Hear What Pen is Planning for Sunday in the Sanctuary
A Message from Pen
This has been the kind of week that we might pray had never happened.
We lost one of our own—Davis Christian Flohr—Sunday afternoon, just hours after he played handbells for us during the Youth Sunday Service.
And while all of us here at the church on Tuesday afternoon were focused on creating a prayer service to offer a measure of comfort for the hundreds of family, youth, children and adults struggling with the pain of this loss, our city experienced a school shooting at UNCC. It was not Charlotte’s first shooting of the week.
While the week was still fresh, the First Presbyterian family and others beyond our fence were plunged into shock and loss and grief.
Tuesday night, however, became a beautiful expression of what it means to be "for Christ in the heart of Charlotte." What happened in Wood Fellowship Hall as a first response to the shock and grief arising from the loss of 13-year-old Davis Flohr was powerful. I am so grateful and proud of the staff and members who worked together to provide a space for a very large and very diverse group of people connected to Davis' life to come and bring their broken hearts.
The Holy Spirit was present and alive Tuesday night. Praise be.
Honoring the life of Davis continues on Saturday at 10 a.m., at a memorial service in our sanctuary. All are invited to be here for his family, Christian and Sarah Flohr and sisters Harper and Ellie.
With the help of General Presbyter Jan Edmiston, I also want to offer some resources that grew out of the Charlotte Presbytery’s desire to guide us all in the wake of the violence in our community on Tuesday afternoon.
On Wednesday morning, Jan wrote, in part:
"We are grieving with the UNCC community this morning as they have been traumatized by yesterday's shooting on the last day of classes. As an Easter people, God calls us to seek and work towards resurrection in the name of Jesus Christ…
1. Of course, pray. Pray for the victims and their families. Pray for UNCC students and staff and their families. Pray for the Reverend Steve Cheyney, our UNCC chaplain... And pray for the shooter.
2. Consider joining as a congregation or several congregations to learn Mental Health First Aid, Trauma Preparation and Response skills, and other practical skills.
CLICK HERE
for a resource from Presbyterian Disaster Assistance."
May God in his mercy provide what we need for peace and comfort.
Pen
