Pastor's Letter - September

Pastor’s Letter
September, 2018

Grace and Peace to you from God our Father and his Son Jesus Christ. Amen.

 

I used to dread this time of year when I was a kid, largely because it meant returning to school. Returning to school meant the end of a largely carefree summer and days spent at the Frackville Pool.  Returning to school meant returning to social interactions that, as a kid, made me nervous and uncomfortable.  

I compare that to this time of year now.  I am excited.  I want to get back into the rhythm of things.  I am excited for the start of our youth group year, which will start in late September.  I am excited to talk about God with our community's children and hear what is on their mind.  I am excited to dive back into the Gospels, as the week after Labor Day, we will resume our Bible Study with the beginning of a study on Mark.  I am excited to begin teaching confirmation class again.  

Most of all, I am excited to see you.  I am excited to see you in the pews and I am excited to bring the Word of God to life in my sermons.  

My hope and prayer is that you share this excitement.  We have such vibrant ministry going on at this point and time and it is wonderful!  

For example, just this past Sunday someone came to the church building.  I saw them hanging around in the narthex as I came down the aisle at the end of the service.  When I was done greeting everyone in worship, I spoke to them.  They were new to the area, now living in Lykens, and had no idea where anything was in the community.  They had no gas in their car and they were searching for a church that was open in the hopes that they could get some help.  Thanks to our Miles to Mend gas cards, they were able to go on their way with a tank full of gas.  I believe wholeheartedly that God puts us in places to do good, and we were able to do that on that Sunday.

Another example is our membership growth.  By the time September is done, we will have added nine new members to our numbers.  That is the largest group at one time in a long, long time for our congregation.  My hope and prayer is that you receive them graciously and give them time to find who they are in the midst of this congregation.  I see in each of them great gifts and wonderful things they can add to our cumulative voice.  

As he always is, God is up to something at Trinity Lutheran Church.  Come and see!

Peace,
Pastor Brian