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Articles

Trusting in the Spirit Who Brings Unity

August 22, 2024 by Cindy Angela

by Rose Bender Cook

Based on a sermon preached at Whitehall (PA) Mennonite on 16 June 2024 from Ephesians 4:1-6. 

Since Pentecost, I have been thinking a lot about the Holy Spirit (#MosaicTogether2024). Mosaic’s strategic plan calls for a common definition of what it means to be Spirit-led. Recently, I have been led to consider how it is the work of the Spirit to bring unity.    

1 Cor 12:13 says, “For we were all baptized by one Spirit to form one body.” (NIV) The implication is that it’s not my job as a pastor or a Mosaic staff member to bring unity to the church.   

And yet I long for unity. Or at the very least, a deep respect and appreciation for one another that allows us to live and minister together in the body of Christ.    

Recently, I invited eight members of the Whitehall congregation to answer questions that would reveal some of our differences: where was your father born? How many languages do you speak? What do you eat for breakfast? I wanted to show how different we are, and that by the power of the Spirit, we have been placed into one congregation– baptized into one large Body of Christ. As it happened, the answers were so different – including the breakfast foods. Only one of these persons was raised Mennonite. 

In his book, Humility Illuminated, Dennis Edwards reminds his readers of the Pauline teaching that the position or current location of believers is in Christ. It’s not our geography, language, or even our theology that should unite us. Rather, it is our position in the body of Christ. That is where the Spirit puts us and that is what makes unity possible.   

Paul reminds the first century Christians in Ephesus that Jesus broke down the dividing wall and created one new humanity. So that, whether they are Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male or female, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian or Scythian—they are now one in Christ.  

Of course, we have our own categories of US and THEM—whether its theology, language, practices we consider faithful or unfaithful, worship styles, economic or education levels, what country we were born in, or what last names we have.   

I wonder if Paul were writing a letter to Mosaic Conference—what categories would he have included? “In Christ there is no longer _____ or _____. “  

Though it is the work of the Spirit to unite us, we have a role to play too. Ephesians 4:3 says, “Make every effort (as far as it depends on you) to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” 

How do we keep the unity of the Spirit? In verse 2 Paul tells us to be completely humble, gentle, patient, and bearing with one another in love.  

Humility, gentleness, patience, and love that invites me to bear with my siblings in Christ—these are the qualities I need to cultivate.  

I am being convicted that I am not the gatekeeper of the church or the one who needs to create unity. That is the work of the Spirit. I have plenty to do in examining the posture of my own heart and seek to keep the unity the Spirit has already established.    

As a response, my prayer this summer has been something like this:   

Spirit, soften my heart—may it be gentle and humble like Jesus’ 
Grant me patience to see others as you see them,  
To wait upon your timing 
To trust in your transforming work in my own life and in the lives of others. 
And help me swim in the ocean of your abundant and gracious love.
For your kingdom and your glory.
In Jesus name. Amen.   

May it be so.   

Members of Whitehall Mennonite answering questions. Represented were Indonesian, Nicaraguan, Sgaw Karen, Poe Karen persons and people whose ancestors immigrated from Western European countries.

Rose Bender Cook

Rose Bender Cook is the Leadership Minister for Formation and the Mosaic Institute Director. She is also a pastor at Whitehall (PA) Mennonite Church.

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Rose Bender Cook

Ambassadors We’re Learning from This Summer (Part 3)

August 22, 2024 by Cindy Angela

by Brendan Sagastume

Editor’s Note: This summer, nine young adult Ambassadors served in congregations and ministries across Mosaic Conference. This article highlights three of these Ambassadors. See the prior articles here and here. 

Ivonne Hartono, 20, is a member of Jemaat Kristen Indonesian Anugerah (Grace International Christian Fellowship) in Sierra Madre, California. This summer she has been reorganizing and filing a lot of the congregation’s music, leading and organizing youth events, and assisting in other areas needed.  

One takeaway from this summer is that organizing events with youth is both challenging and rewarding. She shared about the difficulties with various processes and decision-making which helped her to realize that there is often no perfect solution. Hartono says, “we have to be willing to take a risk in each decision made.”

Throughout her time in the Ambassador program, she has been happy to create a space for the youth at her church. She also appreciated time with other Ambassadors to learn and share thoughts and ideas. After the conclusion of the program, Hartono will continue to help at JKI Anugerah with the creation of a new website. 


