From the YMI Director: Fall is Upon Us

Fall is upon us, and the rhythm of our autumnal lives has begun. Fall is a favorite season of mine. I love the cooler weather, the beauty of the color-changing leaves, the sense of a new school year for my kids. And, yes: I’m both team apple and team pumpkin spice. (Though let’s save that spicy bit just for lattes, okay?)

Fall is also a reminder to me that things end. Leaves drop from the trees. Air becomes not just cool, but cold. Light fades and darkness grows. Fall is like seeing nature as it approaches hibernation and, for some things, even death.

Our lives also have a fall season. Perhaps it is in a physical sense: the years lived take their toll and we find that we cannot do what we once did. Perhaps it is in an emotional sense: a relationship once thriving and alive loses its heat and become chilly. Perhaps it is in a spiritual sense: the presence of God, once bright and illuminating, seems to fade into the gathering gloom.

Yet fall also signals that nature is on the road to rebirth. Leaves fall so that the trees can store energy for renewal in the spring. The tilt of the earth, causing our colder temperatures, means that another part of the planet is getting the warmth needed to revitalize and grow. As our light fades, someone else’s light is growing.

So too it is with youth ministry. Even as some things wane, the innovators among us are always looking towards holy growth. What new thing might God be calling us to do? How might we remain rooted in our call towards young people, while also granting them the seasonal opportunity to shine with their own colors and beauty? Maybe this is less our season… and more theirs.

This is an exciting season, with much on the horizon. We can trust in the rhythm of the created seasons, and in God’s faithfulness through each of them. God has made promises to us: we have been created in God’s image. We are loved. And we will never face the challenges of life alone. Even the driest and coldest of seasons can lead to new life; the cycle of the seasons presents us with the illuminating revelation that God is present all the time, even when we neither knew nor perceived it in the moment.

This fall, may we remember that every ending marks another beginning. May we know that each step we take on the journey is taken in chorus rather than in solitude. And may we hold close to heart the knowledge that our still-speaking God is faithful to God’s promises…and to us. Blessings to you, beloved ones, in this new year. May this season be a time of renewal for you, and for your ministries.

On the journey with you,

Rev. Jill