Hey,

I know I haven’t been back in a while; that we’ve had a bit of a rocky year. I'm not going to say that I am perfect, or that you are. I know that nothing is perfect because if it were, we would not need Christ. I've been hurt by you, and I am sure I have also hurt you. I have been realizing that sometimes, when people spend time away from the church, it challenges what they believe, why they believe it, and why they are at the church they are at. I’m sorry for anything I did to make you doubt how much I truly love you, and how much I appreciate you. I’ve missed you, and wanted to say thank you.

Thank you for helping me find my voice. You let me be in student leadership, let me plan games, speak in service, start new programs, and lead small group sessions. Because of you I know how to speak in front of people. You showed me that there is no fear in being on stage, that it is okay to be confident. Thank you for even having a youth group. Without it I would have lived through some of my hardest years alone. You showed me what it means to be in community with others, how to love and be loved in return. In your four walls I found a mentor who cared about me. I found someone who would live life with me, and tell me to straighten up if I stepped out of line. You gave me a guide who fostered the community I needed, and showed me how to create a community of people wherever I went.

Thank you for loving me through my awkward years. You know the ones I am talking about, when my hair was too short, my pants hung a little too low, and my shirts almost always had the Paul Frank monkey on them. You loved me through the many times I said the wrong thing at the wrong time, and lovingly ignored it as to not embarrass me. Actually, thanks for ignoring a lot of things, not just what i said at the wrong time. Thanks, like... really I was weird.

Thanks for being home when I had to move to a new house. Two steps inside your door I felt like I could finally breath again. Your perfectly terrible coffee coffee always welcomed me into Sunday morning service with a warm (and slightly disgusting) hug. On that note, thank you so much for always having coffee. It may not be the perfect cup of coffee, but even Folgers keeps away the caffeine headaches. Thanks for providing the loving cup of coffee that is so needed. It wouldn’t be home without the sludge that you try to pass off as coffee.

Thank you for being be multi generational congregation. I did not realize how much of an asset it is to worship next to someone who is ten years younger than me on one side, and someone who is ten (or more) years older than me on the other. The infinite wisdom that I have learned from growing up in a church that allows me such easy access to the older and younger generation.

While we are talking of the younger generation, thank you for making me realize my passion and allowing me to pursue it. I can remember the day I sat in the fish room (Does every church have a fish themed room? I feel like they do), my preschool teacher looked at me teaching kids and told me that she thought I would be a great teacher. It almost audibly clicked that what I wanted to do with my life was be with kids. Thank you for nurturing my passion, and providing me with a place that I could do what I needed to ensure my future.

Thank you for giving me some of the best friends I have ever had. I was basically born into friendship with some girls, and I wouldn’t want it any other way. You’ve shown me what friendships should be. Thank you. The friends that have been there for so long, I can’t even remember all the reasons I love them are blessings I could never dream of.

Thank you for letting me find myself, and for letting me turn the church upside down while doing so. You have been patient with me. I will never be able to repay you for allowing me to wander to other churches in order to find who I really am in Christ. Thank you for allowing me to ask the hard questions about why this church, even if it was hard to answer.

Thank you for being my home, my friend, and for helping me find who I am. Without you and your constant influence in my life I would not be who I am today. So, for it all: Thanks.