September: Growing Edge

Dear Harrisburg First Church,

I am a firm believer that “Church” is not a word, or an idea that can be held captive behind four walls and a Sunday sermon. My Father’s Church lives in each and every one of your hearts. Everywhere you go, to the store, the shower, school, or a friend’s house, Church travels with you. With out you, this beautiful building would be just that. A building. In your heart and fellowship, I was introduced to Jesus all over again. It never ceases to amaze me where He seems to pop up. He’s in the smiles and stories of the Kids at the Youth Group, He’s sitting in Kim’s kitchen as she cooks, in Pastor Belita’s office as she counsels, He’s cheering at the Baseball games, He’s eating pizza with Pastor Gerald at Agape-Satyagraha, He’s everywhere!!!!!!!!!
Through my encounters with the members of this community and Church this summer, God has taught me a few lessons I’m sure never to forget and I wanted to share a few of them with you before I leave.

1. Love the individual, not the action. In a world such as the one we live in, there are a lot of people making a lot of unwise decisions. Every day there’s another teen pregnant, there’s another drug addict dying, there’s another bully at school, there’s another tax collector cheating us out of hard earned money. Fortunately for us, God called us to love the person, NOT what they do. I can reach out to that pregnant teen in the love of Jesus, throw her a baby shower, and remind her how much she is loved with out ever judging the actions that got her there. That’s the challenge isn’t it? To look at these people, to look at ourselves, and try to see past the rotten actions to the Piece of God’s Heart that is living, breathing, and trying to shine in each one of us.

2. It’s not about who I am, but whose I am. Since I was in high school, I’ve always been worried about what job I’m going to have, how I’m going to support a family, who I’m going to marry, what my kids will be like, what will people say about me when I’m gone. Slowly but surely, I’ve come to learn it’s not about that. It’s not about me. This life, this world, these sometimes heartbreaking circumstances were NOT meant for me. Or for you. We were meant to walk in a beautiful garden holding the Lord’s hand. This summer, for me, was about forgetting that I’m a suburban, white, college girl with some pretty cool friends and family waiting for me back home. That’s all a part of who I am. Whose I am…is what really matters. I belong, heart and soul, to Jesus. If I live like I’m His, by His word, and His love, there will not be a need to worry. Who I am won’t matter, because Jesus becomes my definition.

3. Don’t be Afraid to proclaim the Faith. Don’t be afraid. In my life I’ve been called many different things, but coward has never been one of them. However, until recently when it came to talking about God I was rather skittish. God isn’t exactly a beloved being in the theatre where I’m from. His name is more often used as a curse word, than anything else. But I’ve also discovered that as my friends find out I’m in love with Jesus they start asking questions. “Do you think God has a gender?”, “Why does God let horrible things happen?”, “Who is God to you?” etc. And the coolest part is, all these questions came to me with out the title of ‘Pastor.’ I’ve always loved these questions, and answering them always opens up the door for further awesome conversations. Never-the-less, I’ve always had trouble volunteering prayer and God’s word in such an environment. God’s used this summer to give me the courage to be more vocal about my relationship with Jesus. This love is so awesome, why in the world would I want to keep it secret?

Having said all this, I want to let you know that when I return to California I am going to be a Jr. High Leader at a church near my school. I’ve been talking to the Jr. High Pastor there, and he’s really excited to be bringing me aboard and getting me plugged into these kids’ lives. It gives me such joy when I think about it, and I know it’s exactly where God wants me to go right now.
I want to thank you for all the encouragement, the fantastic food, fellowship, and love you’ve given me this summer. I’ll never forget it. And God willing, I’ll be back in the future to visit. I’m not a huge fan of good-byes, because I know I’ll see each and every one of you again when we party it up together in Heaven. So I’ll leave you with the verse that has spoken most into my life, Romans 8:18,

“I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing to the glory that will be revealed in us.”


With Love,
Jen Scarr
MSS Intern 2009