I believe I see light at the end of the tunnel! Our plan is to start back on June 14, if the State of Florida is officially in Phase 2. We have talked about the importance of community before – as part of the created order, as the benefits of a group of believers assembling together, and simply as friendship.

The Apostle Paul in writing to the church in Thessalonica had a similar situation, not because of a virus, but other circumstances that hindered his being with the believers there. He writes, “…but since we were torn away from you, brothers, for a short time, in person not in heart, we endeavored the more eagerly and with great desire to see you face to face, because we wanted to come to you…” (I Thess 2:17-18) Even the Apostle Paul, who had friends scattered about, wanted to be present with this group of believers. So much so, that he writes, “Because we loved you so much, we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well.” (1 Thess 2:8) Paul, Timothy and Silvanus all looked forward to spending time with these believers – not just writing letters. That was fine in the situation, but they needed more. In our day, it is just not enough writing letters/cards, texts, phone calls, or even newsletters – our desire is to be face to face and sharing life together with all of you.

Our daughter and her husband are missionaries in Nicaragua, and I Thess 2:8 is their life verse. They are committed to living life with the people that they are ministering to and with, because they are like family. That is the community that God has called them to. When things got rough a few years ago during the uprising there, they decided to stay and share a dangerous life, rather than flee back to the States like so many others did. And now, during the pandemic, they are choosing to stay in a developing nation with that community, rather than return home. When, as parents, we asked “Why aren’t you coming home?” They replied, “This is our home, our life, our community, we want to be here for the good and the bad, that’s living life with people, that’s living out the gospel.” They have been influenced by the late theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who wrote “I have come to the conclusion that this difficult period in our national history with the people of Germany. I will have no right to participate in the reconstruction of Christian life in Germany after the war if I do not share the trials of this time with my people.” What happened to Bonhoeffer? He returned to his homeland of Germany. He would then be accused of joining the plot to assassinate the Führer and spent two years in prison. He was executed by the Nazi regime at Flossenbürg concentration camp on April 9, 1945, just two weeks before the United States liberated the camp. When he died, he famously remarked to another prisoner, “This is the end — but for me, the beginning.”

We are nowhere near the extreme that Bonhoeffer faced, or the Apostle Paul during his missionary journeys, but we all have that same desire – to share the Gospel and live life in community. We all have missed that through these momentary afflictions & interruptions. The year opened on a note of excitement, then many weeks of uncertainty – masks, social distancing, stay-at-home orders, and isolation. Honestly, I almost feel like we will be beginning afresh as we get to know one another again, sharing the Gospel, and sharing our lives together.

To help jump start that process, after many weeks of being apart, Bo and I will be hosting weekly get-together dinners this summer at our home, beginning June 17. This will be in groups of six, and you can sign up for a Wednesday night in the church lobby, or call/email the church office to reserve a night. There is no agenda, lesson, or study, just a time to get together for fellowship and to learn more about one another. I hope it will be a time that we are able to connect more deeply, especially after this separation. Hope you all can join us at some point this summer for “Pullen Up A Chair” with the Pullen’s. Bo and I are eager to share not  only  the Gospel, but our lives as well.

There is light at the end of the tunnel….