Mosaic Mennonites

Missional - Intercultural - Formational

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Chesed Amidst Uncertainty, Fatigue, and Anxiety

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By Angela Moyer Walter

I am a bi-vocational pastor living and ministering in the city of Allentown, PA.  I work as a healthcare provider in pediatric home care. It is hard to articulate what the past two and a half years of a global pandemic have been like for me, but I will try. 

Uncertainty is my word to describe 2020. It was challenging to figure out how to provide occupational therapy services to families via telehealth and make wise choices with my co-pastors regarding worship, ministry, and safety.   

I describe 2021 with the word fatigue. The constant and unending changes and desperation drained me. My usual places of calm and refreshment were no longer sufficient. Many things required double the energy and unexpected complications became the norm.   

When 2022 came, I experienced anxiety in a way that I never had before. It is one thing to walk alongside folks experiencing overwhelming anxiety, but it is another trying to manage your own.  

Despite the uncertainty, fatigue, and anxiety, I can testify through it all, God’s Chesed (loving kindness) has sustained me.  

At our church, Ripple, the children enjoy singing, “Jesus is the rock, the rock that lasts, Jesus is the rock that lasts. My soul has found a resting place.” When we are tossed repeatedly by the ever-changing crashing waves, Jesus is our rock. God never leaves us. God is present with us in the storm.   

I have used these images in scripture often to encourage and support others. But with the pandemic and our country’s social-political polarization over the past two years, these images have become ingrained more deeply into my own being and understanding of God.  

During this season of uncertainty, fatigue, and anxiety, many have experienced God in new and profound ways. I have found myself singing a favorite chorus recently, “On Christ the solid rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand.” Despite our challenges and discomfort in life, God’s continual presence changes and transforms all of us through reconciling love. 

I welcome the opportunity to gather at fall Assembly with you and celebrate chesed, God’s loving kindness that has sustained humanity though all the hardships of all time. God is good, abundant, and so gracious with us. When the world around us is in chaos, we can take deep breaths and know that God’s Spirit, ruah, is near to us, pulsing through us. This is good news! 

Think of God in a very big way.  
And if you do, that’s too small! 
You can’t think of anything more wonderful than this God. 
And you can’t figure out anything about God without a special grace. 
God is so marvelously good, there is no word for it. 
So gentle. So considerate. So kind. 
So tender – so everything marvelous. 
That is God. And whatever you say about God is far less than it is. 

– THOMAS KEATING

As we prepare for Assembly, I encourage you to read Psalm 116 in The Message. Verses 1-11 describe my experience well, and I’m not alone in that. Verses 12-14 summarize what I am anticipating at Assembly:  

What can I give back to God 
    for the blessings he’s poured out on me? 
I’ll lift high the cup of salvation—a toast to God! 
    I’ll pray in the name of God; 
I’ll complete what I promised God I’d do, 
    and I’ll do it together with his people. 

Mosaic’s inaugural two years have brought challenges and celebrations, and God has been moving through it all. We have wept and prayed together, shared with one another, and learned from one another, and, Chesed has sustained us. What can we give back to God? We will lift high the cup of God’s salvation! 

Angela Moyer Walter

Angela Moyer Walter is Assistant Moderator of Mosaic Conference, Co-pastor at Ripple Church in Allentown, PA, and an occupational therapist at Good Shepherd Rehabilitation. She enjoys long summer evenings with family and friends and watching the Philadelphia Phillies.

Mosaic Listening Task Force Update

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By Jenny Fujita

The Mosaic Board tasked us, the Mosaic Listening Task Force, with leading a listening process and reviewing Mosaic Conference’s relationships with Mennonite Church USA (MC USA). Specifically, we are to listen to each Mosaic community and ministry and provide direction for further discernment at the upcoming Assembly on November 5 at Souderton (PA) Mennonite Church.

The Mosaic Listening Task Force has met twice so far. The first session focused on sharing general reflections and questions that might be helpful to ask in the days ahead. At the second session, we focused more on reading, processing, and learning. We’ve collected and read letters sent to the Mosaic Board, notes taken from post-MC USA Delegate Assembly Listening sessions, and reflections from Listening Prayer times. These represent a combination of hopes, dreams, needs, and anxieties. 
 
Utilizing a checklist of Mosaic churches and ministries, we are checking off those groups who have shared with us and preparing to reach out to those we haven’t.  We are especially interested in connecting with those who have felt unheard, including some of our multicultural and smaller churches and organizations, as well as others who live, serve, and minister from the margins. 

