
The Young Adults ministry recognizes and celebrates the vital role of young adults in the growth and future of the church. Whether you're navigating your 20s or settling into your 30s, single or married, with or without children, this group meets you where you are. This is the place to build lasting relationships with a caring support system. In addition to Sunday School, First Pres offers several mission and fellowship opportunities for adults ages 22-39(ish) throughout the year.
Pastor Leslie's Weekly Update (February 10, 2021)
I am excited about an upcoming fellowship event that I am planning—a virtual Murder Mystery party! This would take place via zoom, and each person would get a character ahead of time (feel free to dress up and get into character as much as you’d like!). I am thinking it would start around 8pm, which gives people time to put children to bed. Before I set a firm date, I would like to know if a) you would be interested in participating and b) what nights of the week would be best. Please reply to me here and let me know!
Secondly, Ash Wednesday is next week
(February 17th) and in addition to offering a virtual service at
7pm, the Chapel will be open all day from 9am-6:30pm for you to receive ashes
and personal prayer from a pastor. I will be there from 11am-12pm, but please
feel free to come by the Chapel at any point that day!
Have a good week,
Leslie
DEVOTION
“For I am convinced that neither death, nor
life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor
powers, 39nor height, nor depth, nor
anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God
in Christ Jesus our Lord.”- Romans 8:38-39
“Faith at its essential core is accepting that you are accepted!”- Universal
Christ, p. 29
Last week I shared a quote from Richard Rohr’s book about how our
identity in Christ helps to ease our loneliness. This week, I am reflecting on
another gift that our identity in Christ offers to us—an antidote to our fear
of rejection.
Our desire to “fit in” starts so early in life, from not wanting
to sit alone at lunch to hoping we wouldn’t be picked last in gym class. It
continues into our adult lives—we are programmed to want people to like us and
to accept us for who we are. Sometimes, however, we compromise who we really
are in order to fit in. All of us, myself included, have moments where we feel
like we have to put on an act so that people will not reject us, but if we
aren’t being our true selves, then we don’t really feel accepted at all.
Richard Rohr says that faith means accepting that we are accepted,
just as we are! Our faith tells us that we worship a God who loves us and truly
knows us because we are created in God’s image. And Scripture reminds us that nothing
can separate us from that love, no matter how far we seem to stray.
It’s one thing to intellectually know that this is true, but it’s
an entirely different thing to really accept this revelation as truth! How much
of a difference would it make in your day-to-day life if you believed, deep in
your core, that you are accepted exactly as you are? That you do not need to
earn anyone’s approval because you are already unconditionally loved by God? To
me, that feels incredibly freeing! It gives me more permission to be
unapologetically myself and to strive to be the best version of myself, not
because I am trying to win anyone over, but because I believe that God would
not want it any other way.
PRAYER
Loving God, thank you for accepting us and embracing us just as we
are. In those times when we struggle with compromising who we are for others’
approval or favor, remind us that we are made in your image and are loved by
you, and help us to treat others as created in your divine image as well. Amen.