Trinity Blog

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

We are entering that season of year where flowers beds and gardens are being cleaned out, planted and mulched for another season of growth.  We remove last year’s leaves that have blown in and last year’s branches that have fallen off into our yards in bags that go off to the dump.  We plant this year’s annuals and spread around mulch.  Mulch, the leaves, branches and plants from previous seasons which break down and give nutrients and protection to this year’s growth.  The plants from previous seasons that give life to another season in the cycle of life.

Just as it is with mulch, so too with Jesus Christ.  Jesus understood himself as the mulch which dies to give life to others, 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.  His death was to be the means of God bringing God’s creation back from exile and gathering all things together to re-make them.  Mulch is fertilizer for flower beds and gardens.  Jesus is fertilizer for Creation, to bring the people back to the covenant with God, to remove their sins of falling short and to resurrect them to Glory and Life. 

With the momentous decisions made in April, we at Trinity and East Side, find ourselves in a resurrection moment.  We are becoming new thanks to the work of God.  Just as a gardener plants new plants for the season, we are the new planting of God.  We are planting a new church, a new community formed, shaped and gathered by the Spirit of Jesus Christ.  The good news of the Gospel is that while God has planted us as a new church, we are “mulched” by Jesus Himself.  Fertilized with nutrients, lead by His will, we are the re-newed planting of God.  Since Jesus was resurrected, we find ourselves being resurrected now, in a new beginning. 

But with new beginnings come endings.  We might be planted and shaped into something new, but we must say goodbye to Trinity and East Side.  We are certainly prepared by God for the future, but we also must say goodbye to the past.  This is a time of loss for both congregations and therefore a time of grief.  Mulch is a fertilizer for the future but also a remainder of last year.  This time of resurrection is also a time of dying.  We must say good-bye to what was to embrace the new thing that is becoming.  To honor and grieve the closing of two faith communities to celebrate and live into the planting of a new.

We seem to be called into a season of deep, spiritual work.  While we can catch a glimpse of the new things God is doing, we must grieve and celebrate the wonderful things God has done.  Just as we did deep work to reach this point in our community’s journey, so must we continue the deep work while we can begin the next.  What must we say good-bye to?  What stories need to be shared and remembered?  What memories and learnings need to be lifted up and carried with us?  All of this is the mulch of the past which gives life to the present and future.  This is our dying work that must accompany our rising work.

My friends, we have come so far by the grace of Jesus’ Spirit.  Let us continue our Easter work of dying and rising as Jesus died and rose.  Let us engage in our deep work of dying to Trinity and East Side, that we might rise to the (Insert New Church Name Here).  So dig out the pictures to show off to the other church, write the stories to share with the new members, and remember the lessons you learned to teach to new brothers and sisters in God’s family.  But most importantly, let us begin our letting go of what was, to become and align into what is growing.  We have been mulched by Christ, time for us to die and rise.  Amen and thanks be to God.

In Christ,
Rev. Mark