“Displaced” by Rev. Caroline East Berardi
Scripture: Psalm 121, @ Cor. 4 and 5, selected
Last Wednesday, we were surprised to find that what we thought was a delayed maintenance issue with our walls, was far more serious. Our sanctuary was declared unfit for use. Decisions must be made for our small, rural, deeply faithful church.
We could say ‘it is just a building,’ but we know it is more than that. While we are thankful to have a fellowship hall we can use for worship, the sanctuary is God’s house, and our home. It is where many of us have been married, baptized our children, attended the funerals of loved ones and sung God’s praises for year after year. It was given to us as a hard-won inheritance from parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents in the faith who sacrificed so that we might worship God in such a space.
Nevertheless, we remain hopeful, trusting in the God who created us, redeems us, and sustains us. We will continue in our ministries, mission and programs. We recognize that God’s people have often been transient- Jesus, after all, was born in a barn! In anxious times, we hold on to the truth of the Psalm, “From where will my help come? My help comes from the Lord who made heaven and earth.”
Pinetops Presbyterian Church 