Church Family,
It is “back to school” season in America. Facebook is full of pictures of young people moving into college dorms, the stores are populated with school supplies, the practice fields are once again full of hollering coaches and First Pres has returned to our regular worship schedule of 9:00 and 10:30 on Sunday mornings.
This past Sunday we were led in worship by an awesome group of high school students. As these young people read scripture, offered prayers, shared testimonies and witnessed to the goodness of our Lord, I was impressed by the work the Holy Spirit is doing in them. If you missed worship on Sunday, you truly missed out! (Here is a link to audio of the teaching time from two of our high school students). What a gift to be a part of a congregation where young people are on a journey of faith and growth alongside people of all generations!
This coming Sunday will be another special one as it is the annual Blessing of the Backpacks and Child Sponsorship Sunday. If you sponsor a child, anywhere in the world with any organization, please bring a picture of that child with you to worship this week. Just as we commission our own elementary school kids for the year ahead during the Blessing of the Backpacks, we will also lift up in prayer those children around the world whose lives we hope to impact through child sponsorship.
Children aged 3 and older are invited to bring their backpacks (or Chromebook bags) to church this Sunday and begin the morning in the sanctuary with their families at the start of both worship services. This is a great Sunday to invite your school friends, new neighbors, or kids from the baseball/softball/soccer team to join your family at church. We will have a special time of teaching for the children in worship before the kids are dismissed to meet their Sunday school teachers.
Jesus had a reputation for prioritizing children. This Sunday we will follow Jesus’ lead and, whether we have school-aged kids, grown kids, or no kids, we will cover these young people and their teachers, mentors and coaches in our prayers. We will also recommit ourselves to being change-agents in the lives of young people around the world by offering what we can to their health, growth and development.
I am excited to partner with you in sharing the love of Christ with children locally and globally!
Chris Griggs
We welcome Jen Cibucos the new Associate Director of Children’s Ministries to First Pres! Join us in a meet and greet to welcome Jen between the services this Sunday. 10-10:25 in the gym, there will be refreshments and activities for kids.
