October 2026
Happy October, Church Family,
This is the time of year when Mother Nature reminds us that the warm and sunny days of summer are behind us, and the days of winter are fast approaching. It’s fall, and this is a season that is filled with changing leaves, cooler temperatures, and crisp mornings. The school year is back in full swing; sports, one-acts, and preparations for speech seasons are all underway; I’m pulling out my cold weather recipes; and David and I are preparing for our last winter here in rural Nebraska.
I really do love fall, but this year it feels bittersweet to me. My mom is moving into assisted living, David and I are preparing for our retirement, you are talking about how life for this congregation will be after me as your pastor, and we are all dealing with reminders that “for everything there is a season.” Not just like winter, spring, summer, or fall; but seasons like birth and death, new beginnings, letting goes, and saying hello and goodbye, all of which reminds me of this lovely poem called, “The Sacrament of Letting Go” by Macrina Wiederkehr.
Slowly
She celebrated the sacrament of
Letting Go…
First she surrendered her Green
Then the Orange, yellow, and Red…
Finally she let go of her Brown…
Shedding her last leaf
She stood empty and silent, stripped bare
Leaning against the sky she began her vigil of trust…
Shedding her last leaf
She watched its journey to the ground…
She stood in silence,
Wearing the color of emptiness
Her branches wondering:
How do you give shade, with so much gone?
And then, the sacrament of waiting began
The sunrise and sunset watched with
Tenderness, clothing her with silhouettes
They kept her hope alive.
They helped her understand
that
her vulnerability
her dependence and need
her emptiness
her readiness to receive
were giving her a new kind of beauty.
Every morning and every evening she stood in silence and celebrated
the sacrament of waiting.
We all have a lot to do in the weeks and months ahead, but perhaps some of it will include waiting, watching, and readying ourselves to receive a new kind of beauty. After all, as the Prophet Isaiah reminds us, “The grass withers and the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.” And we know that the word of our God is life and love and hope, even in changing seasons; and that God never ceases to show up and surprise us.
Have a great month, everyone.
Pastor Jill