Pastor Update

Hello, YVPCers and Friends, 

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​Some of Paula's thoughts about scripture reading Matthew 28: 16 - 20

    Matthew tells us something here that may seem surprising:

      "When the saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted."

    The disciples stood before the risen Christ. Some had doubts. But Jesus does not separate them into believers and doubters. He does not send the doubters away. 

    He doesn't say, "Come back when your faith is stronger." He gives all of the very same commission.  The worshipers receive it. The doubters receive it. Those whose faith is strong receive it. Those whose faith is shaky receive it. Doubt is not the opposite of faith. Certainty is often the opposite of faith. Faith is about trust. Faith is continuing even when we do not have all the answers. 

    Many of the great saints understood this. Even people like Mother Teresa and Martin Luther King Jr. experienced seasons of questioning and struggle. Their doubts did not destroy their faith. Their wrestling and their struggling deepened their faith. 

  Think about what builds strength. Muscles grow through resistance. Character grows through challenge. 

  Faith often grows through questioning. Faith that has never struggled may also never have grown. Doubt can become the doorway to a deeper trust in God. 

   The disciples show us that we can worship and wonder at the same time.  We can believe and still have questions. We can follow Jesus without having everything figured out. 

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Peace, Paula

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You are welcome at YVPC wherever you are in your faith journey.

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Sylvia has a dream--to plant a native and pollinator garden in our front area that now is mostly weeds.  We are a small church with older members who don't have the ability to do the work of establishing or maintaining a garden on their own.  If there is a group of interested people that have a desire to create a garden that welcomes our native animals from insects to birds, please call the church and let us know.  
Peace and blessings, 
Paula and Sylvia