Heydi Casas Perez, 17, is a member of Iglesia Menonita Shalom (Tampa, FL). Throughout the summer, she has prepared lessons to be presented in front of the congregation and assisted with organizing Sunday worship along with other teenagers in her church.  

One of her takeaways from this summer is that God doesn’t give obstacles that can’t be faced. She sometimes experienced challenges in her work but knew she could put everything in the Lord’s hands. Casas Perez says that it is always important to “have faith in what God has for you because he does everything with a purpose.” 

She has been grateful for the opportunity to learn more about being a leader. As she continues to get more young adults more involved in her congregation, she knows she can put everything that she has learned this summer into practice. 


Aaron Walojo, 21, is a member of International Worship Church (San Gabriel, CA) This summer he assisted with coordinating English services for teens in the community, as well as outings for the youth.  
 

One of his takeaways from this summer is that it is okay to make mistakes; they allow learning and growth. Another thing he learned is that communication is key to becoming a good leader. 

After Walojo felt a call to serve the church and help others grow in their faith, he was happy to join the Ambassadors program to work towards his goals. One goal was to “have better connections with the younger church members, provide guidance, and help create an environment where they can encounter God meaningfully.”  

He is grateful for the chance to achieve these goals and will continue to work with his congregation while returning to college.  


Brendan Sagastume

Brendan is a member of Perkiomenville (PA) Mennonite. Through the Ambassador Program this summer, he is working with both Mosaic Conference and Perkiomenville.

Filed Under: Articles, Uncategorized Tagged With: Ambassador Program, Grace International Christian Fellowship, Iglesia Menonita Shalom, International Worship Church, JKI Anugerah

August Board Meeting Sets the Pathway for Mosaic’s Future

August 22, 2024 by Cindy Angela

by Jennifer Svetlik

On the evening of August 19, 2024, the Mosaic Board met with a full agenda for their bimonthly meeting. Grounded in Psalm 118:1-4, the Board received a positive net income finance 2023-24 report and a report on the recent Thriving Congregations Initiative grant from the Lilly Endowment, Inc. Additionally, they set the annual Assembly schedule and prepared to receive three new congregations and one new Conference-Related Ministry (Ark of Christ [Orange County, CA], Bethel [Levittown, PA], Resplandece [Miami, FL and Baranquilla, Colombia], and The Worm Project. These will be introduced in Mosaic News prior to Assembly).

The Board also affirmed and adopted the strategic plan that the Pathways Steering Team has crafted with the support of consultant Grovider.

The strategic plan, which will guide the work of the conference from 2025-2027, includes five pillars: Clarity/Identity, Communication, Leadership Development, Reconciliation, and Relationship-Building. These pillars were based on the key themes that emerged from the listening tour findings and will be interwoven with Mosaic’s missional, formational, and intercultural priority areas.  

The Strategic Plan overview from Grovider is available here. Additional framework for this report will be forthcoming. 

The Pathways Steering Team, made up of 13 individuals from congregations across Mosaic Conference, includes two board and two staff members. The team was charged with a two-year process of overseeing a listening tour, reflecting on the tour’s feedback, aligning the feedback with existing priorities, and creating a three-year strategic plan and a recommendation on the question of Mosaic Conference’s affiliation with Mennonite Church USA (MC USA).

The Pathways team brought to the August 2024 meeting this recommendation for the Mosaic Board:  

We, the Pathways Steering Team, recommend a pathway forward of partnership and collaboration for Mosaic Mennonite Conference’s relationship with MC USA.  

We believe that partnership, rather than membership, allows our diverse conference to focus on our vision, mission, and priorities as we engage with each other and the broader body of Christ in each member’s unique context. 

We believe a partnership can help MC USA and Mosaic congregations and Conference-Related Ministries discover innovative ways to journey together toward healthier relational patterns. We believe Mosaic has much to offer in shaping a new model of relationship. 

We believe a partnership gives space for those who disagree to covenant as one body while we continue to learn and grow together in Christ-centered discipleship and peacemaking. We desire to avoid the schisms of our past and acknowledge that neither this recommendation nor any other will resolve all tension with recent MC USA resolutions and the diversity of belief within Mosaic.  

We thank the Holy Spirit for empowering us as we have worked together in our discernment and decision making. We have sensed the Spirit leading us forward through our times of listening and sharing, agreeing and disagreeing, praying, silence, and Scripture. Partnership was the pathway the majority of the Pathways Team was drawn toward, and where we found consensus. This recommendation comes with a sense of peace, a fruit of the Holy Spirit, and indeed it is a “pleasant place” (Psalm 16). 

