News from Bangor and New Hope

Some recent updates on life in Maine:

• Over the winter, I’ve been able to join a men’s indoor soccer league as well as a semi-weekly tennis night. These have been great times to decompress, do something I love, and meet others in the area. I am grateful for various ways to plug in around the area—and it doesn’t hurt that those are through sports I love to play!
• One of the things I love about living in Bangor is the small-town feel. Bangor has a population of around 40,000, so it’s not tiny (it is actually the third biggest city in Maine). Even so, I have found that I can be sitting in a coffeeshop (one of my “offices” as I prepare sermons or do other work) and often count on running into several people I know. Ever since it’s been too cold for hiking, I have tended to spend my Mondays (my day off) at a local Starbucks to relax and read—and it’s been enjoyable to see people I already know as well as to meet others in this setting. It’s been a privilege to be able to connect with others in various settings around the city.
• As New Hope is relatively small, there aren’t enough students to sustain a traditional youth group. Because of that, we have been considering other ways to engage the younger generations, hoping to bridge the generation gap and hopefully pave the way for formal or informal mentoring relationships between members. As I grew up in my home church, I certainly enjoyed our youth group. But one of the most significant memories I have was of the older men and women in our small group who actually took the time to get to know me, shared their lives, and invested in my life. And I believe this is one of the things that the Church has in its very DNA. The Church is not a special interest group; if it were, then there would be little common ground between generations. The Church is a gathering of forgiven sinners who have been brought into a new family through Jesus Christ. It’s like a Thanksgiving dinner table with grandparents and grandchildren sitting side-by-side and splitting the last of the cranberry sauce. With this foundation—the common ground in Jesus Christ and the family ties with God as our Father—there is ample reason to build relationships between generations. Of course it will be awkward and stretching at times, but we should never underestimate the impact of those interactions. Over these next couple months, I look forward to opportunities for younger and older members to grow alongside each other—and I believe that the resulting relationships will be mutually challenging and enriching. Faith in Jesus is contagious when His followers genuinely take the time to invest in one another’s lives out of love for Him. I pray that through our youth and men’s Bible study in January (as one place I hope this can happen), we may have a setting in which those of all ages can come to know one another and grow together in the gospel.

Thank you all for your prayers and encouragement!