Pastor's Message - July/August 2026

~A Grain of Wheat~

“Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies,

it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.”

~John 12:24

Dear Members and Friends,

I always welcome the long, slow season of summer here at the church. In the wake of the 75th anniversary celebrations, I’m ready for a lighter workload for just a few weeks. I’m no fan of summer’s heat and light, but the season affords me an opportunity to be a pastor for all the reasons I wanted to be one in the first place. My administrative tasks slacken a bit, allowing me to concentrate on the stuff I love: preaching, teaching, and pastoral care.

And yet…and yet. Things are a little different this year because we live with the recent memory of our 75th anniversary speaker series, “Faith Forward: The Future of Congregational Life.” If I were to distill the complexity and the richness of that series into just a few sentences, I might say this: People in 21st century America are pulling away from religion because it no longer feels relevant enough to warrant its messiness and cost. They’ve only got so much free time, and they want to invest it into things that provide a visible (and immediate) payback. Many people experience God in their lives, but they no longer see our staid traditional churches as good places to lean into the

power and the mystery that they understand God to be. In other words, our churches are just not spiritual enough. People want places in their lives where they can think and talk about their life’s questions and mysteries. We’ve got meaningful religious traditions, rituals, and language, but they’re not user-friendly and don’t make sense to people.

As Jesus says in the gospel of John, shortly before his crucifixion, “Unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone. But if it dies, it bears much fruit.” Unwanted junctures can feel like little deaths. We didn’t want COVID, but if not for the pandemic, would our worship be online yet? If not for COVID, would we have bothered

with live-streaming and Zoom meetings? Sometimes the present day drags us kicking and screaming. But once we arrive—against our loud protestations—at the new place where the present day has taken us, we usually don’t regret the reluctant journey. Often, we’ll wonder, “What took us so long? Why didn’t we start doing this years ago?” And so, what is our calling in such a time as this? Christ’s church will live on, for Christ will always call people to himself. Our message of love and grace is unchanging, but the ways we live into that message will change from year to year. From our speaker series, I got: Take better care of each other, and be more spiritual.

Here's what we’re gonna do: First, watch the videos of our speaker series! The first one is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xfb66kxuBNs. Other videos will appear on our website shortly. Second, take part in the pastor’s Bible study! Most summer Sundays, starting July 12, I will be conducting a Bible study in my office at

11:00 a.m. (If we outgrow my office, we’ll move.) We’ll be exploring the epistle to the Philippians. Come when you can; skip when you must. Third, share your testimony! We need to hear each other’s stories. We need to hear about the faith that brings our fellow church members out on Sunday. Would you be willing to share the story of your faith journey for just 3 or 4 minutes during summer worship? Fourth, just for the summer, we’re going to let people come to the microphone to share their joys and concerns. Fifth, and this one is hardest for me: we’re going to let the passing of

the peace go on until it stops. Change… We hate it, we love it, we need it. Please let me know if you’d be willing to share your faith journey in worship. If no one steps up, I’ll have to come looking.

Christ’s Peace,

~Brian