Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
– Lamentations 3:22-23

A big part of me wants to start this article with the line “Here we go again!” But the rest of me knows that it’s simply not accurate. Though for many of us it’s true that we’re diving into another fall of ministry, community, and life together here at Westminster. Yet the landscape continues to change. Take your thinking a few levels deeper on that one: yes, think more deeply than the calendar year, more deeply than staff changes, think beyond COVID protocols. Surely all of those are true, but the landscape is different because you and I are different.

We’ve all grown, changed, and learned in these past summer months. Many of us have made intentional changes; some of us are simply looking out at life through different lenses. Christ has continued to move in all of our hearts. I think that’s an important reminder from time to time. I’ve spoken with many, many people who feel caught in the “loop” of life: the same pattern, day after day, week after week. But what happens when we step back to realize that we’re not the same people that we used to be? Suddenly that loop starts to look a bit different, doesn’t it? Yes, we may tread the same ground, but we do so with new experience, new wisdom, a different perspective.

That thought helps to shed some light on an idea shared in the Lamentations passage above: God’s compassions for his people are new every morning. If God’s compassions are new every morning, it must be true that our needs are new each morning. We change each and every day! God’s love for you is constant, but his methods are unique, specific, and individual to your life each and every day. This also happens to pave the way for another insight: if you feel as though you’re experiencing God in the same ways that you always have, you might just be missing out on something new. God is offering you something new every morning

Many of us are looking forward to the return of familiar ministries, so it’s true that in one sense, “Here we go again!” But I’d encourage you to look out at the horizon with new eyes, with a new perspective. God has done new things for you each morning; the same will be true this fall. So as we step forward to community of all kinds, keep an eye out for the new work that God has done in your life and in the lives of those around you.

What new thing has God done in your life? Maybe you’re confident of the answer, or maybe you feel like one of those who is caught in the “loop” of life. In either case, I’d love to hear a part of your story. Feel free to drop me a line as we dive into this fall season. Be well, friends!

Ed Sutter