As the end of the church year approaches...

Here is something borrowed from Dr. Dale Meyer and his Meyer Minute.

A beautiful rosy sunrise is how today begins here in Collinsville. “Rosy fingered dawn” was how the Greek poet Homer described it thousands of years ago, a great image for beginnings and hope, but what about the end? Last Sunday in church we sang, “The golden evening brightens in the west,” and our church tolled the bell for the 28 members who died since the last All Saints Day. Is life winding down or just beginning? Is it morning or evening?

After writing this Minute, I’ll empty out the ceramic pots that decorated our porch this season, pots with flowers and herbs, ornamental grass and even potatoes. It’s a winding down, cold, gray winter is coming, but even as I put the pots away, I’ll be thinking of next spring, of rosy fingered dawns still to come, new births, new growth. “‘All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord remains forever.’ And this word is the good news that was preached to you” (1 Peter 1:24-25, quoting Isaiah 40:6, 8).

I offer this as a little illustration of the beauty of Christian faith as we age. “The righteous flourish like the palm tree and grow like a cedar in Lebanon. They are planted in the house of the Lord; they flourish in the courts of our God. They still bear fruit in old age; they are ever full of sap and green, to declare that the Lord is upright; he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him” (Psalm 92:12-15).

For a Christ-centered life, the approaching evening brings anticipation of a morning like none other. “But, lo, there breaks a yet more glorious day: The saints triumphant rise in bright array; / The King of Glory passes on His way. Alleluia! Alleluia! (Lutheran Service Book, 677:7). “You believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls” (1 Peter 8-9).