The Gathering
Contrary to popular opinion, churches can get along with each other! Yesterday, numerous churches and non-profit organizations came together to celebrate Pentecost Sunday. For Christians, this is an important date that marks the beginning of the Church, and we wanted to celebrate it together. We
came together at the Merced High School Stadium, sang together, prayed together, and got to know
one another a little more. The worship team was comprised of 4 different churches, and the music was beautiful. There was no competition, no conversation around 'whose church is bigger or better', it was
about honoring God and serving Him together.
It was a beautiful expression of what life should look like. Humans coming together to celebrate life despite differences, people praying for each other even if coming from different denominations and backgrounds, pastors intentionally staying in the room with differences. Merced is somewhat unique in
this regard, as the pastors actually get along with each other, meet weekly to pray for one another, and genuinely care for the well-being of their people. A beautiful expression of what Jesus would want to
see.
At the same time, there are riots in LA, fighting in the White House, fires being set by bored youth, the homeless struggling with the heat, and seniors having to go to food pantries to get their food.
How do we balance this? How does Jesus' teaching command us believers to live a life that is worthy of
His calling? We cannot claim to love God and hate our neighbors. We cannot give to the church for a better sound system and neglect the struggling seniors, and we cannot say we care for people while ignoring those we dislike or feel are unredeemable.
If Sunday taught me something, it is that we can stay in the room with differences, that we can honor
each other for who we are, no matter what, and that we can love people for who they are, not who we
want them to be.
Let's gather, learn from one another, uplift each other, honor each other for the stories we bring to the table, and see people through the eyes of Jesus - gifted, loved, accepted, and redeemed.
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