Pastor Mark Gilson


A SUMMER OF CHANGE

“Let everything that has breath praise the LORD! Praise the LORD!” Ps 150:6

I’m reading a book right now, and it has me thinking about change. Any book that gets me thinking is my kind of book. Maybe that’s why so much of my reading is the Bible. I want to read and learn about me and this amazing world and people in it and God’s love and mercy. Change, as you know, is inevitable.

I wonder how things will be different before the next newsletter comes out in September. Where will St. James be? Where will I be? What changes will occur in our community? What family changes will there be? What will be the ‘big stories’ that captures the attention of people? How will we respond? Changes come to us whether we want them to or not. Change forces us to adapt to a new view and perhaps adjust to a ‘new’ normal.

While change in and of itself is not a bad thing, it can be scary. The way I deal with changes, both planned and unplanned, is to keep perspective on what I can think and do and what I can’t. We are not called to fix every situation and every one. I can love the Lord and love others to Jesus. This is the one thing that as a Christian I am not only called to do but get to do everyday no matter when, where, or how. Paul said it this way, “for me to live is Christ...”

What I will be working on this summer is how I view and adapt to change in my life. One more thing, don’t forget the summer change of worship times at church of 8am and 10am. No matter what changes come your way this summer, may you be rooted in that which never changes – Jesus, our sure foundation for all things. Let’s be part of everything that has breath and Praise the LORD!


Peace and Joy in Christ,
  Pastor Mark Gilson