Courageous in Community

By Pastor Sarah Anderson

​This past Sunday we celebrated Pentecost, the day when God’s presence, in the form of a mighty wind, came to be among us forever. Ever since the rushing wind of the Spirit that first Pentecost day, God’s movement has been stirring in all of creation. In fact, the Spirit is moving in you as you read this, and because the Spirit moves within you, you are granted the confidence and courage to step into new experiences.

Maybe it feels like a new experience to once again engage in our faith community after a pandemic left us isolated for so long. We are created to be in community - to interact, to laugh, to debate, to support one another, to share hard truths and so much more! In Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s book, Life Together, he writes, “The more genuine and the deeper our community becomes, the more will everything else between us recede, the more clearly and purely will Jesus Christ and his work become the one and only thing that is vital between us.” To be in genuine community sometimes takes courage, but I know you have it in you. 

One way to beCOURAGEous in community this week is to come out for Wednesday’s Pizza Night. You could even take your courage one step further and volunteer  (click here to sign-up). You might even invite a friend or neighbor to join you for the evening. Yes, the night is centered around pizza, but it is so much more. It will be a Godspeed for Amity as we thank her for her service as the Director of Youth and Family Ministry before she and Alyssa prepare for their move to Michigan. It will be a time to be in God’s creation, enjoying the sunshine and the shade, the flowers blooming, and a cool breeze. It will be a time to share highs and lows of your week as you socialize with others. It will be a time to listen to each other. It will be a time for fun and fellowship, and it will be a time when God’s presence is among us.