Beloved of God,

Can it be September already?  The fringe of color I saw yesterday on a young maple, the back to school shopping ads, and preseason football games all say YES.  I write as our family prepares for a “last hurrah” camping trip to mark the summer’s end.  Next week we will enroll Kai in Kindergarten, marking the occasion with a mixture of excitement, pride, and no doubt tears.  (Not his, but ours!)  Even while we have been preparing ourselves—and him—for this eventuality all along the way, the first day of kindergarten, like other markers in the rhythm of life, still surprises us.   Remember, we remind ourselves, he belongs to the LORD, in baptism he has been planted by streams of living water!  He is held in gracious, strong, trustworthy hands! So kindergarten marks a threshold not only for our son but for us as parents as well.

There are other markers that accompany September’s arrival within our life as a congregation.  The shift to 10:30 worship, the return of the choir, the beginning of our fall Christian Education programs, the walks, fundraisers, and other special events that all say: It’s time to get down to business!

Because of your generosity in response to the Summer Appeal, we are in a much better financial situation as Fall begins.  That enables us to move into autumn with a sense of confidence in our mission rather than foreboding.  And that makes all the difference in the world.

When we gather for worship and become reconnected after summer travels and vacations away, we are reminded that our roots in Christ have been planted and nourished by living water, and that Christ is cultivating fruit in us—fruit that we will sustain our community, our neighbors, those in need, and the world.  While the leaves on the trees that surround our neighborhoods will turn in color, darken, and eventually fall, the leaves on the trees of faith do not wither.  Let us see together what harvest God has in store!

Your servant in Christ,

Pastor Erik