Change is Good: Jen's Abiding Story

Jen’s family was looking for a new church home with family activities, events for kids, opportunities for music involvement, and Jen wanted to get to know other moms and women. Their family was searching for a church community intent on change and the ability to pivot, supporting innovation and a willingness to adapt. After driving by Abiding Presence on her daily commute, Jen visited the church website and watched a service online before attending in person.

“We love Ms. Michaela and all the children’s programs offered at Abiding Presence,” Jen shared. “As a parent I love that there is always a place for my kids and we found our children are seen and valued in worship and in the whole community,” Jen said. Her son, Caleb, is often in church and may seem less engaged but no one is judgmental about his behavior, rather everyone makes it easy for him to be happy here. Jen found the support of the Neurodiversity group to be a place where other parents understand the joys and challenges of supporting neurodiverse children. “During summer camp, Ms. Michaela and the Abiding Fellows were able to meet Caleb where he is and help him participate in Lego activities that he loves,” Jen shared.

“Our daughter Clara loves the Preschool Sunday School class and looks forward to it every week,” Jen said. At home, Clara enjoys reading her Spark bible and always wants to re-read that week’s story at night before bed. She also enjoys sharing with her parents and brother the craft they did. Caleb shares his sister’s love of reading and they both listened to Mom and Dad read the summer book club stories with Caleb often predicting the outcome of the story. “He has developed a good understanding of what he hears and learns at church and is able to predict the good news of each story,” Jen shared.

Since joining Abiding Presence, Jen has seen the start of an additional option during Adult Education of board games for her husband, Thomas, and a young mom’s support group for her. Thomas lends his voice and musical talents to Sunday worship services. Jen also joined a women’s small group and enjoys keeping in touch throughout the week via text. “Fellowship can look like a lot of different things and this church has a history of pivoting and changing to support youth, neurodiversity, and more,” she shared. “I’ve seen how we can be a blessing right now for those needs and not worry so much about how this was done in the past or can we sustain this into the future,” Jen recalled. “The pastors and staff notice a need and make plans to engage people and meet them right where they are,” Jen shared.