“By God’s grace, we are in the city for good!”
We sit at an intersection.
3rd Street and Moreland
What downtown Phoenix was and what downtown Phoenix is
A community that includes people experiencing homelessness and people who live in homes
A community of faith that includes people from a variety of religious backgrounds
A community that includes college students and young adults, senior citizens, middle aged adults, teenagers and small children
A community that includes people of various racial and ethnic backgrounds
A community that includes people of various sexual orientations and gender identities
We sit at an intersection.
For anyone who drives or bikes or even walks in Phoenix, we know that intersections are the most dangerous places to sit. When I am waiting to turn left and hanging out in the middle of the intersection in my car or waiting on the sidewalk on my bike to cross Grand Avenue, I constantly look. Where are people going? What are people doing? When can I go?
“All are welcome here, but the reality of our world is that not everyone wants a community where all are welcome. That’s okay.”
At Grace, we sit at an intersection. Instead of being the kind of community where only one type of person belongs, people of many backgrounds belong here, and we all consider Grace home. At Grace, all are welcome, and we—all of us together—have made Grace a place where this is true. Perhaps our location at this intersection feels dangerous to some. I can understand that. In most parts of our society, people from different walks of life do not find them-selves sharing community. The community we have here is different.
While I can understand someone’s hesitancy to share in community with people who differ from them, all I feel is grateful. Being a part of each of your lives is a huge gift to me, even on your bad days.
With our neighborhood changing more rapidly now than ever, I wonder who we will welcome next.
All are welcome here, but the reality of our world is that not everyone wants a community where all are welcome. That’s okay. Still, I trust that we will gra-ciously welcome all who make their way through our doors. Not only will we welcome those who come to us, this month, we will proactively collect items for welcome bags for our enHance neighbors, those who live in the condos across 2nd Street from us. We want our neighbors to know that they are welcome at Grace and that we care about them, whether or not they choose to worship and share in community with us.
By God’s grace, we are in the city for good! We love our neighborhood. We’re here to stay for good; we’re here for good in Jesus’ name.
With joy and gratitude,
Pastor Sarah