Rooted, But Not Standing Still 

Rooted, But Not Standing Still 

David’s article in last week’s Binder has stayed with me. Particularly one word: US.

He reminded us that so much of Scripture isn’t simply addressed to me or you, but to God’s people together. To us. Or, as David translated it, y’all.

It made me think about who “we” are.

I’ve been doing a lot of thinking lately about calling, change, expectations, and what happens when life doesn’t follow quite the path you thought it would. Sometimes change is chosen. Sometimes it chooses us. Either way, I’ve learned that it can make you think pretty seriously about where you’ve been, what you value, and where God might be leading next.

Maybe congregations have to ask those same questions from time to time.

Williamsburg Presbyterian Church has been worshiping and serving in this community for more than two centuries. That kind of history is something to treasure—but it also means generations before us have had to navigate change.

Think about how different our congregation and our community must have looked 50, 100, or 200 years ago. Generations before us faced changes they couldn’t have imagined. Yet here we are.

Presbyterians love and respect our traditions. We believe in doing things “decently and in order.” And, of course, if there’s a difficult problem, we’re always willing to form a committee to study it! But our strengths can also become our stumbling blocks. Being deliberate can sometimes keep us from acting. Respecting tradition can become believing that things must always remain the same. Being orderly can make us uncomfortable when God leads somewhere unexpected.

So perhaps a question to ponder is: What are we rooted in?

If we’re rooted only in familiar routines, change will always feel threatening. But if we’re rooted in Christ, our roots can be deep while our branches continue to grow.

David challenged us last week to think about poverty, racial inequality, health care, and the needs of the community around us. I don’t have the answers to those questions either. But I believe he’s right that they belong to us.

And I think there are other questions that belong to us, too.

Who is God calling Williamsburg Presbyterian Church to be in this community today? What do our neighbors need from us? What traditions should we faithfully carry forward? How do we

make sure the church we love is not simply preserved for another generation, but is alive, serving, growing, and sharing the Gospel with that generation?

I don’t know all those answers.

But as an Elder, I want you to know that I pray about them. I pray for our officers, for David, for our congregation, and for whatever comes next. I pray that we will have the wisdom to recognize what should never change, the courage to change what should, and the faith to know the difference.

290 years ago, faithful people began something here that they could never have imagined we would inherit.

Now it is ours for a little while.

May we be faithful with it—and may we listen together for where God is calling US next.

Love, Amy Ivey