Grace in the streets

STATESVILLE, NC — Sometimes we are shocked when we get a good dose of reality, when we see what is really happening around us and realize it’s not what we thought it was at all.

This was the case for North Avenue Presbyterian Church in Atlanta.

In 2003, Atlanta was identified by the FBI as one of 14 U.S. cities with the highest rates of children being used for prostitutes. Mayor Shirley Franklin was surprised, and ordered a deeper investigation into the problem. The 2005 mayor’s report issued as a result identified the corner of North Avenue and Peachtree Street as one of the three in the city that was particularly problematic.

That’s the corner that had been home to North Avenue since 1898.

The Rev. Scott Weimer, the pastor of North Avenue, was also quite surprised and disturbed when he saw this news on the front page of the city paper.

“We never saw it,” Weimer said. “It was hidden in plain view. It goes on, but we didn’t look for it so we didn’t even see it.”

The designation was enough of a concern that Weimer felt compelled to talk about it with the members of his church. It was a delicate subject, but risk-taking mission and service is one of the core values of North Avenue, so he decided to bring it up in a sermon one Sunday. …