Welcome to the Family

A delightful young woman reached out to me on social media about 6 weeks ago from the United States. Patti Springer was coming to Ireland with her Mum and Dad, Kelly and Dave, and her Aunty Pam, Kelly’s sister. She asked if it might be possible to come to one of our church services when they were here, and if we might be able to meet up.

It turned out that we are, in fact, related. Her mum and her aunt were the granddaughters of one of my grandfather’s sisters. Two of them had emigrated to the United States, probably in the 1950’s, I think. We exchanged some messages as she shared some plans for their trip and arranged that, if they were able to come to Belfast on the Sunday of their trip, they should come to lunch after the morning service.

They stayed outside Dublin on Saturday night and made their way up on Sunday morning, and it was a real delight to meet them after the service and share some lunch together. We discovered I may have met Pam as a child when she came to Ireland on a brief visit when she was visiting other family in England. We swapped stories about our respective grandparents, the sort of people they were and the influence they had had upon our lives.

One of the interesting discoveries for me was that both our respective grandparents had been people of faith and had passed that faith on to the next generation. As we shared these stories and reminiscences around the table, even though most of us were meeting for the first time, there was a special connection. It was that connection of shared family.

Patti had been given my details by another relative who had done considerable work on the family tree and is based in Australia now, having grown up in New Zealand. He, too, came to visit a couple of years ago and I really enjoyed his company as he shared details of some of the New Zealand branches of our family tree. Again, I had vague memories of some of these people coming to Ireland during my childhood.

It’s quite exciting to eventually meet in person the people you have maybe heard about or exchanged some messages with, and to hear their stories and experiences. The thing that binds you together is family and, even though your lives and occupations may be a bit different, there’s something deep that you share through your common bond of family.

I sometimes think of these things in relation to the church.

When people have found faith in Jesus Christ there is a bond that unites them. It transcends languages and cultures. It’s a common realisation that Jesus loves them, that He died and rose again for them and that His Spirit dwells within them equipping them to live for Him and share His love with the world.

That’s why I always encourage young people leaving home for the first time and maybe heading to a new location for work or for college, to find a good local church. You will find a new family in that place, people who will care for you and look after you. You will find groups to join, maybe Bible study or prayer groups to deepen your faith. Perhaps, a choir if you like to sing, or a music group if you play an instrument. You will find activities and organisations you can perhaps become a part of, and it’s a great place to meet new people who will share similar aspirations.

I remember the warmth of the welcome as a student when I went to a new church, and how that particular church hosted lunch for students from overseas, or down the country who were moving to Dublin for the first time. I remember the hospitality and welcome when I joined a local church in Portugal where I lived for 2 years in my 20’s. As a theological student, I remember travelling for 9 weeks in Uganda with a colleague and how warmly we were welcomed as we visited different projects and churches and missions throughout the country run by Christian organisations.

We were referred to as ‘brothers from Ireland’ and there was that sense that, even though we hadn’t met before, it was great to get together, to hear something of how Jesus had impacted our lives and to share that bond of love that went beyond language barriers.

This Sunday we look forward to welcoming a wonderful child into the family of the church through Holy Baptism. Olivia Hall lives in Cardiff, but her mum grew up here and her older siblings were welcomed into the family of the church here. It will be a special day for her family, but also for our church family, as her parents and godparents make promises on her behalf and set out on that path of encouraging her on the journey of faith throughout her life.

Can we play our part in encouraging the faith of the next generation and passing it on, and creating that space where whoever crosses the door will be assured of a welcome and know that they are loved and have entered an environment where our common desire is to know God better and bring that relationship to the fore in our daily lives impacting all we do.

Look forward to speaking again soon.

Much love to everyone,

Jono.

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