehall (PA) Mennonite, Nueva Vida Norristown (PA) New Life, Encuentro de Renovación (Miami, FL), Lakeview Mennonite (Susquehanna, PA), Indonesian Light Church (Philadelphia, PA), Philadelphia Praise Center, Souderton (PA) Mennonite, Resplandece Mennonite (Pembroke Pines, FL and hybrid) ↩︎
  2. Spanish, Indonesian, Cantonese, Creole, Karen, Lingala, French  ↩︎

Mosaic Groups Growing Together

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by Marta Castillo

Across Mosaic, groups continue to gather regularly for community, relationship building, and leadership development. As part of Mosaic’s strategic plan, these gatherings help strengthen shared identity while creating space for mutual transformation and support.

Existing groups already meeting include (this list is incomplete):

  • Lansdale-area youth leaders gathering monthly, led by Brooke Martin
  • Florida-area pastors gathering quarterly in English-Spanish hybrid meetings (in person and on Zoom) for prayer, fellowship, and equipping, coordinated by Marta Castillo
  • Multi-staff pastors gathering quarterly, led by Stephen Kriss
  • Indonesian pastors gathering quarterly, led by Hendy Matahelemuhal
  • ⁠Inclusive pastors gathering quarterly, led by Joe Paparone
  • Female leaders gathering annually, coordinated by Marta Castillo
  • ⁠Interpreters gathering quarterly, coordinated by Marta Castillo
  • Chaplains gathering quarterly, coordinated by Tim Weaver
  • Spiritual directors gathering quarterly, coordinated by Marilyn Bender

Mosaic hopes to encourage even more groups to form around shared identities, interests, and callings. Future possibilities could include prayer groups, scripture study groups, men’s groups, women’s groups, and more.

What Mosaic groups are you already part of? What new groups could begin this year?

Marta Castillo

Marta Castillo is the Associate Executive Minister for Mosaic Conference.

Mosaic values two-way communication and encourages our constituents to respond with feedback, questions, or encouragement. To contact Marta Castillo, please email mcastillo@mosaicmennonites.org.

The Rich Young Ruler speaks

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by Josh Meyer

Editor’s Note: This reflection was originally published in Anabaptist World on April 28, 2026 and is reprinted with permission.  

People say I walked away sad. That’s true. But what they don’t say is that I also walked away haunted.

I can still see his face when I asked the question. I had rehearsed it, of course. Everyone does when they’re young and earnest and afraid of missing something essential. What must I do to inherit eternal life? It sounded clean when I practiced it. Respectable. Almost admirable.

He didn’t answer the way I expected. He didn’t flatter me, or scold me, or debate theology. He asked me why I called him good. Then he named the commandments, one by one, like stones placed carefully on the ground.

I remember feeling relieved. These I have kept, I said. And it was true. I wasn’t lying. I had lived carefully. Intentionally. My life was ordered, my faith sincere.

That’s when he looked at me.

The look was not sharp. It was not suspicious or disappointed. It was steady. Knowing. Almost tender. As if he could see not only the man standing before him but the boy I had been, the man I was becoming, the weight I carried without naming it.

The look undid me.

He loved me. I know that now. At the time, I didn’t have language for it. I only knew that something in his gaze felt like an invitation and a reckoning at the same time.

A rich young man asked: “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
Jesus said: “You lack one thing. Sell what you own and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

When he heard this, he was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions.

Mark 10: 17, 21-22.

“You lack one thing,” he said.

Just one thing? I remember thinking that was manageable. One thing I could adjust. One habit to refine. One prayer to add.

“Go,” he said. “Sell what you own. Give to the poor. Then come, follow me.”

He said it simply, not as a threat or as a test, but as if he were naming the obvious next step.

I wish I could tell you I hesitated for a long time. That I wrestled with it. That I prayed and discerned and agonized right there on the road. But the truth is, my body answered before my spirit could catch up.

I felt the weight in my chest, the tightening in my throat, the inventory running through my mind — land, livestock, workers who depended on me, responsibilities I had inherited and assumed without ever questioning whether they were mine to carry.

My hands were full. I didn’t know how to open them without dropping everything. So I turned away.

Yes, I was sad. But sadness wasn’t the worst of it. The worst was that I knew he was right. He had named the thing I couldn’t name for myself.

In the years since, people have told my story for me. They’ve used it as a warning, a lesson, a neat illustration about wealth and discipleship. I don’t blame them. Stories like mine are easier when they end quickly.

But real lives don’t.

I went back to my fields, my house, my obligations. Everything was exactly where I left it. And yet nothing was the same. The barns felt heavier. The table quieter. The prayers harder to finish.

I continued keeping the commandments, but they no longer felt sufficient — like obedience that never quite crossed the threshold into freedom.

I began to notice things I hadn’t noticed before. The laborers who avoided my eyes. The hunger that didn’t come from lack of food. The way generosity felt exhilarating and terrifying all at once.

I started small. Quietly. Anonymous gifts. Canceled debts. A field sold here. A purse lightened there. More than I ever thought I would give away.

Less than he asked.

People praised my generosity. They said I was wise, faithful, balanced. But I knew the difference. There is a kind of giving that costs you comfort and another that costs you control.

I reread the commandments often now. Not to reassure myself but to remember the God who gave them. The God who brought slaves out of Egypt with empty hands and taught them how to receive manna, one day at a time.

Sometimes, late at night, I wonder what my life would have been if I had said yes that day. What roads I would have walked. What stories I would have heard. What I would have learned by following instead of managing.

Other times, I wonder whether he knew I would walk away. I wonder whether the invitation itself was already grace. I wonder whether love can be real even when it is refused.

I still pray. Not as confidently as I once did, but more honestly.

And sometimes I imagine him walking my road again. Not to shame me. Not to repeat the demand. Just to look at me the way he did before.

If that day comes, I pray my hands will be lighter. And my heart, finally, full.

Josh Meyer

Joshua Meyer is a Leadership Minister with Mosaic Mennonite Conference. He also serves as a Financial Consultant with Everence and as an adjunct professor at Eastern University.

Mosaic values two-way communication and encourages our constituents to respond with feedback, questions, or encouragement. To contact Josh Meyer, please email jmeyer@mosaicmennonites.org.