I love something one of my mentors, Rev. William Sloane Coffin, once said: “It is often said that the church is a crutch.  Of course it’s a crutch.  What makes you think you don’t limp?”

The truth is that we all limp—whether physically, emotionally, spiritually, financially, or in terms of self-esteem or direction for our living.  For someone who limps (and that’s all of us!) a crutch is not a sign of weakness.  It is a sign of mobility and hope and freedom.  Without it, the alternative can be a life of immobility, lethargy, and apathy.  Without it, we can give up. 

Knowing that we limp, knowing that we hurt–and not only knowing these things but experiencing them in Christ–God has given us the gift of the church as a place of healing, motivation, and purpose.  We are not defined by our need for a crutch, but our wounds can lead us to a deeper relationship with God and to a place of positive self-redefinition. 

To me, that is what First Congregational Church is all about.  It is a faith community in which we remember that we belong to something bigger than our fears and the adversity of this world.  We belong to love itself.  Because of that, we can, we should live differently. 

We can too easily allow our life choices to be governed by our limitations, our apprehensions, and pain avoidance.  God’s love, which was made manifest in Jesus Christ and which surrounds us in the Holy Spirit calls us to confidence over fear.  It tells us that the easy way is not always the right way.  It hammers home to us, like the nails of the crucifixion, that no matter what happens we will not be left on the crosses of life. 

Ours is a God of deliverance and we should live like it.  Risk a little. Then a little more.  Think outside the box so you can realize that it is just a box and your thinking and acting need not be governed by it.

As we begin this program year, I hope you will make a habit of joining us on Sunday mornings not so much for protection from the travails of life, but for the support that God offers through Christ and the gathered community of God’s people.  It is in that support that both healing and motivation are found.

Welcome back to church this fall season.  Welcome back to a place filled with energy and joy and healing and hope restored.  For the crutch that is the church bids us to remember that we belong to God and so soar the skies.

See you in church,
–Rev. Dominic