Monday, August 24, 2020
What We Miss About Church: Congregant Reflections
For our devotionals this month, we asked various congregants what they miss the most about being together. Join us for this series of reflections that remind us of what we miss and who we are called to be.
Scripture for the Day
I Thessalonians 5:11
Therefore encourage one another and build up each other, as indeed you are doing.
What do I miss most at this time in the life of First Presbyterian Church? I miss “us.” I miss the community gathered, the community in worship, the community in service, the community in study.
For many years the flow of my life followed the school year, gearing up in the fall and taking a break during the summer. Year after year by the end of the summer, I had what I called “claustrophobia of the soul.” I was tired of my thoughts being mostly my own thoughts. I longed for the groups and communities I was part of to get going again.
My present longing is for the community to be gathered. I saw a graphic recently about the effectiveness of masking. One image showed two people without masks and their breath flowed freely from one to the other, mingling in the middle. Another showed the same two people wearing masks; their breaths remained contained with clear space between them.
When the community is gathered, I have experienced the spiritual version of this image: the breath of the Spirit flowing from one to another, mingling in the space between us. I am grateful that I can continue to worship via livestream; I am glad that my regular small group can continue to meet on Zoom. But I miss the mingling of the Spirit among us – us, all of us, in all our diversity, with all our questions, with all our burdens. Here we find nourishment, encouragement, and courage for the living of these days.
