I had to write a newsletter article for Presbytery of Western New York about Come and See! Sunday Nights at Lafayette Church/ Lafayette Presbyterian Church. Writing it gave me some hope in the middle of an otherwise tough week, so I thought I would share it. We all need a little bit of grace and hope sometimes. If youre so moved, stop and eat with us on Sunday. Heres the article: During a pause in the prayer--a quiet, holy moment, the silence was broken. It was broken by a man on his phone. He was cursing at the person on the other end. This is Sunday Night at Lafayette Presbyterian Church. We are a home and a family for people that might not fit in in traditional church settings. Honestly, many of our people--due to poverty, mental illness, or some other factor, have a hard time fitting in ANY setting. The man on the phone used to eat dinner with us and then leave before church started. Then he would stay and talk on his phone in the same room (we kindly asked him to stop doing that). The fact that now he takes his calls in the narthex is a step in the right direction. Were encouraged that hes recently begun listening to most of the sermon, and participating in the dinner conversation. Sometimes, he even helps us carry the food in to set up for dinner. Will he ever make a confession of faith? Get baptized? Stop cursing during the service? Who knows!? What we do know is this: this man needs a family as much as the rest of us. We cant get healthy or stay healthy without a community, and a family dinner is the best way to create community. There are plenty of services available to this man--help for housing, healthcare, counseling and more, but we are the only people that welcome him to share dinner as a friend and a brother. While our church is under construction (STILL), we dont have a kitchen, or even hot water. It would be so easy to suspend these dinners, but they are central to who we are and what we do. So, we lug food in, keep it warm with sterno, and bring the dishes home to wash them. Its a hassle, but it is worth it. Some of the people that we eat with our rough around the edges, and that means that those seeking a perfect church usually dont last long with us. The ones who come back, however, are the ones who--like us--are hungry for grace. Grace is what happens as we cook, eat, talk, pray and listen for Gods word. The headaches of construction and bad weather (most of this new congregation walks, bikes, or rides a bus to church) have lowered our numbers in recent months. This ministry is a long way from being financially sustainable. Nonetheless, it is, for more than a committed core of 20-30, the most important night of the week, because all of us have been scarred by a belief that we werent good enough for the church, and therefore, werent good enough for God. And yet, when we see grace and love extended to an unkempt man, swearing into his phone during a time of prayer, we remember that the same grace and love is there for us, too. Sharing in that grace heals us. Thank you for supporting our community with your finances, with your prayers, or with a Sunday evening visit. You arent building a megachurch. You are doing something far greater. You are helping the word become flesh among a people that once felt far away from God. You are helping us become disciples, who are not only fed by God (physically and spiritually), but who labor with him to feed others.
Posted on: Tue, 11 Mar 2014 15:31:28 +0000
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