Let me start with some simple honesty. As I think about these next two months, I am overwhelmed.

Spring is always a busy season. On the one hand, this is the season of Lent. I like to think of Lent as a time for spring cleaning. The word “lent” is actually a reference to spring. It comes from an Old English word meaning “to lengthen”. Spring is the season in which the days lengthen. As the days grow longer, many use this as an opportunity to deep clean their homes and property. It’s a time to dig into all those places that have accumulated clutter, dirt, and grime over the long winter. In the same way, this is an opportunity to have a deep cleaning work done in our souls as we prepare for Easter. It is a season of repentance and renewal. It is a season of fasting – we remove some of the clutter from our lives to make space for God.

But just like spring cleaning can be hard and time consuming work, Lent can likewise take a tremendous amount of time, particularly in the church. We have Ash Wednesday and Palm Sunday and Maundy Thursday and Good Friday. And, of course, it all culminates in Easter Sunday. This all requires a tremendous amount of time, work, and preparation. Much of it is good, soul-filling work – but work all the same.

On the other hand, spring is also the busiest season for administration – at least on our district in our denomination. With the church year beginning in March, this is a time for elections and meetings and reports. District Assembly once again, much to my dismay, falls the week after Holy Week.

Yet, I have been doing this work for ten years now. I have learned to manage and push through a couple of busy months while maintaining some semblance of sanity. But this year is not going to be like any previous year, because this year Amanda and I will be having a baby right in the midst of it all. Right in the middle of all the meetings and reports and worship services, I will be once again learning how to be a father.

Additionally, I decided this was not enough, so I decided to add knee surgery at the end of March to top it all off.

So yes, I can confidently say that my word for this season is: overwhelmed.

Yet I am not only overwhelmed in the sense that I have no idea how I am going to handle the challenges and hurdles of these next few months, I am also profoundly overwhelmed by the grace of God.

Although I can sometimes lose the plot in the midst of the busyness of the season, Lent is a season in which we marvel at the grace of God. We step back and realize that the cost of grace is the cross of Christ. Each year as we make the journey to the cross, we see Christ crucified and confess: “You did this for me.” This season when I find myself in those moments when I do not know how to take the next step, I will be able to look at the cross and accept grace. Whether or not I succeed or fail in my efforts, I am deeply loved by God.

Amanda and I will be naming our baby son, Samuel, which means: God hears. A year ago, we were starting to accept the reality that we may not be able to have another child. Despite trying for over a year, despite fertility medications that had made Elliana’s conception possible, despite all of our prayers, each month we came to the same reality: no baby is on the way. When the positive pregnancy test came back, we were truly overwhelmed with joy and surprise. I said along with the psalmist: 

“When the LORD restored the fortunes of Zion we were like those who dream,

Then our mouth was filled with laughter and our tongue with shouts of joy!”

When Amanda and I welcome Sam into this world in just a few weeks, we will truly be overwhelmed by the grace of God, for it is God who has given us this child!

Finally, I am overwhelmed with the love and joy that comes with being a part of this church family. I know that as we enter into this season, we not only go forward with God, we go forward with the people of God – that is you! I want to thank each one of you for not only the work and service you give to this church family, but simply for being you. I consider each of you to be my sisters and brothers, and my friends. 

And so yes, I am overwhelmed in this season – but what else can we expect when our lives are wrapped up in the movement and work of God’s grace? Thanks be to God!

“May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus, so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” – Romans 15:5-6 (NIV) 

Grace and Peace, 

Pastor Andrew