Greetings from the Moderator APRIL 2024
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In the last few weeks, I got to witness an adult Baptism. It was needed so the person could make a heartfelt Profession of Faith. That is not something I have seen in 25 years or so. If your congregation is doing more adult Baptisms and Professions of Faith, please let me know.
In prior months I have been using the term “Piercing the Towers” as a term for Evangelism. How do we get the Good News to people who really are not interested in hearing about it ¾ the “None of the Aboves” from the surveys? (If you feel like you are entering into the middle of a conversation, I invite you to look back and read my last two columns. Due to word count restrictions, I cannot summarize prior discussions here.) After witnessing the adult Baptism and Profession of Faith along with experiencing the discussions with my nephew I mentioned in previous months I’ve come to a better realization that we must go where the “None of the Aboves” are. Has anyone been evangelizing on the beaches or sidewalks by the beaches during Spring Break? How about at Soccer Fields on Sunday morning? To truly Evangelize aren’t we going to need to get out to where folks gather not where we gather? I give you, as an example, Orlando’s celebration of LGBTQ+ Pride event in October. Park Lake Church sponsors a booth at the event with our name blazoned across it proudly and tables full of information and giveaways and stickers ¾ people love stickers; they will stop and talk with Church People for stickers. If any people we stopped and talked to while we were wearing our Park Lake tee shirts and giving out stickers have actually joined us for Worship, I am not aware. What we did do is help erase the hate-filled message of the people outside the event perimeter who were spewing that hate in God’s name. Another measure of success is the growing number of other religious institutions represented at the event. It has grown from my first year participating about four years ago from three religious institutions represented in total to 12 participating last year. Oh, and the Hate Spewers haven’t been there the last two years. I call both of those things progress. As an aside, I will forever have the picture of an 80-something year old church member all but tackling folks far down from our booth to give them hugs and stickers. I am glad I will have that image with me. So how do we get comfortable going to the places where folks who need to hear the good news gather. How do we equip ourselves to go even with the expectation that we will usually be rejected. How do we stand ready to enter these conversations when an opportunity presents itself. None of these questions are warming you up for my answers ¾ I don’t have any. The only thing I know I do now that I did not used to do is go to Sunday School class with a bunch of well-educated, thoughtful, and fine people who educate me, and I feel more comfortable to have the knowledge to have those conversations with the “None of the Aboves.” Anyone who has read this and has ideas on how to give the Good News to the “None of the Aboves,” I will donate this space to you; or, better yet, let’s have a conversation and I will get the word out. As I see more of the work in our Presbytery by so many different people, I am amazed and feel blessed at all that is done to further the Great Ends of the Church, all the time. May the Blessing of the Almighty Creator be upon you all. Blessings, John
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Ruling Elder John Rogers
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