This past week we threw a Christmas Party, inviting local friends and those loosely connected to the Sellwood Faith Community.  The party, which was similar to our birthday bash this summer, was about helping establish ties between those we think might be interested in joining the community and those already here.  It was a no pressure social situation and a lot of fun.  No one committed to anything by turning up.
When you think of inviting people to church you might think of what we already do, which is to invite people to service projects, times of conversation, and worship.  The reality of this is that it can be hard for people to come to something where they don’t really know the people or the vibe of what will happen.  Having parties is just one way for us to build stronger relationships.  Most of us are comfortable with going to a party. It’s a situation where we know what to expect for the most part and it’s easy to make an excuse and leave early if things are not working out.
Now we know that not everyone who came to the party will be part of the Sellwood Faith Community, and that’s great.  In fact if all our friends did join the community I think we’d go a bit crazy.  It’s good to have a diverse and varied network. By having good, strong relationships with a variety of people in and out of the church start we can more fully reflect the kingdom of God. So we’ll keep on having parties and get togethers, growing our network and getting to see God reflected in an amazing array of people who we get to travel with on our journey of life.

-Eilidh

The table is ready.