Moving to a new community and new job can be one event that many emotions come into our daily life. My wife, Chris, and I just moved to Gladbrook before Christmas it was a little quicker than we thought due to our old house’s new owner wanting to move in right away. The stress of packing up your life, going through those items that were accumulated since the last move, what to keep, what to throw out, things to donate or stuff to give to the kids can be overwhelming. Then there is the whole moving day experience itself. For us it went well. Thanks be to God for good weather and a great moving company crew and this was all before we even set foot in our new home and community. Before the moving trucks were even empty, people from Peace Church and the neighborhood stopped by to introduce themselves and welcome us to Gladbrook. (They also brought yummy food) Cars that went by the house smiled and waved a hello. On a very stress filled day this was a bright light in the chaos. As faithful people, how do we show welcome to our new neighbors? Throughout Christ’s ministry he emphasized the need to love our neighbors as ourselves and to welcome those that seek a faith journey. When new people come to our churches for a worship service, how do we show them welcome? A welcoming faith community is an important part to a move to a new neighborhood or town. Let us all extend a warm smile, extend a loving hand, or a gracious hello the next time a new face shows up at our place of worship. This simple and loving gesture can make a move to a new community a lot less stressful and make us new people feel part of our new world. If you are new to our community, I encourage you to seek out a new faith home. We are fortunate to have many welcoming churches, that would love to have you come visit and become part of our faith community. So, stop by on a Sunday and say hi. Peace and blessings, Pastor Joe