My dear friends, we are already God’s children,
though what we will be hasn’t yet been seen..
– I John 3:2a

Dear Friends in Christ,

This year I decided to grow our flowers from seeds instead of buying them from a nursery. Hope and I started them early, watered them faithfully, and made sure they had plenty of sun. Yet even with all that care and attention, they didn’t seem to grow very fast and were quite small when we transplanted them to baskets and put them outside.

We’re just starting to resume a more normal life at St. James following the chaos and uncertainty of the last two years. The return has been slow but some of the things we have been missing are now happening- the hot meal program ran all spring, coffee hour is happening each Sunday, we were able to hold the Stump Frolic, and St. David’s is back to in person worship this summer.

The plants I put out at our house are beginning to grow with the sun and rain we’ve had this June. While some are still smaller than I’d hoped the truth is that others are filled with buds which I know will open soon. We don’t actually know what colour the flowers will be because the seeds were mixed but I know they’ll be beautiful.

The start of normal life at St. James has been wonderful and exciting. I know as well that it is merely the beginning of the new things that God will do through our church in the months and years to come. For as we return to the activities and events that bring such hope and vitality let us never forget that God is at work bringing something beautiful to life within our congregation.

May God bless you and our life together.

Yours in Christ’s Service,

The Rev. Peter Smith