Our church is doing a Wednesday night Bible study based on the book “Parables From The Back Side,” by J. Ellsworth Kalas. We watch a little introductory video in the form of an interview with Dr. Kalas before each week’s lesson.

I missed the first week of this study, and they ran out of books, so I didn’t have my own book until tonight. I borrowed my mother’s book a couple of days ago and read tonight’s chapter, on the parable of the talents (Matthew 25:14-30).

This is a depressing parable for me right now, because I feel like the servant who failed to make any return on the resources the master gave him. I’ve been feeling the past few weeks like I’m at a dead end, vocationally, financially, socially. I take pride in specific accomplishments, of course, like my mission work or the annual symphony concert in Shelbyville. But the whole seems like less than the sum of the parts. I keep telling myself that there’s something around the corner, but I wish I could have some reassurance of that.

I did get something new to look forward to today. Last year at this time, I was about to start teaching the basic United Methodist lay speaking class for the first time. It turned out to be a very small class, and I wondered how good a job I was really doing with it, but it seemed to work out OK. Today, I got an e-mail asking if I would like to teach the class again this spring, in the same once-a-week format. This time, the venue will be Bell Buckle United Methodist Church, which my father used to pastor but which has grown so much since that time it’s hardly recognizable.

It was gratifying that they want me to teach the class again. I have a suspicion that with Bell Buckle as the host church, we’ll have a larger group, which has both good and bad points.

I still have to take an advanced lay speaking class myself every three years in order to stay certified. Usually, I try to take one every two years, but it’s caught up with me this time around. I’ve signed up for a class which will be held Halloween weekend at the DuBose Conference Center in Monteagle. This is the first time the Murfreesboro District has used an overnight-stay format for lay speaking class. (There will also be a basic class taking place at the same time and place, taught by Ann Benson and Tom Wright.)

I have a lot of fond memories of DuBose from the days when Mountain T.O.P. used to do its Adults In Ministry (AIM) program there. It will be nice to be there again, if only for one night. And I can stop by Lorena’s to see some of my LEAMIS friends.