When I should be concentrating on cooking my Tex-Mex Burrito Bake and Butter Pineapple Cake, I find myself thinking about our new church. Grace is a special place and has already found a spot in our hearts. We didn't even consider trying out another church this Sunday. We like the people and I like the fact that they are in the midst of complete upheaval as they are building a new sanctuary. Weird I know, but it mirrors our life right now. And I like the way they continue on and celebrate Christ each Sunday, even if they have a wall that shouldn't have been torn down but was, or a new odd structure to contain the Sacristy and other misc items. They find humor in burning the palms in the midst of all this (de)construction of the old building - by simply cutting holes in the ceiling tiles to help the smoke filter out. It's a special place I tell ya, with special people. We too turned our world upside down for the hope of building something new and exciting. A new life, just like a new building to grow into.
I'm also baffled by the lack of youth that go to church here. I don't want to say discouraged at this point because I feel like this is some unknown challenge that God is giving us. When we mentioned SNUG to Father David this morning, his response that "this isn't America and that won't work here." Perhaps not the exact same thing, but every fiber in me had to bite my tongue and say "why not?" and my mind raced forward with another silent question "have you tried?" I don't expect everything to be the same and for the same things to work, because while we all speak English here, there are some real cultural differences in the people. But really does it matter - you love Christ, you want your children to grow in Christ (and not stop going to church as they enter their teen years), and you want to be a part of something special...transformational in some way in your own Christ journey. It has always been our experience, at least at all our years at Good Shepherd, that ALL ages can find something for them at church. So again, I'm baffled. There are a lot of little kids around Lainey's age that go to this church and a little boy, 5 months or so was baptized this morning....so HOW and WHY do the kids stop going with their parents???
If you don't engage the youth, then why would they come? We all know these are the years when you have to compete for their attention, but to seem like you are not even trying? Those of you who know us know that we like to dig in and be a part of our parish. It's how we grow in our relationship with God and with each other. I'm glad we found a place we want to call our church home while we are in Australia, but we sure have to figure out a way to roll out the proverbial Welcome Mat to the youth in this place. God has an answer, I know he does, so I guess I'll sit back and listen for the answer. Who knew this move would be all about patience? :-) Or maybe it reiterates to me that Good Shepherd truly is a remarkable place that really is a sanctuary for ALL!
Please pray for us.
Cheers,
Wendy
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