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Do you remember what it felt like to be new in a community?
I do. I drove a U-Haul to Chicago to attend seminary—young, single, and knowing almost no one. It was a long way from my home in northern Florida, and that first semester was hard. I had lived away from home before, but never this far. I didn’t go home for Thanksgiving or any other holiday that fall.
What carried me through were the evening meals in the seminary cafeteria. Friday nights were my favorite—international students gathered to talk, laugh, and share stories. That Thanksgiving, one student roasted a turkey, and the rest of us brought dishes from our own cultures. It was a feast of food and friendship.
As the school year begins, how will you choose to gather?
At church, we often gather with familiar faces—people we know from our pew or neighborhood. But what would it look like to intentionally connect with someone new?
Many of you already do this through ICS or Nash, tutoring students, distributing food, and working side by side with others. Thank you.
Now we have a new opportunity, one that lets you not only gather around the table, but also welcome someone far from home. Through a program called International Friends, you can help a student from another country feel seen, known, and loved—just like I once needed.
Come to the Magee campus this Sunday or the Sanctuary campus next month to learn more and meet a representative from International Friends. Let’s make room at the table.
Pastor Lynn
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