If you have anything you would like to share about your hopes for Mosaic Conference, particularly in regards to our relationship with MC USA, please email Jenny Fujita at jenny@fmpr.net, and I will ensure that your comments are shared with the entire Task Force. If your church or ministry has not submitted feedback yet, we will be reaching out.  Our Task Force is creating several feedback processes to ensure that all Mosaic groups will be included and recognized by our Assembly on November 5.  Next week we will be announcing dates and locations for further opportunities to share your thoughts and ideas at “Assembly Scattered” meetings in October. 

Already we are beginning to see some themes emerge as we listen, read, and process your input, but we are not yet ready to arrive at any conclusions. We will continue to prayerfully and openly connect and discern.  Our hope is to knit together our mosaic of voices and the Holy Spirit’s leadings in a way that guides us in November and brings Mosaic’s mission and vision to life for and through all of us.

Jenny Fujita

Jenny Fujita is a member of the Mosaic Listening Task Force.  She is also the Pastor of Upper Milford (Zionsville, PA) Mennonite Church.

Living in Freedom

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By Mary Nitzsche

In the past few years, I have heard a lot of demand for personal freedom and the right to make choices based upon these freedoms—right to possess and carry arms, right to make decisions about COVID guidelines or mandates, right to make decisions about my body, the right to believe and worship without fear. According to our Declaration of Independence, “No one is born with a natural right to rule over others without their consent, and that governments are obligated to apply the law equally to everyone.” Our national anthem states we live in “the land of the free.”  I hope when we read the rights of living in the “land of the free,” we are mindful and acknowledge that all people do not experience these freedoms equally. 

Our Declaration of Independence and national anthem stress the importance and value of personal freedom. But as followers of Jesus, what does it mean to live in freedom? Is our understanding of freedom different or does it mirror what is believed, spoken, or enacted in our country?  

The Apostle Paul taught that love of self and neighbor would guide behaviors and actions, not the ethic of personal freedom. “For you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters; only do not use your freedom an opportunity for self-indulgence, but through love become slaves to one another. For the whole law is summed up in a single commandment, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Galatians 5:13-14 (NRSV) 

As followers of Jesus, we are called to freedom. How does the ethic of love make a difference in the choices we make? 

  • We respect the needs and desires of others as we respect our needs and desires. During this time of COVID, we may choose to wear a mask in the presence of a person who is immune compromised.  
  • We speak and live what we value and believe. We may also choose to respect those whose values, beliefs, lifestyle, and actions differ from ours rather than judge, condemn, or expect them to change and become like us. 
  • We accept others for who they are, not who we would like them to be. We may choose to stay connected rather than disconnect even when it is a struggle. 
  • We choose practices that respect and honor all of creation rather than practices that endanger, harm or exploit. We may choose to ride a bike rather than own a car, recycle, compost garbage, or take our own bags to the store. 

Some of the ways I choose to live in freedom with love as my guiding principle include: 

  • Letting go of a need to control while also paying attention to my needs and priorities. 
  • Holding expectations or plans lightly, aware that expectations and plans may need to be adjusted. 
  • Releasing resentment rather than holding a grudge or letting resentment turn to bitterness. 
  • Letting go of my need to be right, recognizing others have perspectives I need to hear. 
  • Living with doubt or uncertainty even if it appears to be wishy washy or ambiguous. 
  • Accepting the limits of an aging body like forgetfulness, muscle weakness, stiffness, and achy joints. 

My prayer is that I use my personal freedom to speak and act according to the values Jesus taught and lived rather than using my personal freedom to speak and act in ways that elevate my rights, beliefs, and practices above what is important to others. 

Mary Nitzsche

Mary Nitzsche is a Leadership Minister for Mosaic Conference. She and her husband, Wayne, are Midwest natives. They have two adult daughters, Alison and Megan, son-in-laws, Michael and David, and one delightful grandson, William.

Just Eat the Food

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By Jordan Luther

On Sunday, July 17, my congregation (Zion) chartered a bus from Souderton, PA to worship with our Christian siblings at Philadelphia Praise Center, Nations Worship Center, and Indonesian Light Church in South Philadelphia.  

We spent several months planning for this trip. As Pastor Hendy Matahelemual has already shared, this idea was born over lunch in early May. The pastors of our respective congregations met and collaborated on what it would look to have our own Mennonite World Conference where we would worship, fellowship, and share a meal together. 

Leading up to our visit, the Zion congregation did our part to prepare for the trip. We dedicated our July worship series to the importance of the global church and our Mosaic relationships. We studied the story of Peter and Cornelius from Acts 10 as our biblical and theological framework before our visit. Below is an excerpt from my sermon on Sunday, July 10. 

What does it look like to participate in a global, intercultural church? 

