One of the joys of being Moderator at UCG is getting to interact with the different people in our church, including many with whom I would not have spent time if not for this role. In addition to an expanded sense of what we do and who we are as a church, these interactions bring a growing awareness of the deep stories of our fellow church members. We already tend to love and respect those we know well but look around you next Sunday at someone you don’t know well. There is a story there, and likely some perspective or experience that might surprise you.  Maybe that person served in the Peace Corps or the military. Maybe they have suffered tremendous loss in their life yet exude positive energy and optimism.  Maybe they had a 40-year career focusing on a single subject or on resolving conflict; maybe they had 10 careers, loving some and hating some. Maybe they are struggling mightily and feel lucky that they made it in at all on any given Sunday. Maybe they are on the verge of stepping out into their purpose and changing the world. To me, the sum of these stories is a kind of deep wisdom that suffuses how we interact with one another and how we look at the world. I’m not sure I could describe this wisdom in so many words, but I sense it strongly at UCG. Can you sense and tap into the deep wisdom, too, as you live your own story?

Jeremy Archer