I’m really bad about not being able to find something that is right in front of me. I have torn apart a room looking for my keys, spending twenty minutes searching. Then Danielle walks in the room and immediately points to where they are and says, "You've got to be kidding me, right?" I needed a new set of eyes to show me what was right there all along. The same thing happens when I write a letter. I'll read it ten times to make sure everything is correct. Then I'll hand it to someone else to proofread and they'll immediately pick out a misspelling or incorrect word. I needed a new set of eyes to show me what was right there all along.
A church member said to me just this morning, "We've seen the negative for so long it's hard to see anything else." That could happen to any group of people that has been through the instability that our church has experienced in the past several years. So I see myself as a new set of eyes to show our church what has been right here all along: faith, passion, energy, openness, and even numbers of people. As I researched congregations during my search for a new call I came across a lot of congregations that did not seem to have all the possibilities that this congregation has.
As a new set of eyes I see lots of little kids who need to be excited and engaged by Sunday school, middle schoolers who want to be confirmed but haven't had the opportunity, and a high school senior who is willing to dedicate his final semester to building a foundation for a high school youth group but just needed some pastoral support and guidance. Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these." I take that seriously. I'm not one to wait around when I see young people who actually want to grow in their faith. I just figure out what needs to be done to roll out the red carpet for them.
There are a lot of things brewing at FPC that I thought everyone might want to know about. The Sunday school curriculum for Kindergarten through 5th grade is getting a total overhaul, moving to a rotational curriculum that is highly activity based. The optimistic start date for that change is February 5. The kids will spend four weeks on the same passage of Scripture but learn it in four different ways. For instance, the first passage the kids will study is the 23rd Psalm. On one week they will do a cooking project about it, the next have a craft, then a game, and then drama. By the end of the month they’ll know the 23rd Psalm better than you and I do. Then they’ll move on to something else for the next four weeks. We need leaders and helpers so please contact me if you are willing. If you don’t call me there’s a pretty good chance I’ll be calling you.
The optimistic start date for a communicants/confirmation class for any youth 12 years old during the Sunday school hour is also on February 5 in “The Center” downstairs. The plan is for me to lead this class. It will last through May. So far I know of three kids who have shown interest in participating.
On January 22 from 7:00-8:30 pm we will have high school youth group at the church for the first time in years. I’ve sent out postcards to 10 high schoolers who are a part of this church and Jesse Penwell is personally inviting them, as well as others.
Our attendance the past three Sundays has been 113, 137, and 129. That's good, but it won't last without addressing issues of Christian Education. Everybody is excited right now and checking out the new pastor. But we won't stay this excited forever, especially if families find that there are no other opportunities for their kids. So I hope I won't be pushy in utilizing my "new set of eyes" but I will be aggressive in addressing the major issues that stand between us and greater vitality. I'm serious when I say everything we need is right here in front of us. It's just that it is easy to look at something you think you've lost for so long that you cannot see that you never lost it in the first place. It's right here in front of us! You may not be able to see it yet, but you will. I promise, you will.
