October 2009

Dear Family of faith,
As you read this first sentence, I encourage you to stop a moment and thank God for the awesome gift of life that you enjoy. Just think how many wonderful experiences God blesses us with—scenes of beauty, seasons of love, moments of joy, times of celebration and success, days to feel strong and help others on this journey called life as we make our way towards eternity! Who of us has deserved any of it? It is all gift, pure grace, that we who are finite and weak should not only delight in so much goodness but that we should, within ourselves, bear the very glory of God (as Paul says in 2 Corinthians 4: 6-7).
Growing up in Minnesota and living most of my life in Ohio, I welcomed October as the month when the leaves changed color and donned their magnificent coats of red and gold. That transformation has always been an object of fascination for me—that just before the leaves are ready to die, their outer green covering fades and their true beauty beneath becomes evident. Is this not what God wants for our lives also? Should not we, as we get toward the end of our lives, become more beautiful, revealing what has been inside us all along? I learned a long time ago that there are only two ways to grow old. The one is to become more crotchety and unpleasant—criticizing more, becoming more difficult to live with, cynical and self-serving. The other is to grow old gracefully, to let loose of prejudices and self pity and make those around us feel loved and appreciated for who they are. We Christians claim that Jesus lives in our hearts, that the Holy Spirit inhabits our spirits, that God is with us always. If this be our confession of faith, then there is only one way to grow old for us—to let that inner beauty become more evident as the months and years pass. We, like the beautiful oak and maple leaves, need to let that light within us shine more brightly than ever at the end of our days in this world. As gawkers gasp in awe at the splendor of autumn hillsides aglow in color, so should those who watch our lives be amazed at our gentleness and patience, our confidence and kindness, our love, generosity, and acceptance. Instead of looking at the autumn of your life as the “twilight year,” why not look at this season as the “highlight years?” Why not consider the last decades of life your chance to shine, to show your family and friends and all who meet you the best that God has made you? The weaknesses that usually accompany aging can become one more way to let others see what you are truly made of, as an opportunity to look beyond the physical to that which is your very essence, your soul. I encourage all of you, as you grow older, to become more beautiful with age. I encourage even you, who live in this land of evergreens and palm trees, to become a landscape aglow with color that catches the attention of those in this often fearful and threatening world. Let them gasp at the unusual grace and beauty and faith that God has given you.
With affection for all of you,
Pastor Carlan