I have been thinking a lot about the early church this week. By early church I mean those early communities developing just after the death of Christ.

The first regular gatherings of Christians took place in what we call “house churches”. These early groups literally met in private homes breaking bread together.

My thoughts this week have been that these early churches must have had a strong and regular element of family and community; especially during those times of persecution when entire communities / villages hid in underground cities. Multiple families huddled together along with their livestock. No doubt families of the early church were very close and the Church was truly and literally their family and home.

One thing that I have been glad to discover here at St. Paul’s is the sense of a greater family that worships and enjoys fellowship together. And this is becoming an even greater element at St. Paul’s as more and more parishioners are introduced to new programs which extend the involvement in our parish family beyond Sunday worship.

Scripture reminds us that whenever we are gathered together in his name God is present. God is with us at our Wednesday Night Live program, God is with us in our new and growing youth groups, and God will be with us as new ministries begin.

My gentle encouragement this week is to continue to grow in adopting the Church as a part of your family. If possible share a part of your life with the church throughout the week, at Wednesday Night Live, or for your children at our weekly youth group meetings and outings. Also, continue to help us in providing more opportunities and serving the needs of all the members of this parish family.

Faithfully,      Alan Gates