God works for good…

In an email sent this week to the Administrative Council Sue Hall referred to “the amazing creativity and energy that have come out of a very bleak period in our world.” Her words inspire me—and I recognize their truth in our very midst.
Our life together at Laurel Heights through Covid, filled with challenges, difficulties, and obstacles, has nonetheless given birth to fresh expressions of many kinds. At the turn in the road from late summer toward fall we have seen the evidence:

· the return of our magnificent chancel choir

· the blessing of backpacks and Bibles

· an outpouring of the church’s generosity in providing school supplies for Cotton Academy

· Sunday school classes ramping up

· small group studies organizing for fall (check out Disciple II!)

· a spaghetti luncheon for college students later this month

· new directions for Come and See worship

I’ve often quoted the sign on the wall at Rachel Goeres’ house: “When nothing is certain, everything is possible.” Paul’s letter to the Romans puts that marvelous inversion another way: “God works for good in all circumstances . . .” (Romans 8:28). While none of us would have chosen this precarious time, signs and wonders abound, and we have experienced the grace of God in profound and beautiful ways. God is blessing us with “amazing creativity and energy,” and renewed hope for all the ways Laurel Heights will bear witness to God’s love and grace in the autumn season and beyond.

Grace and peace.

Paul