After extensive conversation, the Mosaic Conference Board, with strong support, “affirmed the work of the Pathways team and recommends the affiliation proposal to the delegates.” 

“We deeply appreciate the dedicated, faithful discernment process of the Pathways team,” shared Conference Moderator Angela Moyer Walter. “We look forward to who we are becoming as we commit together to do the work of the strategic plan.”  

Moyer Walter continued, “Each piece of our mosaic is valuable and contributes to the whole. There are many perspectives, but God unifies us, even in disagreement. I invite us to surrender to the guidance of the Holy Spirit and recognize the breadth of God’s beauty represented in all of us.” 

Each piece of our mosaic is valuable and contributes to the whole.

angela moyer walter, mosaic moderator

“The Pathways team was very successful in what they were asked to do,” shared Mosaic’s Assistant Moderator Roy Williams. “No one approach will satisfy everyone. We as a board accepted this recommendation as such. We invite the Assembly delegates to wrestle with this recommendation and come together at the delegate preparation meetings to share their feedback. We’ll take all of it under advisement.”  

In reflecting on the affiliation recommendation, Executive Minister Steve Kriss shared, “This ‘third way approach’ will require work, patience, and creativity as we discern a possible new pattern of relating with our siblings across Mennonite Church USA. We value the space a new arrangement might give toward both focused and expanded possibilities within the global Anabaptist community.” 

“I feel grateful to be part of the Pathways Steering Team, though our time of prayer and discernment was not easy,” shared Haroldo Nunes (Seguidores de Cristo [Sarasota, FL]), who joined the Pathways Steering Team in January 2024. “We had disagreements, worked on many language changes, and needed to listen to each other well and compromise. We worked with respect and love for each other, knowing that the results will benefit the conference.” 

Also reflecting on her experience on the Pathways Steering Team, Bronwyn Histand (Blooming Glen [PA] Mennonite) offered, “I recognize that our path was difficult; we did not initially know one another, we primarily worked virtually, and our task grew out of a significant conflict. However, with persistent listening, scripture, prayer times, and lots of emails, both the strategic plan and the affiliation recommendation became clear. I particularly felt the Holy Spirit leading us as we grappled directly with the affiliation question. We talked openly, shared perspectives, agreed and disagreed, asked questions, and ultimately came to consensus. I felt a sense of God’s creative spirit flowing like a river as we embraced a ‘third way.’”

Feedback from the delegate preparation meetings in September will help to shape the action that the Conference Board will bring to the annual Assembly. The next meeting of the Conference Board will take place on Sept. 30, 2024.  


Jennifer Svetlik

Jennifer is Editor / Development Coordinator for Mosaic. She also serves as Children’s Faith Formation Director at Salford Mennonite (Harleysville, PA).

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Mosaic Board, Pathway Process, Pathway Steering Team

What is Healthy Niños Honduras? Get to know this Conference-Related Ministry!

August 15, 2024 by Cindy Angela

by Javier Márquez

Editor’s Note: This is the first in a series of four feature articles on HNH, originally published in Spanish in 2024. All photos by Javier Márquez.

Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV

In the top left, Amanda Sagastume registers a family. Top right, Felix, Geron, and Herman Sagastume pray for the community. Bottom left, the Sagastumes lead a time of reflection with a volunteer team. Bottom right, Brendan Sagastume works at the pharmacy. Center, two children from the community.

Founded in 1987 as Mama Project and growing into Healthy Niños Honduras (HNH) in 2017, this Christian organization aims to provide “much-needed resources and hope to children and communities suffering in adverse conditions in Honduras…[through] a network of partnerships across all sectors of society and organizations willing to join and participate with initiatives and programs that offer healthy alternatives to children and communities in Honduras, as well as hope for a sustainable future,” states their website. 

Dr. Herman Sagastume and his wife Amanda Sagastume are the Executive Director and Business Manager, respectively, of the organization, which they joined in 2010.

From East Greenville, Pennsylvania, they coordinate the various aspects of the project: medical care, supported by a team of professionals and a professional medical record system; connections with churches in the United States, volunteer groups, and community outreach; financing the medical center, and self-sustaining gardens.

“We want to offer alternatives to families and children living in poor communities, so they have a better future and, most importantly, to save lives; so they don’t die because there is no food at home or because they don’t have access to good nutrition,” says Dr. Herman Sagastume. “We dream that one day no family will suffer from a lack of food.”