The simple answer. It looks a lot like eating different foods. 

Eating the local food and graciously accepting hospitality is one of the best things we can do as cultural outsiders. Eating another’s food opens doors to new relationships and for the Spirit of God to shake things up. 

If I had to summarize our Bible story from Acts 10 today into one sentence, it would be this: just eat the food. 

What does it look like to participate in a global, intercultural church? 

JORDAN LUTHER
Photo provided by Indonesian Light Church

We too often tell this story from only Peter’s perspective. We easily forget that God is at work in both Cornelius and Peter’s lives. God desires to bring them both together, despite their cultural differences, in a spirit of mutual transformation. 

Both Peter and Cornelius are mutually transformed through their meeting. God’s initiative to bring them together gives us a taste—literally—of what it is like to come together as a global, intercultural church. 

Their story shows us that the best place to start becoming an intercultural church is to just eat the food. 

Photo by Nations Worship Center
Photo by Nations Worship Center

Perhaps eating new foods is a simple but profound act of surrendering to God’s mission to bring all people together through Jesus Christ our Lord—without having to sacrifice our deep cultural identities. Can it really be this simple? 

Yes! Just eat the food. 

May we, like Peter and Cornelius, lean into the blurred lines between who is guest and host. May we do so with the confidence that it is God who is setting the table and bringing us together. May we come to the table eager to learn from one another in a spirit of mutual transformation. 

God has set the table. We just need to show up… And eat the food. 

Just eat the food.

Jordan Luther

Jordan Luther is the former Associate Pastor of Faith Formation at Zion Mennonite Church in Souderton, PA. He is starting Clinical Pastoral Education at St. Luke’s Penn Foundation this fall and attends Wild Church at FernRock Retreat.

Abide: A Meditation 

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By Jaye Lindo

Do you ever hear a word that touches you so deeply, but you can’t really grasp its fullness? Only if you sit with it can you get a little glimpse of what the writer really means. Only when you have stillness in your spirit can you minimally sense the essence. We can use Google to understand the origin, lineage, and root of a word.   

 Abide: to remain; continue; stay (from Old English)

John 15:5 says, “I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing” (NRSV). 

Abide. Just sit with it. Abide.   

Pause.     

“I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing“

John 15:5

The verse says, “Those who abide in me.” God uses abide to remind us to stay connected to God. Abide in Me, and I abide in you.  

Yes, Jesus, I desire for us to abide together.   

I thank you, Lord, for our abiding in each other. Without you abiding in me  

I can do nothing.    

Abide. It sounds so comforting, so peaceful.  

How do we abide in God and allow God to abide in us? Abide through your situation. Abide when life turns your world upside down. Abide when your heart is broken. Abide when you are afraid; abide when you are unsure of what to do.   

Abide. 

Just sit in it. Breathe through it.   

Abide. Allow the peace to overwhelm your heart and your situation. 

I am the vine; you are the branches. As branches, we reach outward and upward to connect to other living branches in the vine. We connect living people to the place where they can abide.   

How many of us, as branches, really sit and listen as we abide?  

Do we listen in Bible study, abide as we share our testimonies, abide in community of church fellowship, abide while being a neighbor, abide while growing in our faith?   

John 15:5-8 says, “I am the Vine, you are the branches.  When you’re joined with me and I with you, the relation intimate and organic, the harvest is sure to be abundant.  Separated, you can’t produce a thing.  Anyone who separates from me is deadwood, gathered up and thrown on a bonfire.  But if you make yourselves at home with me and my words are at home in you, you can be sure that whatever you ask will be listened to and acted upon.  This is how my Father shows who he is–when you produce grapes, when you mature as my disciples” (The Message). 

If we are branches that neglect the opportunities to abide, are we nothing but sticks?  Sticks are disconnected from the vine and the other branches.   

The branches abide and thrive and extend love, the love of our Savior and the love our lives.  We can only fulfill the promises of the Father if we abide. Sometimes we abide alone, but abiding is best when we abide together!      

Let’s abide, family.   
Abide.  

Jaye Lindo

Jaye Lindo is the Leadership Development Associate for Mosaic Conference. She also serves as Pastor of 7 Ways Home Fellowship in Bowie, MD.

Buying a Church Building, One Quarter at a Time

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By Bill and Emily Jones, Ripple Church

The first time we attended Ripple Church in Allentown, PA was a Sunday in 2013. We arrived at 4:00 pm to find a bustling church scene. We walked past a group gathered for Church of the Sidewalk and went inside to the basement where we joined everyone for the Church at the Tables service, followed by announcements. Among those announcements were plans for the church’s upcoming move away from the current location (12th and Chew Street). I remember being surprised and a little sad; this lively, warm, and packed church would no longer be here. Luckily, it didn’t move far, just downtown into another church building (8th and Walnut Street). We joined the congregation and enjoyed a few more years there until circumstances forced Ripple to move to another location on Turner Street. 

