Sunday Afternoon

Running for office has been a blessing. I have truly enjoyed meeting and getting reacquainted with friends and neighbors. The “campaign trail” is made up of sidewalks leading to the doors of homes where people are raising their families. I’ve also been able to attend different churches around town.

A number of services spoke of a drop in people going to church (You know, I think our priests, ministers, preachers, reverends, rabbis, etc. talk occasionally). I have to confess that I used to be one of those people. I was tired. After working an exceptionally long week, I would get home and try to make up for time I spent at work or simply want some down time. I did not appreciate what I was missing. The community of faith in Pflugerville is warm, accepting and inviting. If you have not been to church in a while, I encourage you to take a risk, get up a little early and go. I am confident that you will be pleasantly surprised and welcomed with open arms.

A particularly poignant message with me is the quality of our gifts and service to others. In one sermon, the preacher told an old Paul Harvey story about a lady who found a twenty year old turkey in her freezer and called the Butterball hotline to see if it was still good to eat. The Butterball team of experts determined that if the turkey had stayed frozen for the entire time then it would be safe to eat, but told the lady that it had probably lost its flavor over time. The lady replied,” that’s what I thought, I’ll just donate it to the food bank.” My takeaway, “It’s not that we give or serve, it’s that we give the very best of ourselves when we do.”