Deborah Simonson Smith, Cohort 5

How sad that it takes a death to be in communication with one another and how wonderful that Tim's influence in our lives makes us want to reach out to one another in grief.

I do not think that it was coincidence that our Ash Wednesday meditation focused on metanoia and its meaning to the new testament Jews. We focused first on the eight ways of Jewish giving.

The last verse of the Matthew text is "For where your treasure is there your heart will be also." I have been prayerfully focusing on this verse for nearly a year. A pastor told his congregation that we need to remember that this means to place your treasure where you want your heart to follow. (For me, that means to encourage people to be wise stewards of their monetary gifts and invest with the Mission Investment Fund so that their hearts can follow to places like the new churches that we are building because of their investment beliefs. So often, we misinterpret this verse and think that we should follow our hearts with our gifts i.e. have a passion for world hunger and then be motivated to give.

Along with everything that Tim meant to us, he conveyed the message of placing our treasure in the places that we want our hearts to follow.

Deborah Simonson Smith, Cohort 5