common ground montgomery news and updates

new girl

/

BY LAURA BELL

A few weeks ago, I peeked inside the After School Program to see what all the fuss was about. I watched as the staff and volunteers played pick-up basketball with several boys and as a huddle of girls gathered around and listened closely in admiration to one of the volunteers who simply noticed them. After a few short moments, I realized what I was really seeing. I saw time – a gift and an investment that not only creates, but sustains the relationships that are the foundation of this amazing place called Common Ground Montgomery.

As the “new girl” on staff I am discovering that only 10 years ago, this place and its small staff (at the time) was the new ministry in town. I find comfort knowing that CGM’s beginning and mine perhaps share similar experiences. A shared feeling of being unsettled combined with the effort of reaching and (sometimes) missing, along with the anxiety and discomfort of being in a new, uncharted place. That’s when the gift of time steps in and the places that felt so stark and new have a lived-in feel, like my favorite pair of tennis shoes. A sense of direction and a joyful expectation of good replace the nerves that once sought to overwhelm my peace and confidence.

Today, the children who are a part of the ministry of CGM don’t have to wonder what they are doing after school or if the staff and volunteers love them. The newness and uncertainty is gone and home has been found in a little building in the middle of the Washington Park neighborhood, and this new girl has discovered that the newness inside of her spirit is a beautiful season filled with God’s unending distribution of peace. I used to think that I understood honesty. I used to think that life wasn't complicated if you just “did the right thing”. I used to think that loving a person who didn't think like me was too hard. I used to think that I understood how to love people well, speak to them clearly, give honest answers, and share the gospel… I used to think a lot of things until I became the new girl at CGM. 

I've found a culture of people who think beyond my initial thoughts, a group that holds beautiful ownership of their values, and live out their hearts through service and love to a community well deserving of the Lord and His goodness.

In my 3 short months here I have learned the value of walking into places that seem awkward initially and discovering the places of my heart that have never been touched, but merely masked by the idea that faith is or should be comfortable.  Nothing is comfortable when it’s new, but nothing changes or becomes anything spectacular without journeying through the new places and finding home instead. 

tasting the difference

/

BY CORNELIUS "CJ" JACKSON

I do not profess to be a master chef. In fact, I have little cooking experience to brag about. (Well, I can whip up a mouthwatering pot of cheese grits.) Nevertheless, even with my subpar culinary skills, I can more often than not detect the lack of certain ingredients in a dish—particularly those additives that I have become accustomed to appreciating in that meal.

In the same way, some of my "babies" in the After School Program at CGM have recently been making me aware of some missing elements in what I have been dishing out to them.

A little over a week ago, one of my eight-year-old students asked me why she never saw me at her school. Then later that week, a group of young boys questioned my perpetual absence during their lunch periods in the school cafeteria. And just yesterday, two ten-year-old girls were earnestly committed to practicing a dance routine when I walked by. As I passed them, one called out, “Pastor, are you gonna come to our performance when we do our dance routine?”

I slowed my pace, but I kept with my purposeful stride that suggested that I was busy and in route to something important.

I wasn’t!

I didn’t want to make an impromptu promise. But I felt their eyes affixed on the back of my frame—cajoling me like a super magnet to turn and face them; to answer them.

“Pastor!” the other girl cried out.

I turned and quickly replied, “Let me know the day and time, and I will see!”

In that moment, the requests, invitations, and inquiries of the past couple of weeks began to register. You see, one of our staff members who used to diligently go into the schools and frequent our students’ extracurricular performances resigned from CGM to return to graduate school. In the weeks since she’s been gone, our babies’ palates have been sensitized.

They were used to a personal presence - an encouragement - a familiar ingredient that they presently sense is lacking. And I now know that if I relegate my responsibilities to my CGM babies to mere on-campus labors, then they will complain as if their pancakes are devoid of syrup; that their macaroni has no cheese; that their cake is missing the icing.

I have taste-tested my dish and I believe I can do better.

Pray that my scheduling can accommodate a lunch visit, a spur-of-the-moment classroom stopover, or an evening performance. And even consider getting involved — by becoming a volunteer!

Who knows, you might prove to be that missing ingredient for some of our CGM students.

volunteer interest meeting

/

BY AVA CONLEY

We would love to invite you to our first ever volunteer interest meeting luncheon at Common Ground Montgomery! 

Who: YOU, your co-workers, your kids, your friends 

What: Our goal in this meeting is to introduce you to Common Ground Montgomery. We would love to tell you our story, why we do what we do, give you a tour of our facility, feed you FREE food and tell you about the ways that you can get involved.  This event requires zero commitment.

When: Thursday, February 11th, 11:30 am - 12:30 pm.

Where: Common Ground Montgomery, 1516 Mobile Road, Montgomery, AL 36108

Why: We call our volunteers at CGM the backbone of our ministry - and when we say that, we really mean it. We are all about relationships and really believe that God moves in incredible ways through relationships. Our kids need relationships to see the Lord and we believe that you do, too. I truly believe that God uses our volunteers in incredible ways to impact our ministry and I also believe that God has something very special in store for them here as well.

If you work full time, bring a coworker along or if you are a stay at home mom, please feel free to bring your children along with you. This will be a very informative time, but also very informal. We plan to have these meetings approximately once a month or so, so if you can’t make this one, stay posted for the dates of our next event.

I am super excited about this luncheon and I hope that you would consider attending! 

It takes a lot of people to make organizations like Common Ground Montgomery and House to House work, and it takes a lot of volunteers to help make a difference with the work that CGM and H2H is a part of in the Washington Park neighborhood. Thanks to all the volunteers, official and unofficial, that help us do the work that we do.