“The organization in Honduras plays an independent role; we don’t want to be an organization from the United States that says, ‘As Americans, we’re doing this work…’, but rather we want the communities in Honduras to identify and name the support they need,” says Amanda Sagastume.

Healthy Niños Honduras is a Mosaic Conference-Related Ministry. Over the years, various teams from congregations have developed that serve at HNH year after year. Additionally, HNH has connections with local Honduran churches who offer leaders for each community’s medical brigades.

In the top left, a man from the community receives medical assistance. Top right, the community waits for an event. Bottom left, a family that has known the program for many years. Bottom right, the construction of a floor in one of the homes.

Healthy Niños Honduras is a Mosaic Conference-Related Ministry. Over the years, various teams from congregations have developed that serve at HNH year after year. Additionally, HNH has connections with local Honduran churches who offer leaders for each community’s medical brigades.

“At HNH, we offer a soft introduction to the missionary world,” says Dr. Sagastume. “People can see what we do in the name of God, serving those in greatest need. Universities have also sent students in pedagogy, nutrition, and health.”

Another key feature of the program is the Nutritional Center, where children are rehabilitated nutritionally and where mothers receive information on essential nutrients for children’s development. The center also has gardens with nutrient dense crops like corn and beans, which serve both the center’s pantry and as a classroom where mothers learn planting methods and optimization techniques from professionals.

“Little by little, we have been able to teach mothers how they can change the mentality of ‘my land does not produce.’ When they leave, we have seeds available for them,” says Dr. Sagastume.

“We teach families that when they have extra money, they should buy seeds, bananas, and nutrient-dense foods, rather than sweets. Constant education is important for change,” says Amanda Sagastume. 

Filed Under: Articles, Mosaic News En Español Tagged With: Healthy Niños de Honduras, Javier Marquez, Mosaic News en Español

Spruce Lake’s Gap Year students talk about its impact 

August 15, 2024 by Cindy Angela

by Grace Nolt


The 2023-24 Gap Year students on their last day of classes May 14, 2024, (L-R, Back): Moraya Tellado, program manager; Micky Tellado; Abby Arndt; Connie Wismer, teacher/program manager. (Front): Kathryn Hoover, Maura Heraghty, Isabella (Izzy) Morales. Photo by Bethany Evans.

Renew Gap Year is a program for young adults in its second year at Spruce Lake Ministries, a Mosaic CRM (Conference-Related Ministry). Renew combines hands-on ministry experience with classes taken through Anchor Christian University (with or without credits), plus off-site trip days that include an international trip to Costa Rica. It can be a cost-effective alternative to diving into college immediately after high school. 

How can Renew benefit young adults in the Mosaic community?

Isabella Morales (otherwise known as Izzy) is one of the graduates from the 2023-2024 academic year. “I wouldn’t trade this year for anything!” she said. 

“The Renew Gap Year,” Izzy continued, “is great for young people who just want to find some direction in life; it gives you great experiences with work, school and relationships, and leaves you with experience and memories that you’ll remember…and it is a whole lot of fun!” 

Maura Heraghty, another graduate, agreed. Before coming to Renew, she just hadn’t realized that her interests in the mechanical and missionary fields could actually be combined to serve God. “I’m realizing that I can use all of my skills at the same time; I’m looking to be an engineer missionary now!” 

Micky Tellado’s Renew experience has affirmed his goal of becoming a youth pastor one day. (Micky already has been a Spruce Lake Day Camp counselor since 2021 and a Wilderness Camp Leader-in-Training in 2020.) 

Each semester, four 3-credit classes are offered for a total of eight classes and 24 optional credits, which are transferrable to select universities. Classes taught by qualified Spruce Lake Ministries staff include Dynamics of Discipleship, Apologetics, New Testament Survey, and Personal Finance. 

In the New Testament Survey class, students read the entire New Testament. “This allowed me to have more knowledge of who Christ is, what he taught, and why he said some of the very challenging things he said,” Maura commented. “It was also an environment where I could discuss those things with people without being afraid they’d just brush me off.” 

Throughout the year, Renew participants apply themselves through class days, work days, and trips off site — anywhere from a Broadway show in New York City to picking apples at a local orchard. They also serve with a local church or ministry, meeting twice a month with the ministry leader – another practical way to apply their skills and receive insight into the type of work in store for them. The 10-day Costa Rica trip tends to be a spiritual highlight. 

