Newsletter Here
September is a month filled with backpacks. Churches collect school supplies, fill
backpacks, and send children and young people into a new school year equipped with the
things they need. At the same time, some of our own church family members are packing
bags and loading cars as they prepare to spend the winter in a warmer climate.
All this packing offers a wonderful image for thinking about another kind of journey: our
spiritual journey.
If you were packing a backpack for the journey of faith, what would you put inside?
Perhaps the first thing would be Scripture. Not necessarily a large Bible that adds weight
to the pack, but the words of Scripture that have become part of who we are—verses that
encourage us, stories that remind us of God’s faithfulness, and promises that give us hope
when the road becomes difficult.
We might also pack prayer. Prayer is something we can carry anywhere. It does not require
a special place or a particular time of day. A prayer can be whispered while walking,
spoken around a dinner table, offered from a hospital room, or breathed in a moment of
uncertainty. Prayer keeps us connected to God along the way. Then there is gratitude.
Gratitude can be surprisingly light to carry and remarkably powerful. When we pay
attention to the blessings around us—the kindness of a friend, a beautiful morning, a meal
shared with others, the gift of another day—we begin to see that God’s goodness travels
with us.
A spiritual backpack also needs compassion. The journey of faith is never only about
ourselves. Jesus continually calls us to notice the people along the road and to respond
with love. Compassion may mean making room for someone who feels left out, offering
practical help to a neighbor, listening to someone who needs to talk, or simply treating
another person with dignity and kindness.
Perhaps we should pack community, too. Faith was never intended to be a solo journey.
We need people who will walk beside us, encourage us, challenge us, laugh with us, pray
with us, and remind us who we are when we forget. That is one of the gifts of the church.
And finally, there should be room in the backpack for curiosity and wonder. A spiritual
journey is not about having every answer. There are always new things to learn about God,
ourselves, our neighbors, and the world around us.
A willingness to wonder keeps our faith growing. Whether
September finds you filling a child’s school backpack, preparing
your own bags for a winter away, or simply settling into the
routines of a new season, perhaps it is a good time to ask: What
am I carrying with me? What do I need to take along, and what
might I be willing to leave behind?
May our backpacks—and our hearts—be filled with what helps
us travel faithfully: Scripture, prayer, gratitude, compassion,
community, and wonder. Wherever the road leads in the
months ahead, may we remember that we never travel it alone.
God is with us on every part of the journey.
Blessings,
Pastor Bev
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