Monday, March 23rd

By: Brittany Fiscus-van Rossum
1 Samuel 16:1-13
Reflection—v. 7 ‘do not look at his appearance’

This story is pretty classic disrupt-the-norm-defy-expectations God. Samuel is seeking the next king of Israel, but surprise! it’s not any of Jesse’s older, stronger, more qualified progenies, but the uninvited youngest of the bunch left to babysit the sheep! God’s choice is confoundingly not-obvious, but we’re told it is because God does not see as we appearance-obsessed mortals do. God understands the rich intricacies of a human heart for all its worth and value and judges from within. How odd then, isn’t it, that as followers of this heart-perceiving God who seeks the depths and complexities within human beings, we are so often satisfied with our face-value judgments of one another. Throughout our sacred texts God is choosing to work through, speak through, and lead through the unexpected, the marginalized, and the overlooked. We make all sorts of judgments about who can lead or serve, about whose voice has value, about who is in and who is out. To succeed or lead you must have the proper credentials and enough education. You can’t be too young, but you shouldn’t be too old either. You must dress a certain way and talk a certain way. It helps if you’re a certain gender, race, and sexual orientation too. Yet God continuously subverts our expectations and imagined regulations. Quite often God calls who we may least expect. Let us not be too hung up on appearances to miss when God is up to something new.

Prayer O God, surprise us, and let us be open-hearted enough to perceive the many people you work through every day.

Brittany grew up in Jacksonville, Arkansas. She first learned about God and what it means to be a church community that loves and cares for one another from First Presbyterian Church, Jacksonville, AR. Brittany graduated from Murray State University in Murray, Kentucky. After teaching abroad and working for a travel company, Brittany began her studies at Columbia Theological Seminary, taking steps to answer a call to ministry that she had felt since her childhood. Upon moving to Atlanta, Brittany’s passion for being present with those on the margins led her to volunteer at Peachtree and Pine’s Taskforce for the Homeless and to become a pastoral intern with Mercy Church. After completing her MDiv at Columbia, Brittany began a PhD program at Emory University, but left to answer God’s call on her life to full-time ministry as a pastor to our community. Brittany was jointly ordained by the PC(USA) and Mercy Community Church in 2018. Outside of Mercy, what gives Brittany life and joy is spending time with her husband Cooper and daughter Emi, traveling via plane, train, and foot, playing Dungeons and Dragons, and nerding out over Karl Barth.

Contact Brittany at brittany@mercyatl.org.

Holly grew up in Ocala, Florida where she was nurtured by her faith community and encouraged to find ways to be a leader in the community. Holly graduated from the University of North Florida with a degree in Psychology. After a period of discernment, she was called to a church community in Lady Lake, Florida where she served as the Youth Director for over six years. She began her seminary career in 2014 at Columbia Theological Seminary where she earned her Masters of Divinity and Master of Arts in Practical Theological (Pastoral Care). During her time in seminary, Holly began attending Mercy Community Church where she fell in love with the community. Upon graduation, Holly served for two years as a Chaplain Resident at Grady Memorial Hospital and specialized in pastoral care through the lens of behavioral health.

In her free time, Holly loves to exercise, travel, spend time with her family, read, and organize.

Tracey grew up in the Chicagoland area with a small but close-knit family. Her mother was Catholic, her father Lutheran and she was brought up in a household that always acknowledged God. She attended Northern Illinois University and graduated with a B.S. in Family and Social Services in 1997. Before she earned her college degree, she also attended the Cooking and Hospitality Institute of Chicago and graduated with a baking a pastry certificate. Throughout the past 20 years Tracey lived in a variety of places including Michigan, Seattle, India, and Brazil. She has called Atlanta home since 2016 where she lives with her daughters, Riley, and Shayla.

Tracey chose to care for her young family on a full-time basis until 2019 when she began her studies at Columbia Theological Seminary in Decatur, GA. She graduated with a Master of Divinity in 2022 and was ordained as a pastor by Mercy Community Church that same year. Tracey’s call to seminary was rooted in a deep desire to lead and live through her faith in God. She attended seminary with a hope of learning what that could mean while also knowing her path was not clear. As she served as an intern at Mercy Community Church for two years throughout her seminary studies, she began to discern that pastoring this community was a call she wanted to accept. Tracey loves to engage with the community through artistic expression, pastoral care and cooking delicious meals. She is honored to be a member of the Mercy community.

When she’s not with the Mercy crew, Tracey loves to dabble in all things creative, hang out with her fabulous teenage daughters, spend time with her pets, and run a few miles while contemplating the meaning of life.

Mercy Community Church Atlanta

Like this:

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Mercy Community Church Atlanta

Share this:

Like this:

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Subscribe to Mercy’s Newsletter

Pastor Chad

Pastor Brittany

Pastor Holly

Pastor Lattimore

Pastor Tracey