“Punctuating Life” was the title of the sermon in the bulletin. I was intrigued and I looked forward to hearing the preacher as I prepared to worship at the charming little Congregational church on the Green in Dorset, Vermont.
The pastor’s theme was simple: our lives are divided into periods that can be compared to punctuation marks. Our growing years are the “Exclamation Point” years, when we are establishing our identity and want the world to know who we are, even if we are still trying to figure it out ourselves. By the time we hit our 30s, we are beginning to move into our “Question Mark” phase, when we realize that there are things in life we don’t understand and are beyond our control: things like illness, broken marriages, or job loss.
As the pastor moved through his thoughtful sermon, I found myself struck by the punctuation metaphors, especially the “Exclamation Point” imagery of our early years. My thoughts turned to the young people of our church: the Middle Schoolers, High Schoolers, those in college and graduate school, and the 20-somethings starting careers. They are all in the “Exclamation Point” time of their lives as they grow and learn about themselves.
The “Exclamation Point” years are such vital years. These are the years when the very foundation of person’s life is built. And of course, we all want every young person’s foundation to be built on the love and grace God gives to them and to all of us in Jesus Christ.
Five years ago we as a congregation left a sentence open and unfinished when we decided to drop temporarily the position of Associate Pastor. It is time now for us to punctuate our commitment to our young people with an exclamation point and finish the sentence with strong statement reflecting the promises we made in their baptisms that we will “guide and nurture them by word and deed, with love and prayer, encouraging them to know and follow Christ and be faithful members of his church”. It is time for us to restore the full-time position staff position to have someone to look after the needs of our youth and young folks as they travel through their Exclamation Years.
The Session has already begun talking about how we can restore this position, what the job description would include, timing, and how we can fund it. But to make this happen will take more than Session support; it will take the enthusiastic commitment of every member of our church.
I invite you to exclaim your support for our young people, and punctuate your support in both word and deed.
Grace & peace,
Pastor Skip
