Week after week, Pastor Heidi and stand behind the altar and offer the invitation, "This is the Lord's Table and all are welcome here." Every one in a while someone stops us after the service and asks, "Do you really mean all?" We do! We really do mean that all are welcome to gather around the Lord's Table. You will be welcome regardless of who you are or where you are on your faith journey.

This weekend we're launching a four week sermon series and congregation-wide study of Holy Communion. We will be dwelling in God's word and digging in to what it means to be fed and forgiven at the Lord's Table. Together, I hope we will all grow in our understanding of God's love for us that is manifest in the tangible form of bread and wine. Our preschool and elementary school Sunday School classes will be learning more about what Holy Communion means in age appropriate ways. Our senior high and adults will be gathering in small groups to expand their understanding of the sacrament beyond what they might have learned as children in holy communion classes. I'm excited for us to be on this journey together as we take a step on our discipleship journeys. 

Having what is called an "open table" for communion is an important part of not only the faith community of Abiding Presence, but of the whole Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). We are quite clear as a denomination that the altar isn't our table. It's the Lord's Table. We aren't gate keepers of it, but invited guests to it. When we gather around the Lord's Table, we are fed, forgiven and sent out to invite others to come and to be fed and forgiven, too. 

Our annual beach vacation always includes a visit to what our family refers to as "Beach Church." "Beach Church" isn't actually church on the beach. In fact, it's a regular ELCA congregation much like ours with a sanctuary, Sunday School classrooms, playground and parking lot. It's located a few blocks from the beach on the main highway. The service, which takes place in their sanctuary, is much like ours. The only thing that is actually "beachy" about it is that we go when we are at the beach!  

As we walked into the main doors, we were warmly welcomed by the greeter, much like I hope guests at Abiding Presence are welcomed. Once inside the sanctuary, we received several more smiles, hellos and welcomes as it was clear that we were not part of the normal crowd who gathered for their Saturday evening service. After the children's sermon, which the pastor added to the beginning of the service just for my two girls as they were the only kids there, we received a bag of microwaveable popcorn. "Thanks for popping by for worship," the kind woman who gave it to us whispered as we made our way back to our seats.  

This popcorn made a HUGE impression on my four year old. In fact, she spent the rest of the service informing me she was hungry and not understanding why we wouldn't eat the not yet microwaved bag of popcorn during the sermon. We've been home a couple of weeks and Nadia still is talking about her "church popcorn," which we finally let her eat this week. 

"Beach Church" made us feel welcome and part of their community in a way that has stuck with us. While we don't have popcorn at Abiding Presence, we do have candy bags. If you haven't seen them, check them out in the back of the sanctuary. They are a fun way for people to learn more about Abiding Presence. 

Above all, smile at people. Say, "Hello!" Tell people you are glad that they are there, especially families with children. Trust me, as a mom I will tell you that getting out the door to church is rarely easy or fun! It take effort. It also takes an equal amount of effort to show up by yourself to church. So, if you see someone sitting alone, make a special point to go over and say hello and welcome to them, too. 

You never know, it could be your smile or welcome that sticks with someone for weeks to come!

As I shared with you a few weeks ago, our brothers and sisters at Bethlehem Lutheran Church in Fairfax were recently vandalized. Their sanctuary was desecrated with racial slurs, swastikas and the bold statement, "You are all going to Hell." The cushions on their pews were slashed - every single pew. Glass was broken. Cords to their sound system were cut. Just a year prior similar instances occurred at their neighboring religious institutions the Jewish Community Center and Little River United Church of Christ. All of these religious groups share in common a message to the community of welcome for all people. 

On Wednesday evening Pastor Eickstadt and I participated in the event "United Against Hate: an Interfaith Response to the Words and Actions of toward Bethlehem Lutheran Church." We gathered with members of Bethlehem, religious leaders of numerous faith communities, elected officials and a variety of people from the Fairfax area moved by what had happened. Together we sang, prayed, lit candles and showed a unified front against hate in our community. We prayed for our community and for the perpetrators of the vandalism because, after all, Jesus is clear that we are to pray for our enemies. 

Earlier in the day, I had been talking to someone about my evening plans who remarked, "Really? That kind of hate happens here?" Unfortunately, the answer is that it is does. Further, it is up to us to stand up against it. 

Each worship service before Holy Communion is distributed you hear the invitation, "This is the Lord's Table and all are welcome here." When we say "all" we mean all. All people are welcome to gather around the Lord's Table. All people are welcome to be part of the faith community of Abiding Presence. We are not gatekeepers, but witnesses to a God whose love knows no bounds. Together, let us be a church united against hate so that we can build a community around the church that is united against hate as well.