One thing I heard pretty early on in this pandemic, quite frequently, and running counter to the deep, deep desire to “get back to normal” was an equal and opposite reaction: we can’t afford to go back to normal, because normal wasn’t working, for far too many people. Even as we begin to be reunited with family, friends and fellow Joy folks, this year physically apart has helped focus our hearts, minds and souls on what really matters.
And happily enough, what seems to matter most to Joy folks are exactly the things that we were already emphasizing before: faith, family and fun. For some folks the importance of family means moving to be closer to them. Sometimes that brings them to Tulsa and sometimes it takes them away from here, but it also means spending more time with them, and being more creative about connecting with them whenever physically apart.
And the pandemic has helped us get much more creative about how we stay connected with one another and with our faith in Jesus Christ. But it’s also revealed how important it is to just relax and enjoy life together sometimes. Life is short, we’ve been reminded, in very stark ways, even as we continue to celebrate that in Jesus Christ, death does not get the last word.
As the pressure mounts to get “back to normal,” we have both the luxury and the challenge of asking “what do we want our new normal to look like?” but more importantly, “what kind of new normal is God leading us into?” How do we help Joy folks and others who don’t yet consider themselves Joy folks find that intersection between faith, family and fun? What kind of church do we want to be? What kind of church does God want us to be?
Pastor Jon
