Good News from Good Shepherd
From the Rector, Randall Dunnavant

Summer is such a wonderful time for us in our culture. Days are longer; there are plenty of outside activities; there are trips to the beach or mountains or to visit family around the country (for many at CoGS are not long term residents in TN); mission trips to Ecuador and even to Memphis; and there is rest, relaxation and enjoyment to be had! I know I have come back from my vacation ready for the next days at CoGS.

Driving a U-Haul truck with my daughter’s belongings from Tallahassee, Florida to Stevens Point, Wisconsin, gives one a good deal of time to think … and think …. and think.

I thought a good deal about what it is that has made and continues to make CoGS a special place. Part of what made CoGS special is that we were new church with opportunities to try new ways of being a church. We placed our emphasis on education, fellowship, participation, community. and the joy of being Christians together on this walk at CoGS. Our experience “rubbed off” on people who visited with us making CoGS an easy place to come into.

I also realized that as we have grown that “specialness” of our church life is still here and important but a little more difficult to live into. Things we have always taken for granted demand that we become more intentional in making them happen.

Here’s where you fit in. I am asking you to help me make sure that CoGS remains that place of open, welcoming fellowship and joy that it has always been. It is one of our greatest strengths here. On Sundays look for someone you do not know and introduce yourself (take someone to coffee hour; invite another to join you in your Bible Study Class) look around and focus on someone else as you take your role as an ambassador and host.

The first impression of CoGS is always the people who greet you on Sunday morning. Help me make it a good impression and the best impression it can be.

See you in Church on Sunday!

Randall Dunnavant