Pastor's Note

From the Pastor’s Study

The adage goes, “We are all in the same boat.”

While there is no doubt that we are all in the same storm, the fact is clearly we are not all in the same boat. For instance, for some the unaccountable rise in the cost for groceries is a desperate family financial crisis. For others, it’s more along the lines of inconvenience. Likewise, some in retirement enjoy time spent on their own terms for the very first time: not parents, not educators, not coworkers or supervisors. For others, retirement is the experience of rationing limited resources, isolation or raising an unplanned additional generation.

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Perhaps the biggest difference I see in people weathering the same storm is whether or not they are involved in a community of faith. The Church is a boat built to carry all through the storms of life.

From the story of Noah’s ark, built to keep people and animals safe above floodwaters (Gen. 7-8) to Jesus in the boat with his disciples - how “Jesus rebuked the wind and said to the sea, ‘Peace! Be still!’ ” (Mark 4) we see that this is true.

In the same way, the church is a vessel of salvation.

From the Pastor’s Study And what’s more, these scriptures are not just stories from the past, but a current, l living promise that God will continue to protect us from the storm - a reminder that Jesus is still in the boat with us today.

For the good news is that just because we are individuals doesn’t mean we must be alone. FCC is doing all we can to keep people connected: in Sunday school, for children and youth, in worship, online, and staying connected with those in Boyle County who have few others they can count on.

The way we share our time and faith makes all the difference for those receiving such encouragement and support.

“It helps me to know I’m not doing this by myself,” shares one of FCC’s members, a person in their 80’s. Or in other words – and despite the differences in how we may be experiencing current storms – it feels like we’re all in the same boat. 

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Rev Colby Smith