This Sunday, we will be discussing the peace of Christ and how we are to participate in the shalom that God brings. In the cultural moment we find ourselves in, it appears that there is no peace. Something our staff has been discussing and praying through is how to lead our parishioners through this challenging and divided time. Lindsey Wright offered some wisdom regarding the division that is seemingly intensified at this time, “I feel like God is using this time to shed light on and expose the brokenness and division that was already there lurking beneath the facade of unity and peace.” This brings up the question: Is it divisive to talk about things (such as racism) that people land on different sides? In Matthew 5, Jesus says that we are called to be peace-makers, not peace-keepers. Peace-keeping often results in trying to make everyone happy and skirting around difficult topics. Peace-making might seem divisive, but truth often brings about a certain discomfort: “True reconciliation, justice and shalom require a remembering of suffering, an unearthing of a shameful history and a willingness to enter into lament. Lament calls for an authentic encounter with the truth and challenges privilege, because privilege would hide the truth that creates discomfort.” -Dr. Soon Chan-Rah, Prophetic LamentWhen we are confronted with truth, it can be a painful experience. How will we respond to hearing truth in love? Will we be defensive and angry? Or will we humbly listen and invite others and the Holy Spirit to reveal where we are not participating in the shalom of God? I would encourage you to combat the natural urge to pridefully defend your position or actions. I believe true shalom does not require unanimous agreement on all things. Shalom requires that we allow truth to unearth brokenness and participate in the path of healing.
~Mike Defrees
Midtown Parish Pastor
Resuming Services Update
We will be resuming services July 12 at 10am at Aggie Park. We will meet with the following precautions: pre-registration, masks/social distancing policies are required, and no Family Ministry environments will be provided. Check back soon, we will provide more details in the coming weeks!
Good Neighbor Cohorts
Good Neighbor is designed to be a resource for those who want to take a deeper dive into their neighborhoods and communities — to know the people and faces and actively engage the challenges and opportunities. Bring your own context to life as you adapt and use these Guided Conversations, Immersion Experiences and Action Project Roadmap to explore how to be a Good Neighbor. We are launching learning cohorts with this curriculum that will take about 4-6 weeks to complete and about 2-3 hours of your week. You can meet online or in person, whatever feels right for you. A cohort can be your family, neighbors, a discipleship core, missional community, or any group you want to gather. For more information, or to sign up to participate you can click here.
Covid-19 Needs and Assistance
The Park is still gathering the needs of our community. We have created a way for you to request assistance. If you have a need you can click here.
If you are able to offer assistance to others you can click here.
Stay in Contact
If we can pray for you, please contact your parish pastor directly or send us an email at prayer@theparksa.org.
If you are experiencing any hardships during this time, we want to be there to support you. If you have questions or needs we can help with, email us at info@theparksa.org