1211 Old Graves Mill Road, Lynchburg VA (Serving at VA Mem Park)

Church #168 looked a little different again this week, and if this journey has taught me anything, it is that God will keep reminding us that church is so much more than a building.

Starting this month, I will begin working on Sundays, which means I will need to adjust my schedule for in-person church visits, and while that is a change, I am learning once again that the Holy Spirit is not confined to one format, one room, or one timetable.

Sometimes church looks like walking into a sanctuary, sitting in a pew, and hearing the Word preached from a pulpit, and sometimes church looks like serving in the middle of the community, loving people well, and pouring out what God has placed in our hands.

Being that it is Father’s Day, Virginia Memorial Park hosted a Father’s Day Dog Walk, and I spent the morning and afternoon with the volunteers from The Lynchburg Humane Society, and what a blessing and joy that truly was.

It was one of those days that reminds you that service is never small when it is done with love.

Even though we did not have many people in attendance, it was still a beautiful day and a beautiful way to serve, and I have come to believe more and more that the Kingdom of God often unfolds in those very places most people overlook. Not every act of service comes with applause. Sometimes it is simply faithfulness, showing up, loving well, and trusting that God sees every bit of it.

I had a long conversation with Ute, and we talked about all sorts of things, including the love of a dog, that pure, faithful, gentle love that you just cannot replicate with people.

There is something about a dog’s love that is so steady, so honest, so unguarded, and that has touched my heart more than I can explain. As my own sweet dog, Cupcake, continues to age and her health steadily declines, I found myself sharing my concerns about how my heart will ever process it when her time comes. She has been with me and my family for fifteen years. Fifteen years. That is not just some small part of life. She is a beloved part of our family and I am so grateful to God for my sweet baby Cupcake and the joy and love she has shown me.

While I have been grieving the loss of my mom and carrying so many other heavy things in my heart, my sweet baby has remained close to me, as if she can sense that I am struggling. There is something so tender in that. Sometimes when words fail and people do not fully know what to do with grief, a dog will simply stay near. Just closeness. Just love. And maybe that is part of why they are such gifts from God. I truly believe He gave us dogs as one more reminder of His goodness, His gentleness, His loyal love, and the comfort that can come even in the middle of sorrow.

This week, church did not look like a formal service, but I would say with my whole heart that serving others is a beautiful church service.

My heart loves serving people, and it also loves helping the voiceless, and there was something so meaningful about being there with the Lynchburg Humane Society, trying to bring in donated food items to help all of the sweet pups and babies they care for.

Service matters. Kindness matters. And I am so grateful for the volunteers from the Lynchburg Humane Society who serve day in and day out, often when it is tiring, often when it feels thankless, often when there is no spotlight at all. God sees that kind of labor. God sees those acts of mercy. God sees people who keep showing up simply because love calls them to.

And maybe that is the sermon in my heart this week… sometimes the church looks less like a sermon and more like service. Sometimes it looks like muddy shoes, tired feet, dog leashes, donated food, and simple conversations that somehow become what we need. Sometimes it looks like choosing to keep loving and keep serving even when your own heart is heavy. That, too, is worship. That, too, is ministry. That, too, is church.

God is good. He is still good in the middle of it all. He is still good when schedules change. He is still good when your heart feels stretched. He is still good when you are learning to carry loss and keep loving at the same time. And I am so thankful for the ways He continues to meet me in unexpected places, whether in a sanctuary, a livestream, a memorial park, or beside a table of donated dog food with people who simply want to help.

Please continue to keep my family in prayer as we are still trying to work through a lot of hard days. And I also want to say thank you, truly, to each and every one of you who comes up to me each week to let me know that you are following along and that you are encouraged and inspired by this journey. Your kind words, your prayers, and your love mean so much to me. More than I probably say enough.

So Church #168 may have looked different, but it was still church. It was still love. It was still service. It was still God showing up in the middle of ordinary moments and reminding me once again that the body of Christ is meant to keep moving, keep loving, keep serving, and keep reflecting Him wherever He leads.

And as always, I cannot wait to see where the Holy Spirit leads next.

Love you all so very much,

Annie Stewart Lambert