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Old First Presbyterian Church is an inclusive community of faith united by trust in God and faith in Jesus Christ. We warmly welcome all who accept and respond to God's saving grace in Jesus Christ and who desire to participate in the life and ministry of this church.
Established in 1849, we are the Oldest Active Protestant Congregation in California. We are constantly renewed through a wide spectrum of activities, and of course, through new members and visitors
Maggi's Musings May 2012
My friend Michelle is a youth minister at a Presbyterian Church in North Carolina. As we were comparing our busy church schedules, she reported that in the last week of April she was getting ready for the final youth group meeting of the school year. I asked does school really get out in April there? She told me no, it is the end of May, but the youth are so busy in May with projects, finals, recitals, sports and graduations, that she decided to not have youth group be one more thing they had to feel guilty about not having time for.
Michelle reported that the youth have “Meet Up” on Mondays at different places to eat around their town and that the youth drop in as they can. Last year they did it for the first time and there were the usual we-have-never-done-it-this-way comments. However, this year the parents are thanking her and the youth have learned to treasure those Monday meetings. It gives them time to breathe, to laugh, to mark what is going on around them. Michelle uses the time to plan for all the summer events and she now has the freedom to really enter into all the transitions and growth times that take place in their lives.
I am caught by the idea of having May be not just about being busy but about marking and engaging the busy-ness as an opportunity for transition, change and growth. Our whole lives are about living in the midst of business. Can’t we also take time to be a about longing, trusting, believing, expecting to see God at work in the midst of life?
How about Sunday worship being a time when we too can breathe, laugh, and celebrate God’s presence in our midst! We aren’t limited to seeking God in the sanctuary, to longing for people to come in to 1751 Sacramento. How about going out and seeking where God is at work in San Francisco? How about looking for God’s presence, in the busy-ness and the messiness of life? Isn’t life about the Holy Spirit at work not only on Pentecost some 2,000 years ago (See Acts Chapter 2) but also at work here and now?
May God’s spirit be with three of our own who venture into new places this May:
- Jordan Hollarsmith graduates from Columbia University in ecology, evolution and environmental biology on May 16.
- Maggi Henderson – that’s me – begins her sabbatical following worship on Pentecost Sunday, May 27.
- Erin Berg graduates from Oberlin College in neuroscience and comparative American studies on May 28.
Please pray that God’s peace and blessing go with Jordan, Erin and myself, and with everyone at Old First Presbyterian Church and throughout the Bay Area.
Peace, Maggi