Wednesday night garden at Ripple. Photo by Mary Sanchez.

Have you ever experienced a church move? Searching for a new home, saying goodbye, moving, and rebuilding relationships and structures have been part of Ripple’s nomadic existence since its beginning. Thankfully we have had friends and supporters every time the congregation needed a new place to go, but it still didn’t make the moves easy. As a church with many walking members, each move, even if close by, can have a significant impact on who can attend regularly. We can remember many families and people from different eras at Ripple whom we miss and whose lives have touched many.  

Today our church faces yet another crossroads, but this one is of a different kind. The owners of St. Stephens, our current building, are ready to sell and want us to buy the building. They believe in us, have supported us, and are asking us to take the next step. As a church of little financial means, it’s a daunting task even to consider. However, it’s an opportunity that excites us, and we’ve made it our goal to own our church building. 

At a recent planning service, the pastors asked Ripple, “What excites you about having our own building? How will owning this building help Ripple Church?”  Some answers included having more space for people, and having our own kitchen and bathrooms that we could share with others. Others were excited about the opportunity to be good neighbors, and to be right next door to the community garden and Franklin Park. Another subset of answers focused on limiting worries about the future and building a sense of permanence that resonates with many Ripple members whose experiences have been the opposite. 

Start of church fundraiser in Feb. 2022, (back, L-R) Charlene Smalls, Angela Moyer Walter, (front, L-R) Danilo Sanchez, Dante. Photo provided by Danilo Sanchez.

There are many reasons why we want to purchase our church building. Now, how is a church with little financial means going to do this? We’re going about this effort by asking big and appreciating small. We’re passing out folders to be filled with quarters and writing letters to partners and friends to help support us in our goal. So far, we have raised $68,000 of our $200,000 goal. We will continue working to reach our goal of having a permanent home until we get there. We’ll cheer every quarter and appreciate every bit of generosity we receive.  

One final Ripple memory: In our stint as treasurers for Ripple, there were months when we feared ends would not meet, where even meeting the modest payroll for pastors was uncertain. But every month there was always enough. Through generosity and the abundance of God, there is always enough.  

Covenant Sunday 2022, Pastor Angela and Ripple members. Photo by Danilo Sanchez.

Mosaic’s Listening Task Force Members Named

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On July 18, the Mosaic Conference Board moved to form a task force to lead a listening process and review of the Conference’s relationships with Mennonite Church USA (MC USA).  Nominations for the task force were gathered from across the Conference. The task force members are:

  • Maria Hosler Byler, Salford (Harleysville, PA)  
  • Herman Sagastume, Perkiomenville (PA), Mosaic Board member 
  • Eden Strunk, Ambler (PA) 
  • Roy Williams, College Hill (Tampa, FL), Mosaic Board member 
  • Nathan Good, Swamp (Quakertown, PA)  
  • Jenny Fujita, Upper Milford (Zionsville, PA) 
  • Jeff Wright, Blooming Glen (PA) & Leadership Minister for California 
  • Sonya Stauffer Kurtz, Zion (Souderton, PA) 
  • Aldo Siahaan, Philadelphia Praise Center (Philadelphia, PA) & Leadership Minister 
  • Mike Derstine, Plains (Hatfield, PA)  
First row (L-R): Maria Hosler Byler, Salford (Harleysville, PA), Herman Sagastume, Perkiomenville (PA), Eden Strunk, Ambler (PA), Roy Williams, College Hill (Tampa, FL), and Nathan Good, Swamp (Quakertown, PA).
Second row (L-R): Jenny Fujita, Upper Milford (Zionsville, PA), Jeff Wright, Blooming Glen (PA), Sonya Stauffer Kurtz, Zion (Souderton, PA), Aldo Siahaan, Philadelphia Praise Center (Philadelphia, PA), and Mike Derstine, Plains (Hatfield, PA).

The task force will meet for its first meeting the week of August 15. The goal of the task force is to listen to each Mosaic community and ministry and to provide direction for further discernment at the upcoming Annual Assembly on November 5 at Souderton (PA) Mennonite Church. 

The Bean Bag Project – Zion Mennonite

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Zion Mennonite (Souderton, PA) Church was recently highlighted as a “Hometown Hero” on Philadelphia’s 6ABC evening news for the work they are doing to help prevent hunger in their community.  To learn more about The Bean Bag Project and to watch the video, click here.