Months, literally months, have gone by since I was last in Emmanuel. Somehow though, it seems as though I never left. It’s not as though nothing has changed, because several things have and I’m constantly learning what those are exactly. The part that hasn’t though is the warmth each Sunday brings whenever people gather here.

I stepped back into Emmanuel Sunday morning for church and the warm reception and greetings I found were the same as when I left, albeit, maybe warmer for time I was gone. There is so much changing or about to change here at Emmanuel. For example, this website I’m writing this note to is about to look much, much different.

This is so exciting for me. As this place changes and grows, the warmth that makes it so special is still so constant. What’s even more exciting to me is to see the warmth that the people bring in every Sunday grow beyond its weekend sojourns and filling the middle of the week. It may just be Aaron and I sitting in the intern office working hard or hardly working or better yet it is a group of people gathering and dwelling here for some time.

We are experiencing a rebirth here at Emmanuel. There is so much good to build on and we are discovering what that is even as we try to create something new here, something fresh. We invite you to join in the warmth, the change and in the new energy filling this place. We invite you to stop by, not just on a Sunday but also during the week and inhabit this place the way God intended it. We look forward to seeing you.

-Josh Philips