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United Church of Christ | Saxonville, Massachusetts

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Assessing the Year

February 7, 2023 by Rev. Dr. Karen Nell Smith

“After some days Paul said to Barnabas, ‘Come, let us return and visit the believers in every city where we proclaimed the word of the Lord and see how they are doing.’”

-Acts 15:36

Dear friends, 

This month we gather for our Annual Meeting, a time of assessing the year just past and planning for the future as a church community. Often, our assessments include “counting,” taking stock of things like membership and money.

This month as a congregation, we’re also learning more about the first followers of Jesus and the earliest church communities. The Book of Acts tells us that, as Paul and Barnabus traveled to visit the communities they had helped to establish, they also assessed their progress. I wonder, were they, too, assessing the numbers…the membership, the money? 

Maybe so. But, above all, Paul and Barnabas were focused on sharing the good news. I’m not sure that has so much to do with counting coins or heads as it does with looking for lives changed, acts of kindness and compassion, and the presence of Jesus Christ in their midst and making an impact. In other words, would this place and this people be missed, if they were not here? Have those who interacted with and within the congregation gone away changed in some way? Has the congregation made a difference in the world around them? 

The most important things we “count” when we evaluate the progress of our faith community don’t involve the numbers. What counts more for us are the examples of the Spirit’s movement among us. Have our children felt comfortable in the sanctuary and in our worship? Are our young people involved in meaningful ways in our church life? How many others have used our campus for meaningful ministry and service of one kind or another? How well? have we cared for one another in the year just past? How much have we grown and reached out to others, near and far? How many quilts did we make to send to Sunrise School, donations to A Place to Turn, backpacks packed for school children in our community? What else do we “count” as important, and how can we do more of these things?

As Rev. Donna Schaper has written, “Numbers tell us one story, the Spirit in the conversation in a coffee hour tells another.” As we gather for our Annual Meeting this February, let’s consider the things we count and look not just at the numbers, but at all the ways the “good news” of Jesus Christ has counted for something good and joyful and life-changing here at Edwards Church.

In peace,
Karen Nell

Filed Under: Associate Pastor, Steeple

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