Grace and Peace, St. Lukers,
The month of May is a fast and wild season!
I recently saw a meme that said, “Ah yes, it’s May: the month schools and sports teams pretend parents don’t have jobs.” Isn’t that the truth? May sweeps in like a whirlwind—with award ceremonies, banquets, final concerts, sports championships, graduations, and milestone moments that leave us all wondering how to fit it into the calendar. It’s exciting and exhausting all at once, and through it all, we remember that God is present, celebrating alongside us in every transition, every accomplishment, every tearful goodbye, and every new beginning.
This Sunday, we’ll hold space for the joy and meaning of these moments.
We’ll honor Mother’s Day, a time to give thanks not just for biological mothers, but for all who have nurtured, mentored, cared for, and shaped us. We recognize that this day holds many emotions—for some, it’s joyful; for others, it carries grief, longing, or complicated memories. We hold it all tenderly as we come before the God whose love nurtures each of us.
This past week, we also marked some big milestones within our own church family: our 5th graders moving up from Children’s Ministry into Youth Ministry, and our 8th graders graduating into High School Ministry. These are powerful rites of passage, moments when we as a congregation say, “We see you, we love you, and we’re walking this journey of faith with you.” Let’s keep these students and their families in our prayers as they take these next steps.
Many of you are also celebrating graduations this month—from college, from high school, or from long seasons of learning and growth. We want to recognize and celebrate your graduate next Sunday (May 18)! If you haven’t let us know about your graduate yet, please reach out this week so we can include them in the celebration by emailing grads@st.lukes.org. These moments matter, and we want to bless each of you as you step into what’s next.
And this Sunday, we’ll share in the sacred joy of baptisms in both worship services—one of the most beautiful reminders we have of God’s renewing, refreshing grace. Whether we’re holding a baby or standing alongside an adult who has claimed faith for themselves, baptism speaks to the living water that Jesus offers to all of us: the promise that we are God’s beloved, that we are washed in love, that we are sent into the world renewed.
We continue in our Eastertide series, Be Alive, and this Sunday we’ll reflect on John 4:13-16, where Jesus tells the woman at the well about living water—water that refreshes and revives in ways nothing else can. In this busy, beautiful, overwhelming month, that promise comes just when we need it most.
So come. Come ready to be refreshed. Come ready to celebrate. Come ready to bless and be blessed.
I can’t wait to worship with you.
Blessings,
Pastor Jad