Thoughts from
Jim Teague,
Director of Communications
When was the last time you had the opportunity to connect on a deeper level with friends or family? My family has made dinner together on Monday nights a more intentional ritual over the past six months or so. We had found ourselves living "around" each other but not really with each other. My amazing wife suggested we might reinstate a past practice of making one night each week our family dinner night. Sometimes we have a particular topic of discussion, and other nights it's just a chance to check in, see how everyone is doing and briefly pray together.
A few weeks ago, I asked my wife and my adult sons what they were most afraid of. I threw in the caveat that I wasn't asking about phobias like fear of heights, snakes, or spiders (all of which are at the top of my personal list).
My wife (have I mentioned how amazing she is?) had tears form in her eyes as she shared her love and concern for our sons, saying she most feared they would never find the kinds of jobs that both provide well for them while giving them a sense of purpose.
My oldest son, now 27, is part historian—he has an encyclopedic knowledge of U.S. and world history—and part philosopher. He said he is most worried that our society has failed to learn from the past and is now entering a time of civil strife that will split the church and result in dramatic social upheaval.
Finally, my youngest, 25, took his turn. He is a talented artist and storyteller who went through elementary and middle school being ostracized because of his autism. The miracle of the internet means he now has friends from literally all over the globe whom he connects with nightly online through voice chats and video calls.
"I worry that I will lose my friends," he said, his voice cracking. His fear is rooted in a past reality.
In his senior year of college, during the COVID-19 pandemic, an online scoundrel managed to steal his online chat login and locked him out of his account. We had to jump through a series of hoops to get him back online (though we avoided paying the "ransom" the jerk was demanding).
I remember being on the phone with my son back then at the height of his anguish as he cried out "I just want my friends back!"
Each of these fears come from our shared need for security we seek to find in our connections to one another. The irony that we are without a doubt more technologically connected than at any time in human history is not lost on me.
Over the past few years here at First Pres, we have been particularly focused on connections, whether we're aware of it or not. The resignation of Rev. Dr. Ray Hylton and his move, with his wife Judith, to Washington, D.C., was a powerful disconnection many of us experienced together.
We've seen connections broken or significantly changed by the various reactions to last fall's experience of dealing with our differing views on same-sex marriage.
We are preparing—and hopefully praying about—the connection we will be making with a new senior pastor at some point in the future. And that, in turn, will mean our interim senior pastor, Rev. Dr. Tassie Green, will be moving on to her next assignment. Another dramatic change in connection.
Those of you who were at church on June 8 remember that we are discussing proposed changes to the Sunday schedule for Christian education, worship services, and fellowship time. Part of the proposal is to call this our "Connections" time, starting at 11:30 a.m. and allowing for extended, intentional interactions. Learn more about the proposal here.
When my turn to share my fear came during that family dinner a few weeks back, I expressed my concern that my two sons might lose their close connection to one another once my wife and I have "shuffled off this mortal coil." Both my sons shook their heads in dismay at my use of that quote, but I learned long ago to simply ignore that reaction from them.
This Sunday, we shake things up, as we have the past few years, to move outside to the parking lot for an outdoor worship service, with our Deacons' Hot Dog Social to follow on the front lawn. All of this is, of course, weather permitting, but this event always attracts the attention of passersby and allows us to connect with one another in a different atmosphere from the Sanctuary.
I hope as many of you as possible can join us for this very intentional exit from the norm. Please be with us—come and connect—on Sunday at 10 a.m. as we worship the one who give it all to connect us to himself, the Father, and the Holy Spirit, in eternal unity.
Peace,
Jim Teague
FPCE Director of Communications
