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Second Pres,
Where are you?
When our Keynote leader, Chris Lee, asked this question to the some 300 youth and adults yesterday morning, the obvious answers given were Montreat Youth Conference or Keynote or North Carolina or sitting on a really old pew in Anderson Auditorium. They weren’t wrong. But Chris was asking a different question. A deeper question. He shared the news of the recent deaths of his mother-in-law and his best friend—two months apart, he added—and, with a picture of a funeral home located in Charlotte, North Carolina, Chris answered his own question: “That is where I am. That is where I have been since December.” Where are you?
The conference theme this year is Light My Path. We have explored the ideas of light and darkness, day and night, how they need and complement each other, as well as our seeing, adjusting, and living in both spaces—the wilderness space between pure light and pure darkness. In the beginning, God named both the light and darkness, “calling the light Day and calling the dark Night” and even gave darkness gifts (stars) and purpose (guidance). Where are you?
Listen to what some of our youth have to say…
“The darkness is not always bad.”
“The light is everywhere, you just have to look to find it.”
“My friends are the light in my life because they are always there for me.”
“The darkness helps you embrace the light and appreciate it differently.”
“Sometimes being in the dark can help you see something from a new perspective or that has been previously hidden. The light, if not ready or prepared for it, can be overwhelming in a place of darkness.”
“I am in a good place right now, I am surrounded by people’s energy and positivity.”
“Right now I am between two things of my past that I have not fully processed, the space of becoming.”
“The light and darkness need each other and are ever-fluid, yet we need equal parts of each to truly experience the fullness of emotions.”
Church, this is the beauty of creating space in community. It is in this shared space where we can ask questions and explore where we are—sitting between light and dark, mountain tops and valleys, alongside others who bring their own questions and their own experiences. Because in community, even in this beautifully broken church family, the truth is that you are not alone. You are being held when we hold each other.
After this week is over and our group returns to Roanoke, another group of youth and adults will gather on Monday to create space for service and love! Teaming up with Raleigh Court Presbyterian Church, 28 youth will go out into our community for our 3-day Hometown Mission Week to learn and work and sit with those experiencing the darkness or the wilderness. Partnering with 7 local organizations, this coming week will engage our youth in mission and community, right here in our own backyard.
With you,
Ben Brannan
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