Tomorrow I moderate my last presbytery meeting as moderator of the Presbytery of San Francisco. I am blessed that my kids do not mind going to these long 7-hour meetings. In fact, my son often gets excited as if he was going to Disneyland. If you ask him why, he can’t quite articulate his excitement. It’s not like there are rides or games or flashy shows.

As a treat for my kids and as a way to thank them for being such troopers this year, we went to Disneyland. I took a Sunday off and we worshipped at the Church of . . .  um . . . Disney and “heard” Mickey Mouse preach. Actually it felt less like church and more of a revival because we spent three 10-hour days there. The kids couldn’t get enough. Plus, for my husband and I who are also pastors, it did feel like a real vacation. We didn’t think about work, presbytery, church, . . . nothing. It was also fun to see how different my two kids are. My 7 year old son loves the shows and games. My 4 year old baby girl loves the roller coasters, bumper cars, carousels, and parades.

Tomorrow, I’m sure my son has a better perspective on whether presbytery parallels Disneyland. Most of all, I hope he knows how much I appreciated their cooperation and tolerance of long meetings. I am also grateful for those at presbytery and other churches who have shown my kids so much love and hospitality. I couldn’t be a good pastor/mother without my family and my fellow colleagues in ministry.