Streams of Mercy

In the April 5, 2021 edition of The Presbyterian Outlook, Rebecca Messman, pastor at Trinity Presbyterian Church in Herndon, Virginia makes the observation: “The church is currently in a kind of winter that will define us for a long time.” Then she shares the good news: “There are fruits on the way from the wintering church, and how we weather the season has lasting effects on the fruit.

“In this “winter” of the Covid-19 pandemic, churches have for the most part shifted from in-person gatherings to Zoom Bible studies, committee meetings and session meetings, and on-line streaming of worship services. While in the months to come, some will begin to gather for worship outdoors and others will make plans to return to in-person worship in the sanctuary with safety protocols in place, the “new normal” will be different.

Messman speaks of the “arctic snap” as bringing about the “migration” of choirs and live music to the “flat screen” and the people we’ve lost as “giant trees that fell in the forest with few there to hear them.” She speaks of “December trees” that seem like “skeletons” to us in winter, yet are filled with life forces pressing bravely forward in anticipation of the coming spring. While churches have been closed and shuttered, and members encouraged to keep their distance and wear masks to protect each other, there has been a sense of purposeful “waiting” through it all.

“Easter life starts like this. The good news springs to life in dark wombs and empty tombs and shuttered upper rooms. It shoots up from the stump of Jesse, and that means there are fruits on the way from the wintering church … I imagine the fruit of love will be sweeter since it has learned how to navigate close quarters. I imagine the peace will be bolder since it has faced fragility. I imagine the joy will be like watermelons, a grand picnic of togetherness that we finally appreciate so much, that we spread the seeds of it everywhere!”

With gratitude and joy, may we look forward to sharing the fruits that will come from the “wintering” season of the church.

Elizabeth