“I think it’s a really hard time to be a teenager.” On the way into worship on Sunday I stopped by to talk to one of our ushers. Her sentiment is one that I think we can all relate to, there is so much for us to worry about.

One place where I look when I worry about our kids is in confirmation. Our confirmation class has been working with mentors who care for them and spend time for them. This week, they are finishing their prayer journals together, and talking about how they served the community.

Our young people volunteered with Family Promise, ushered, helped take people flowers, made coffee and put out treats for us. They taught in Sunday school, helped to set up for WAVE and even went to meetings.

Service in the church gives our kids an opportunity to feel generous and kind, it’s a chance to do something valued and to be appreciated for it, and it helps them know that they are a part of our church- that they belong to us, and that they belong to God.

In spite of our worries, or maybe even because of them, we find ourselves drawn to the church – hoping that it will help us,  our kids, our families to have stronger relationships, to find fulfillment, and a place to belong.

This week, I hope that you feel the prayers, love and encouragement coming from Central, and that through the grace of the Holy Spirit, that you know that no matter how tough things can be for you, for your kids, that we are never alone- we are always near to God who loves us and cares for us.

-Rev. Deborah Huggins