February 2025
They said to each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?” – Luke 24:32
Grace and peace to you all! I pray this finds you well and that this new year is bringing you wisdom and closeness with God.
This is the time of annual reports, but as I was only with you for two months before the end of the year, there’s little for me to sum up. All I can do is look ahead at what is coming and the hopes and fears that fill me.
First, let’s address the fears: things are changing. There are going to be changes in the coming months and years and they won’t all be to your liking. I have my ways of doing things, and some of those I’m going to keep doing. This congregation has its history and the way things have been done, and some of those I will keep because of the meaning they have to the congregation. This is the nature of new relationships and partnerships. I will have an effect on the congregation, and the congregation will have an effect on me; neither of us will remain the same. And while change can be uncomfortable, discomfort is usually also accompanied by growth, and no growth comes without discomfort.
Which brings us to the hope: if we allow ourselves to be open to being changed, marvelous things can grow here. Worship will become something dynamic and beautiful, full of meaning and emotion that drives us forward into the world. We can gain a new appreciation for the people in our community, both in the congregation and beyond, and discover new ways to serve each other. We can spread the love of Christ around us and watch as it creates fertile soil for the new things that will grow.
I can think of no better words to spur us onward than the words from our last Gospel in January and the words of the prophet Isaiah: The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because He has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the enslaved go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor. May our hearts burn within us as we hear Christ’s call to action and strive in this new year to create fertile soil right here at St. Luke’s.
Amen.