I’m sick. There, I admitted it.

I was kind of forced into it. I’ve been battling bronchitis for all of August. My doctor finally "benched" me, saying "No," to my every request. "But I’m the minister. I have to preach."

"Would a doctor’s note help?" she asked.

I don’t think she understands this whole church thing.

Or maybe I am the one who briefly forgot. As soon as I requested it, Live Oak members stepped forward, handling meetings, ministry, work that needs to be done. My colleague, Rev. Nell Newton, will be giving an awesome sermon on Sunday. At home, my daughters took care of home and each other, while my spouse made sure we had everything we needed before he left town for work.

Our Stewardship Chair, Kristin Sheets, introduced me to the current saying about "You do you." Do your thing. Be who you are.

What I’ve been reminded is that it takes others for each of us to be able to do what we do. We get sick, or overwhelmed. We raise our flag of surrender and tell someone. And people step up to help. When we have our Path to Membership class, I explain that at Live Oak, "You will be taken care of, and you will be asked to take care of others."

Thanks for taking care!