Dreams Dreaming Us

Over the last four years, I’ve had the privilege of sitting across from many of Salem’s leaders—pastors, organizers, educators, artists, and dreamers—listening as they shared their hopes for this city we all call home. Each conversation has been a window into the deep care and creativity that lives here: dreams of housing and healing, of belonging and justice, of young people flourishing and elders being honored.

I have gotten to know Levi Herrera-Lopez, director of Mano A Mano, and Ray White, Board President of Be BLAC Foundation, just to name a few. I have taken the time to meet with many of my colleagues as well as a few civic leaders as I deepen my understanding of Salem. Through these encounters, relationships have formed, and the threads of collaboration have begun as we seek to weave a stronger, more resilient community together.

This month, as part of our Dreaming God’s Dream stewardship series, we’re bringing that same spirit of holy listening into worship through a series of Dream Teller Interviews. These conversations remind us that stewardship is not just about budgets or buildings—it’s about tending the dreams God plants among us and discovering how our gifts can bring them to life.

Last Sunday, Shelley Wagener interviewed Susan Bearden, who shared her dreams for our emerging Resilience Hub. She shared her vision of hospitality and hope that connects people in moments of transition and need and keeps our building busy seven days a week. (You can watch her interview here.) Her words reminded us that every faithful dream begins with the courage to believe that something new is possible.

This coming Sunday, Susan Smith will interview a new Dream Teller, and we will be invited to imagine the dream they have for our community and our building.

On November 19th, Cheryl Beaver will speak with another Dream Teller whose vision will invite us to connect our faith with the work of justice and compassion in new and practical ways.

And on November 23rd, Commitment Sunday, I will be interviewing three remarkable leaders in Salem:

• Andrea Castañeda, Superintendent of the Salem-Keizer School District

• Kyle Dickinson, Executive Director of Salem Leadership Foundation

• Tommy Van Cleave, Assistant Dean for Civic Engagement at Willamette University

Together, we’ll explore the dreams they hold for Salem—dreams of equity, belonging, and community renewal. We will talk about the vital role faith communities can play in making those dreams real, and how this community can help make those dreams a reality.

I can’t wait to hear the dreams each Dream Teller will share. I can’t wait to discover how our dreams overlap, and how God might be giving us the pieces we need to catch them all and weave them into something beautiful and useful for the world.

I know that each Dream Teller brings a piece of a larger vision, reminding us that God’s dream for this city (and for our congregation) is still unfolding. I don’t yet know what new relationships will form through these conversations, or how our dreams will intertwine with others. What I do know is this: without God’s dream dreaming us—without our willingness to listen, to risk, to imagine—the bigger dreams for Salem, for Oregon, and for our world will be harder to realize.

So this month, I am listening—not just for ideas or plans, but for the quiet pulse of the Spirit moving among us. And I know that pulse is alive in every dream told and every heart that dares to listen. I know that the dreams of our ancestors are alive in us and that our descendants are waiting for our dreams.

Who knows? By the end of this, we might just be surprised by the size of God’s dream for us and the community God wants to create through us.

With gratitude for all of our dreams,

Pastor Robin