✢ ABOUT US ✢
Pastor Sarah West
A Little Bit About Me…
The older I get and the more people I encounter, the more I have come to appreciate how incredibly fortunate I am to have lived the life I have.
Born and raised in St. Louis, Missouri to two loving and generous parents, my dad an engineer and my mom a pastor in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). They were my examples of how the gospel is preached best by how one lives one’s life in humble service to God’s church and to others. I grew up in a church and in a denomination that gave women the same opportunities as men to serve and speak and lead. I had friends in evangelical churches who ignited my passion for reading the scriptures and deepening my relationship with Jesus. I attended Bethany College and the University of Chicago Divinity School and School of Social Service Administration where I had amazing professors who expanded my understanding of the world: the history of Christian thought, the history of social injustice and oppression, human psychology and the power of literature and poetry
I met my husband Clark, an Episcopal priest, in Divinity School where we fell in love discussing theology over milkshakes (still to this day two of my favorite things). We moved to upstate New York where we started our family and lived for 18 years. During those years I was lucky to have the opportunity to serve in various churches and nonprofit organizations including the First Presbyterian Church of Waterloo where I served for 10 years.
As our children got older (and my parents did too - funny how that works!) I began to look for opportunities to serve in ministry where I could be closer to my parents and also be in a Disciples congregation. I truly believe it is God’s Spirit that led me to First Christian Wadsworth in 2018.
Oh yeah, I almost forgot, this is where I’m supposed to talk about what I like to do in my free time. So here it is, in order of priority: spending time with my husband and our three children who are growing up so ridiculously fast that these moments are more precious every day, hiking in the woods (my happy place), curled up with a good book (my other happy place) or playing guitar.
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I truly believe it is God’s Spirit that led me to First Christian Wadsworth
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My Vision
Why I (we) need the Church
As I observe the society we live in today I see the exciting ways in which our world is becoming ever more connected through media, business and technology. At the same time I see individuals who feel increasingly lonely and unfulfilled longing for connection, community, meaning and purpose. For myself I have come to understand authentic love, forgiveness, identity and freedom through Jesus Christ and the beloved community of God’s church.
The church not only draws us into closer relationship with the one who made us, but it draws us into closer relationship with one another. Concepts of love, compassion, healing, peace and justice become embodied as we enact them within a community. At its best, the church at worship, prayer, study and service becomes an agent of healing in our broken world.
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So if you are looking for a community of Jesus followers that strive to be radically welcoming, joyously generous and committed to building a more compassionate world I invite you to join us.
I can’t promise that we won’t make mistakes along the way, but we have placed our trust in Christ to work in us and through us, as imperfect as we are, to be agents of transformation.