24 Aug You Belong Here

Dear Westwood Church Family,

This past Saturday, many of our Westwood UMC staff members met up for a day of visioning together. In the busyness of our lives and shared ministry, it’s a rare and lovely gift to have time to dream together.

It helped me notice (again) something that’s wonderfully true: We have a really incredible group of leaders on our church staff. (It’s nearly as incredible as the group of lay members and volunteers who are a part of our community.) I was heartened to hear how they describe the future they envision for our church.

One of the themes that I heard consistently in the voices of our staff is a theme that I’ve heard from people involved in all areas of our church: a desire to be a life-giving community of diverse people who are engaged and invested in our continual formation and growth around shared values of radical love and belonging.

This summer, our Loft congregation has been going deep in an exploration of belonging, one of the core values the Loft uses to describe itself. It resonates with me, and the things that I treasure about our community: it’s a place where I belong. And where, I trust, others will know that there’s a place for them, too. This past Sunday, in the Sanctuary, I asked folks to recall a time when they felt very welcomed somewhere. I hope our memories of being welcomed will help us be the ones to welcome others.

All of which reminds me of a clever trick a dear friend of mine uses when she’s relatively new in a space or community: she looks for someone else who is even less familiar there, and intentionally welcomes them in. Few things make you an “insider” more quickly than being the one to offer someone else a gracious welcome or say a friendly hello. There are so many of us who long for deeper connection with one another. I encourage you to take the risk of reaching out to welcome someone else into your life.

grace and peace,
Pastor Molly