“I spend a lot more time in the Bible now,” said Micky. “That happened after our Costa Rica trip where each morning we would take an hour to be completely silent and spend time in the Bible and with God.” 

“My biggest transformation,” Izzy said, “has been an increase in confidence. Before, I was really anxious about (trying new things). At Renew, I learned that I can work in the office, I can do food service, I can interact with a customer, and I can grow a relationship with a bunch of people I never met before … it’s made me more willing to take risks and jump into other things in life.” 

Maura knew that she wanted to be in a Christian environment but couldn’t afford college. She registered for Renew when a friend told her about the program at Spruce Lake. “Renew has affected my walk with Christ,” she said. “My mentor really pushed me to grow in spiritual areas; she would kind of give me a nudge in the right direction, then check up on me to see if I actually chose to take those steps.” 

“The Renew Gap Year program,” Maura summarized, “is a place to grow and definitely be stretched — but also to find peace.”

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Spruce Lake

Cultivating Next Generation Leaders 

August 15, 2024 by Cindy Angela

by Stephen Kriss

Within the first weeks in my role as executive minister of Franconia Conference, one of the predecessor communities of Mosaic Conference, then-moderator John Goshow (Blooming Glen [PA]) told me to begin to look for my successor. John told me that while I wouldn’t get to choose my successor that I should build a team in such a way that the successor would be nearby. He remarked that within Franconia Conference leadership was usually cultivated within. That had been true in my experience; every person in executive leadership roles had either worked in the Conference before or grown up within a Franconia congregation. 

I thought to myself, “This is how 300-year-old communities keep their legacy alive.” And I began the slow work of constructing a team that includes the diversity of who we are, expanding on that as our Conference has grown and changed to become Mosaic. This invitation gave me permission to seek out young leaders alongside experienced leaders. Currently we have a staff of nearly 25 persons with a mix of strengths, gifts, and backgrounds. I feel privileged to lead alongside them. 

The invitation to cultivate next generation leaders is what initially brought me to Franconia Conference. In 2005, the Conference recognized a need to support next generation leaders (then the millennial generation in their 20s). We listened together, visited colleges, developed initiatives, and laid the groundwork for what would become today’s Ambassadors program. The process opened the doors for next generation pastors and leaders across the Conference.  Never did I imagine that it would also mean I would be leading a community called Mosaic. 

This is some of the church’s most important discipleship work. I am always inspired by young leaders who chose to invest in the church. I value the sometimes-tough questions they ask.  The church both needs and can withstand rigorous questions and doubts. Jesus met Thomas’ doubts with an invitation to engage. My life has been changed by working alongside those millennials who have challenged and inspired me. 

We are now pivoting to the next generations: Gen Z and Gen Alpha. Some of the questions they face are entirely new, spurred on by technology and the interconnected nature of the world around us. Jesus continues to call leaders, sometimes those we don’t expect. 

Our shared work of creating a context where next generations can choose to follow Jesus and respond to the “call within the call” means taking postures of humility and care, alongside creating brave spaces where it’s safe enough to try and do, to sometimes succeed and sometimes fail.  

This summer I’ve had the privilege of working alongside Brendan Sagastume who was shared between Mosaic and his home congregation, Perkiomenville (PA), though the Ambassadors program which wrapped up last week on retreat in Tampa, FL. Brendan’s quiet and efficient steadiness helped me to become a better leader, learning how to listen well, to invite, and to respond.   

Cultivating next generation leaders is essential transformative work. Until the reign of God comes fully, in each generation we must navigate how to embody the reconciling love of Jesus in our broken and beautiful world by calling younger persons to serve and lead alongside of those of us who are more experienced. This is the work of discipleship. And the way is made together toward God’s future. 


Stephen Kriss

Stephen Kriss is the Executive Minister of Mosaic Conference.

Filed Under: Articles, Blog Tagged With: Stephen Kriss

Joint Youth Group Service Project Honors God and Creation

August 15, 2024 by Cindy Angela

By Abby Nyce, Souderton (PA) congregation

For years as part of its community service and creation care, Zion Mennonite (Souderton, PA) has annually cleaned litter out of West Street Park in Souderton. Since the park is a block from Souderton Mennonite, and Zion wanted to cooperate with other churches in some of its initiatives, for the last two years, Zion and Souderton have worked together to pick up litter in the park on a Saturday morning in May. 

