New Season
Dearly loved Children of God,
This Sunday begins the season of the church year known as 'Ordinary Time.' Sometimes it is also referred to as the 'non-festival half of the church year' due to the fact that there aren't any major Christian festivals (e.g. Christmas, Easter, Ascension, etc.) observed over the next couple months. Knowing that, 'ordinary' seems like a pretty fitting word to describe the summertime, right? No big celebrations are taking place. It's just a pretty simple, ordinary, business-as-usual time for church. Not exactly.
The word 'ordinary' as it is used here, does not intend to communicate that this is a plain or boring time in the life of the Church. Rather, it is a reference to the ordinal numerals by which the subsequent weeks are identified or counted. So, for example, this Sunday will be the Second Sunday after Pentecost. Throughout the summer we'll continue to count up each week as we progress through ordinary time.
I bring this up, not because I necessarily thought you would find that little tidbit about 'ordinary time' interesting (even though your pastor does! Haha), but because this is the approach many Christians have when it comes to church attendance during the summer. Most of us wouldn't ever consider missing worship on Christmas or Easter, or even during Lent. But church in the summer? Eh, nothing big is happening; it's just sort of a simple, ordinary time, right?
The kids are done with school. We get out of our routines. Summer sports, traveling, and vacations pick up. It's not just Christians though, churches do this too. A number of churches I know--churches I've been a part of--cancel all Bible classes during the summer. Churches with multiple services will often go down to just one. In some churches, no activities or meetings even take place during the summer other than Sunday morning worship. (Obviously, I realize the irony in that this is what our current schedule looks like but it's for different reasons. And, Lord willing, our schedule will be filling back up soon!)
Now, this is not me telling you to not take a vacation. If you have the time and means to get away with your family or to visit family, please do it! In fact, I pray all of you have an opportunity to travel and enjoy some time away from work and with your loved ones. My family and I hope to do the same. Similarly, I'm not condemning churches who lighten their summer schedule. Again, I have served at churches where this was done. It can be good to give our pastors and church workers a break every now and then. I can even see the benefit to cutting back on meetings, etc.
Here's why I bring it up. The summertime doesn't change a thing when it comes to your need for Jesus and the gifts He gives through His Word and Sacraments. The reasons why you regularly attended church September--May are just as real and valid in June, July, and August. If you're traveling or on vacation, find a church in that area. You can look up a local church at this website. Just enter the city or zip code and it will find you a church nearby. OR, simply let me know where you're headed and I'll be happy to look it up for you. If you're getting away to recharge physically, be sure to do the same spiritually. Plus, it can be interesting to see how other churches do things and even provide us with some things to consider doing ourselves.
We've been blessed to build some awesome momentum over the past number of months, added lots of new members, and have had numerous discussions and meetings looking to build an even bigger and brighter future together at Prince of Peace. I'm hoping to see all of that continue this summer.
It's no coincidence then, that the liturgical color for ordinary time is green. Green is the color for life and health and growth. Think of all the stories and parables Jesus tells that involve seeds growing into plants and those plants producing abundant fruit. This is what God has in store for us. This is what God does to us, too, as we engage with and participate in the Divine Service. Ordinary time is actually an extraordinary time to grow in our faith. I thank God for the opportunities to do that with you this summer.
God bless your weekend and I hope to see you and your family Sunday morning!
In Christ,
Pastor Bater