Rector’s Reflection - October 2024

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases,
    God’s mercies never come to an end;
they are new every morning;
    great is your faithfulness.

            -Lamentations 3:22-23

Dear Friends in Christ,

My first Sunday at St. Mary’s was September 29, 2019, so we have been partners in ministry for over five years now! It seems both longer and shorter to me. As I was walking this morning (on this warm and sunny October morning), this verse from Lamentations came to mind. It often does on a beautiful morning.

I thought about how easy it is to notice God’s mercies when things are going well – on a beautiful day, when we receive good news, or when we feel safe and loved. How much harder it is to notice God’s mercies when we are sick or anxious or lonely, when our planet suffers, or when violence dominates the news.

In the five years I have been here, we’ve been through a lot. The “getting-to-know-you” phase, the “virtual” phase, the “reentry” phase, and I’m not sure what we should call our current phase. “Stable” isn’t really the right word, because we are a community that has accepted, and even embraced, the inevitability of change. We have learned that when we trust in God’s faithfulness and look for God’s mercies, we can navigate whatever is happening within and around us.

Of course, that learning is ongoing. Like every aspect of the Christian life, we do not trust once and our hearts are forever filled with peace. It is a daily, sometimes hourly, discipline to rest in God’s mercy and faithfulness. So maybe we should call this our “practice” phase. However we are feeling on any given day, however well or badly things seem to be going, whatever the weather or circumstances, let’s keep reminding each other that God’s mercies are new every morning and that God is faithful. Change is inevitable; we can face it with despair or hope. I am grateful to be part of St. Mary’s, where we choose hope.

Peace,

Pastor Kristine