Loving Christ And Our Neighbors - Letter From Pastor Evan

Dear Praise Family,

This past week, we had the opportunity to open our building to use as a vaccination clinic. In working with the Farmington Valley Health Department to open the building, it was surprising to me that they were having a hard time finding places to serve as clinics in our area. So when we were able to provide the building, this was seen as an incredible blessing to those that are working so hard to make vaccinations available. As a church, we can be grateful that we can use what God has given us to be a blessing to the world around us!

But as we open our doors, we would be remiss if we saw opening the building as the “best we can do” in serving others. Just because people walk into the church doesn’t mean that they will automatically hear of Christ and His grace to us. Pastor Warren used to tell me when I was a young Christian, “Just because you go to McDonald’s doesn’t make you a hamburger.” As people come in to the building and spend time here doesn’t mean that they will understand the message of sin and grace. Sitting in one of our chairs doesn’t make the Gospel alive to them! The Gospel is something that needs to be communicated and done so actively.

This is why we exist as the church: to proclaim the Gospel. Every other week into the indefinite future, we will not only have the opportunity to open our doors, but to serve others for the sake of Christ. As volunteers come to administer vaccinations, how can we be a picture of Christ to them? How can we serve them and care for them as our neighbors? How can we communicate to them that they matter and have value? How can we show them that we love them as Christ has loved us? These are the real questions for us to answer!

So how will we communicate love for our neighbors? In Luther’s Small Catechism, it says, “How do you love your neighbor in the right way? I love my neighbor in the right way when I do what Jesus tells me to do when He said, ‘In everything, do to others what you would have them do to you…’ (Matthew 7:12).” Maybe it’s by having the church set up and ready for the clinic workers. Or maybe it’s by having coffee here and ready for them or bringing lunch for them. Maybe it’s by volunteering to spend a couple of hours at the church during the clinics to ask if the workers have all that they need. By doing these (or other things besides!), we communicate that we care for them and are a picture of Christ’s love to them!

As we move forward with this ministry to serve, let’s pray about how we can be a blessing to those who come into our church. If you have an idea of how we can serve these volunteers, or you would like to be involved in serving, let me know! And as we remember how Christ has loved us and come to serve us, may we serve those around us, praying that they will see Christ in us, and that the Gospel will be proclaimed through our actions for His Kingdom’s sake!

In Christ,
Pastor Evan