Dear Pali Pres Family,

I want to begin by extending to all of you my deepest condolences on the losses you have experienced.  These devastating fires have ravaged our community and none of us have been totally spared.  We are all grieving.  We are all in pain.  I wish I had insight or wise words to offer, but I too am shaking with grief and looking to heaven for answers.  All I know to say right now is how sorry I am for your pain and loss.

Thankfully, we have not heard any reports of our members/friends being in physical danger.  Pastor Grace and I are still trying to check on a few people, but the most important thing is that we are all safe.  Thanks be to God.

While solid information is still a bit hard to come by, sadly many in our church family (including staff) have informed us that they have lost their homes, property, and/or businesses.  Unfortunately, I must also report that our beloved church campus has burned down.  My understanding is that nothing remains.  I’m glad to share that, so far, our church manse (the house we own, located next to the preschool Big Yard) has survived the fire and is in good condition.

My heart breaks, as I know all of ours do, for the loss of our beautiful and beloved sanctuary.  That space was a holy space, providing us all with nourishment for our souls.  God’s Spirit faithfully met us there, teaching us and encouraging us and reminding us of how much we are loved.  The spacious ceilings, the big windows that welcomed in the sunlight, that glorious organ, our comforting Prayer Wall, the Unfinished Cross…everything about that sanctuary spoke to me of God’s majesty, beauty, and infinite grace.  I grieve with heavy tears this enormous loss.  Often throughout these past 48 hours I have been reminded that the church of Christ is not a building, but its people.  Which is so very true!  WE are the church and we will endure.  Even so, my soul is greatly pained by the weight of the losses we have endured.

My family and I are safe and remain with friends at their home in Culver City.  There have been mixed reports on the status of our house in the Highlands.  The last we heard our townhouse was intact, but that was this morning and fires were still in the area.  We were not able to retrieve any belongings from our home before evacuating, but through incredible generosity from so many people we have everything we need.  Thank you for all your prayers.  As of the writing of this message Pastor Grace and her family were anticipating an evacuation order for their home in Calabasas.  Please pray for them.

Please know that I continue to be in touch with Pastor Grace, our Session, and folks from the Presbytery about our church and the situation in the community.  We are trying to plan some type of gathering on Sunday, if possible. These fires still make for a very dangerous situation and, to be honest, my mind has been inundated with so many pressing matters.  Even so, we will be sure to update our church family if/when we are able to organize some kind of gathering.

A number of media outlets have reached out to me for an interview.  I have agreed to a few in the hope that it would help shed light on the situation in the Palisades, the magnitude of our loss and grief, as well as emphasize the enduring power of prayer and faith.  I mention this to you in case you suddenly see my face on the news talking about our church and community.

If you or anyone you know of in our church family is in need of aid, a place to stay, help with getting started on insurance claims, etc…please contact me (310-592-9035) or Pastor Grace (818-571-3997).  A number of resources and offers to help have been shared with us and we will be glad to help you or anyone you know get connected to sources of aid.

I want to close by assuring all of you that our congregation and entire community are being covered in prayer by people from all over the city, nation, and world (and I mean world…England, Japan, Indonesia, Canada, etc.).  My email inbox is overflowing with amazing, heart-felt messages of love, support, and encouragement from people/churches in our local area and people/churches we do not know.  Countless Sisters and Brothers in Christ are holding us right now.  So, please do not feel alone.  Even as we grieve and lament and enter an unknown future, the comforting news is that we know there WILL BE a future and many people will help us get there, with God’s mercy and grace sustaining us along the way.

Be of good courage, Pali Pres.  

Pastor Matt 

"Be strong and of good courage; do not be frightened or dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” - Joshua 1:9

Dear Ones,

I echo Pastor Matt’s message to our church family in deep grief and pain for all that we have lost. I am so sorry to all of you who have lost their beloved and beautiful memory-filled homes.I have spoken to so many of you in the past couple days, and I thank you for opening your hearts to me as we have wept together. At the time of my writing, Pastor Matt still does not know the status of his home, as he has not been allowed in the area. Please keep him in your prayers.

I hold tight to the steadfast knowledge that church is not a building or a physical space, it is her people and her community of faith. We have had so many wonderful memories in our sanctuary, from weddings, baptisms, and memorials, to our incredible life-giving worship services, and so many people have been blessed within those walls. The sanctuary has been our home for many years and has been a place of shared community. But the church is all of US, God’s people who are united in faith and love.

And our church will continue to be blessed and be a blessing! We are strong and resilient, and most of all, a loving church family, and I know, without a doubt, that good will come from this. In speaking with many of you who have lost your homes, your spirit and hope have been a moving testimony to me.

We will move together into the future, even as we nurse our heavy and broken hearts. “God is near the broken hearted” Psalms 34 tells us, and I pray that in the coming days and weeks and months, we will all be able to feel God’s presence with us in every possible way.

I look forward to seeing all of you soon and giving you a hug. Please do stay in touch; my phone is on 24/7 for anyone who may need to talk, or to cry. As Pastor Matt says, please let us know if you need any resources, whether it is a place to stay, a warm meal, or a shoulder to cry on. We have so much love coming to us from around the world; we can help support you. Let's lean on one another and hold each other close. Allow yourself to grieve, but I encourage you to keep your eyes open to the ways that God is already at work—through acts of kindness, the support of so many, and through the resilience of our church family.

You are all in my heart and my prayers, and I love you very much.

In your service,

Pastor Grace