Dear siblings in Christ:

A week ago, my husband and I dropped off our youngest child at college.  The physical move-in process was fairly easy, but the emotional part of it was a rollercoaster for both our son and us.  One minute we were loving but the next we were exchanging "unpleasant" words. 

Change is hard.  Life transitions are hard.  This is true in our personal lives, but also true in larger society and in the Church.  When we are confronted with change, we feel unsettled, frightened even, because the world as we knew it is shifting.  We are uncertain of the rules, uncertain of our place, uncertain of the future.  

When we're in this "in-between" space, the time between the "now" and the "not yet," we often spend more time reacting than acting with purpose.  This is what those unpleasant words with my son were all about.  We were all nervous, a little scared, and we ended up taking it out on each other.  It soured our goodbye.

Whatever we're going through in our life or in the church or in society, whether it be a child growing up, a partner's illness, our own medical issues, relationship stresses, economic worries, anxieties about the state of the world, may we remember that we are not alone.  Not only do we have a faith community here at Trinity (thank you all for support lately!), most of all we have a God who has claimed us in Holy Baptism, in whom we can rest and find comfort, who can give us strength and courage to face whatever changes come our way.  Cling to Jesus, our Savior and our friend.

In Christ,
Pastor Holliday