As a parish pastor, I am called to lead my congregation through growth and change. While I often know what is most comfortable for me, my role as pastor means I have to step outside of myself and consider the whole picture. Who is God calling us to be, and how are we to live that out? In turn, this often leads to new growth, which every church says they want.
Yet, growth means change. It means new people sitting in “your” seats and pews, unfamiliar faces at coffee hour, and these newbies wanting to get in on the action of ministry teams and committees.
New means the old has shifted away. What we have loved and nurtured has grown and possibly changed to the point that we can no longer recognize it.
Yet the same God who makes space for us – space for our existence, our thoughts, hopes, and dreams – invites us into the holy work of making space for others. Of opening up our boundaries that might otherwise limit us from making new relationships and deepening existing ones.
This message is excerpted from “What an online community taught me about being the church” by Jenna Pulkowski in the October 2021 Café online magazine.
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