Participants from Zion and Souderton who participated in the Chestnut Park Street cleanup, with the trash that they gathered. Photo by Ned Leight. 

As someone who enjoys community service, I found that picking up trash with the youth group of another Mosaic congregation, Zion, benefited both the park and the participants. Serving the community, even in something as small as picking up trash, allows for God to influence that community by motivating us, His children, to act rightly. We are called to serve through Him and care for others as He has cared for us, reflecting that care to the public.  

I committed to more than 30 hours of community service during my junior year of high school, and I have gone on multiple mission trips with the Souderton youth group. Community service is a way for me to serve the Lord in ways that have great impact over time, and to represent the Lord in the community.  

Removing trash from a park is an act that seems small, but it preserves the creation that our good God created for His people. By doing so, we worship Him and respect the planet we call our home.  

Photo by Jess McQuade
Photo by Jess McQuade
Photo by Jess McQuade

Abby Nyce

Abby Nyce is entering her senior year at Souderton Area High School. She’s involved in the high school’s Interact Club and National Honor Society, both involving community service. 

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: formation, Souderton, youth formation, Zion

Carried by God, in Love

August 15, 2024 by Cindy Angela

by Nathan Good

The following is an adaptation of reflections shared by Dana and Nathan Good at the funeral of their son, Amos Rhett Good. To hear their full reflections, please click here. 

We didn’t have long with Amos, but he left a lifelong impression. Our journey with Amos began unexpectedly. Having taken surgical means to not have children, Dana and I were surprised by her pregnancy in late 2023.  

Then the next twist in the journey came. We discovered over halfway through the pregnancy that he had Trisomy 18, a severe genetic disorder. 

Amos was born on May 28, 2024 and lived for five hours. Many from our family were able to come to be with him and us. Those hours were filled with unconditional love.  

God was never far away. Even though most of his life on earth was spent in the womb, God was holding him close even then. The evidence of God and his people are all over the story of our son, Amos, and as his parents, we couldn’t want for a better legacy for him. 

The name Amos means “carried by God.” The prophet Amos was a simple shepherd called by God to deliver a powerful message: “Worship without justice is idolatry.” I feel a kindred spirit with the prophet. 

Nathan and Dana Good with their newborn son, Amos Rhett. 

I didn’t set out to be a pastor. I told God I would go anywhere and do anything for Him. I imagined a place of poverty, caring for people burdened by post-colonial globalism. Instead, God sent me to my own community with a simple message: “Worship without justice is idolatry.” 

Dana chose the name Amos for our son. Together we decided this was a way of naming him after me.  

As followers of Jesus, we claim to worship the one true God, the God of love and justice. 

The Apostle John reminds us: 

“This is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us, and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.” 

“Greater love has no one than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” 

I wonder what the world looked like from Amos’s perspective. For the entire time he was alive, Amos had his eyes open. I have never seen a newborn taking in their world the way Amos did. And I believe what he saw was love. 

Imagine if we discovered an animal species that developed an additional sense, knowing if one of their young would die prematurely. Rather than distancing themselves, they poured extra care upon the mother and the child. 

Imagine they created tools to provide oxygen to the baby, allowing the family to gather to hug, hold, and kiss the child before they passed away. If we found this in nature, we would hold it up as one of the greatest expressions of love. 

That was Amos’s life. 

I can’t help but think of those around us, walking through tragedy without a support system like this. I hope that the love we have experienced inspires all of us to feel the same love towards others. 

Love towards the 70 to 90 children in Quakertown School District without a house to call their own.  

Love towards the mother wrestling with a surprise pregnancy without family or anything that feels like a reasonable option other than terminating the baby 

Love towards the hundreds of thousands of babies who are aborted every year. 

Love towards refugees and immigrants who have traveled thousands of miles out of sheer desperation to provide for their children.  

Children without parents, parents without spouses, immigrants miles from home: orphans, widows, and foreigners. This is who God has called us to love throughout history and it seems just as difficult today as it was three thousand years ago. 

14 Seek good, not evil, 
    that you may live. 
Then the Lord God Almighty will be with you, 
    just as you say he is. 
15 Hate evil, love good; 
    maintain justice in the courts. 
Perhaps the Lord God Almighty will have mercy 
    on the remnant of [his people]. 

Amos 5:14-15

Nathan Good

Nathan Good is the Pastor of Swamp (Quakertown, PA) congregation.

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Dana Good, Nathan Good, Swamp

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