Notes from the Pastor – August 2021
Central Christian Church, I am so glad to be here with you.
I suspected it from my very first interview with the Pastoral Search Committee, and the welcome I have received here confirms it: Central Christian Church is a collection of very special people living the call of God to love and serve. Whether it was through unloading my very heavy furniture from the U-Haul into my apartment, the many and varied gifts of food, or the hugs, handshakes, and words of encouragement I received on my first Sunday, you have made it clear from the very beginning that this is where I am meant to be.
I can’t tell you how blessed I feel to have received this call right out of seminary. It is such a privilege to be able to minister with an Open and Affirming church that allows me to embrace who I am and who God has made me to be. It is a reminder of the unshakeable truth that despite all the fear, hatred, and misunderstanding in the world, the love of God is always already there, waiting for us to see it and be
transformed by it.
As I said in my Pentecost sermon when I visited in May, the Church is once again approaching a frontier; we stand at the edge of familiar territory, comfort and control at our backs, fear and faith ahead. I don’t know what the future holds for us—in a world still reeling from an ongoing pandemic, overlapping political and economic crises, and an ever-worsening climate—but I know the world needs the Church to be the living and embodied presence of God’s love.
I’m encouraged to know that the community here is willing and able to do the work, to trust in God as we step forward into the newness that the future holds. To know that the people here truly desire to live into their identity as an inclusive community living God’s radical love.
As we begin this next season of ministry together, I invite you to reach out to me with any questions, concerns, or if you simply want to chat. I’m looking forward to getting to know you in the coming months
Blessings,
Stephen
pastor@gfccc.net