Thoughts on community: We are not here by chance | Cooperative Baptist Fellowship Blog: Oakhurst is not a perfect place. Passions run high. There have been some long, heated battles. Plenty of people have left in disagreement or hurt. Many times I have been glad not to be a pastor or having my turn as a church leader. At times the main reason I have stayed was that I like being in the choir.
Nonetheless, through the years this church has become my family. I am known and loved and can be myself when I am sad or joyous, wise or silly, over-committed or lazy, conflict mediator or trouble maker, full of questions or entirely too sure of myself. I have been forgiven and celebrated, consoled and enjoyed. I can know myself as God’s Beloved because these folks love me. And as I love them I experience again how deeply, wrecklesslessly each of us is loved by God.