There are twenty or so round tables that live folded in the closet of our Fellowship Hall. For most of the summer, that is where they stayed. Yesterday afternoon, a handful of volunteers came in and made sure they were all set up and in place, cooked an incredible meal, and made sure we were ready for our first Open Table of the fall. It’s not glamorous work, but it turned an empty room into a place our church and community could gather.

Last night, our Wednesday activities came back, and our halls filled up again the way they do every fall. At 5:00, we celebrate communion in the chapel, Kids Choir begins, and our Backpack Buddies pack bags in the Fellowship Hall for children in our own community who need a little more food on the weekend. Open Table is at 5:30, where the meal is free, and everybody is a guest. Then at 6:30, Park Kids and Park Students small groups, Choir, and our new adult study, “Becoming More United,” begin.

If you have never come on a Wednesday, this is the week to try it. You don’t have to sign up. You don’t have to bring anything. Just join us for great food and fellowship around the table.

For the next 6 weeks, our adult study is working through “Becoming More United,” written by our own Anne Bosarge. It is a book about how people who see the world differently can still sit at the same table and belong to the same church. In a world that always seems to try to divide and define us, I cannot think of a better subject for us to engage with right now.

Speaking of Anne, she is preaching this Sunday. Stephanie and I will be away as we drop Addie off at college, and I am glad to leave you in Anne’s capable hands. She will be continuing our series “Behind The Magic” with a message called “Dead Men Tell No Tales,” from Romans 6. There we hear one of Paul’s boldest claims: that our old self really is buried and the new life really is ours. Go hear it. Then tell me about it when I get back!

A few other things worth putting on your calendar. Next Thursday, August 20, Amazing Grace packing begins at 9:00 in the morning, filling bags of necessities that go out to people in crisis all over Bulloch County. That same evening at 6:00, our Neighborhood Outreach team gathers at Little Lotts Creek Apartments for our monthly dinner. And on Wednesday, August 26 at 6:30, Lisa Muldrew is throwing open the choir room for a Christmas music preview party. Snacks, singing, and no audition required.

One last word. Our Landscape Matching Grant runs through August 31. Every dollar given is still being matched, dollar for dollar, up to $25,000. If you have been meaning to give, this is the month! We are only $6,691 away from reaching our goal!

Friends, all of this ministry happens because you show up, pack the bags, cook the meal, teach the class, and make room for the person you have not met yet. That is how disciples get made, and that’s how God transforms the world through us.

God bless,

Jonathan Smith
For Jesus. For People. For Community.