Pastor's Reflection 2025-08-21
“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens.” Ecclesiastes 3:1
As September arrives, we stand at the threshold of autumn. The air begins to shift, the evening arrives noticeably earlier, and the first hints of color can be seen on the leaves. Here in San Jose, we may not experience the dramatic turning of the seasons like some places do, but even so, there are quiet reminders in September that change is in the air.
The writer of Ecclesiastes tells us there is “a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens.” Those words remind us that life moves in rhythms, sometimes joyful, sometimes difficult, always changing. Just as summer gives way to fall, so too our lives move through seasons of loss, growth and transition.
On one hand, autumn can be seen as the season of letting go. Trees let go of their leaves, making way for the rest and renewal that winter brings. In our spiritual lives, there may be things which we are also invited to let go of. For example, burdens we carry, regrets that weigh us down, or even the need to control outcomes we cannot control. Letting go is not easy, but it opens space for God’s new work to take root.
On the other hand, autumn is also the season of harvest. By September in Stockton, the last of the almonds remain on the trees, left as a gift for the birds. The last stone fruits fall to the ground. The final batch of tomatoes would be picked. September is an appropriate time for us to pause and notice the ways God has been generous in the harvest. We might pause and ponder how God’s grace has carried us, how our communities have supported us, and how God’s love has sustained us in ways that we may not have realized earlier in the year.
During September, I would encourage you all to take a walk and notice the changes in the season. And reflect on what God might be inviting you to release and to give thanks for the blessings of the harvest God has given us. Together here at Wesley, we can all step into this new season with hope, trusting that God is already at work, preparing the soil of our lives for what is yet to come.
Grace and peace,
Rev. John
The writer of Ecclesiastes tells us there is “a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens.” Those words remind us that life moves in rhythms, sometimes joyful, sometimes difficult, always changing. Just as summer gives way to fall, so too our lives move through seasons of loss, growth and transition.
On one hand, autumn can be seen as the season of letting go. Trees let go of their leaves, making way for the rest and renewal that winter brings. In our spiritual lives, there may be things which we are also invited to let go of. For example, burdens we carry, regrets that weigh us down, or even the need to control outcomes we cannot control. Letting go is not easy, but it opens space for God’s new work to take root.
On the other hand, autumn is also the season of harvest. By September in Stockton, the last of the almonds remain on the trees, left as a gift for the birds. The last stone fruits fall to the ground. The final batch of tomatoes would be picked. September is an appropriate time for us to pause and notice the ways God has been generous in the harvest. We might pause and ponder how God’s grace has carried us, how our communities have supported us, and how God’s love has sustained us in ways that we may not have realized earlier in the year.
During September, I would encourage you all to take a walk and notice the changes in the season. And reflect on what God might be inviting you to release and to give thanks for the blessings of the harvest God has given us. Together here at Wesley, we can all step into this new season with hope, trusting that God is already at work, preparing the soil of our lives for what is yet to come.
Grace and peace,
Rev. John
Posted in Newsletter 2025-08-21