Our church, New Baltimore Community Church, has an active youth group. They have ministered on the streets of Cleveland to the hungry and homeless, and have visited the elderly in nursing homes, and done various other ministries. They decided recently to minister to the congregation, and so offered to come to the houses of the congregation to bring supper and fellowship.

Mer and I loved the idea, but were a little hesitant because we live almost forty-five minutes from the church. We gave the youth the option to skip us, but they came up anyway. So on Wednesday we were visited by an adult driver and four teens – three guys and a girl. They brought spaghetti and garlic bread, and we ate together and were able to visit for a little over an hour. The youth led a short Bible study stressing the importance of Christian fellowship, and then they had to head home because of the length of the drive. They did a great job, and it was fun to hang out with them. Mer and I both work at a school because we like youthful people, and we had a genuinely good time on Wednesday.

On Thursday I continued the fellowship theme by meeting some former students at Eddy’s Deli here in Cuyahoga Falls. We used to meet there last year for “wings night,” when you could get unlimited chicken wings and lots of other food for just ten dollars. I knew three of the students well, and recognized another former CVCA student. My students also brought three college friends whom I did not know, and my friend and colleague Craig showed up as well. It was a merry gathering.

We ate and talked and laughed together for about two hours. In fact, another customer swung by our table on his way out to say how entertaining we were (and he was not being sarcastic). I love hanging out with these guys; I miss them when they are away, and it was good to see them.

Mer had met up with her old friend Dave for supper at nearby Retro Dog. When I drove by the restaurant, I saw Mer’s car there, so I stopped. Dave had invited two other high school classmates and their families, so Mer introduced me to them. I had met Dave several times before, but the two women were people Mer had not seen since high school. They were just wrapping up supper when I arrived, so I got to drive home (in separate cars) with Mer. That was a companionable way to wrap up a couple of days of good fellowship.