This week at our house has been full of all the signs that summer is coming to an end. There are first day outfits being planned, school supplies being gathered, haircuts happening, and teachers being met. There’s excitement about new classrooms, seeing friends again, and everything that comes with the beginning of another school year.

And if I’m being truthful, I’m ready for my kids to head back to school…but there’s also a little sadness mixed in for me.I’m excited for my kids. I love watching them grow, learn, and become more of who they are. But every year these transitions seem to come a little faster. Another summer is suddenly over. Another school year is beginning. And I’m reminded again just how quickly these days with them are moving.

Transitions are strange like that. They can be exciting and difficult at the same time. We can be ready for what’s next and still feel something about what we’re leaving behind.But I’ve also been thinking about another gift transitions can give us. They interrupt our routines.For the last few months, schedules have probably looked different for many of us. Vacations happen. Kids are home. Weekends get busy. Bedtimes change. Church attendance can get a little less consistent. The rhythms we normally depend on get disrupted.

And then suddenly a new season begins. New schedules. New practices. New routines.That makes moments like this a really good time to ask: What do I want to make room for in this next season? Because sometimes the best time to begin a new rhythm is when your old rhythm has already been interrupted.

I think faith is especially important in moments like these. Faith doesn’t keep life from changing. It doesn’t make every transition easy. But it can give us something steady when so much around us is moving. It can root us in something bigger than our schedules, circumstances, or whatever season we happen to be walking through.It can remind us who we are, what matters, and where we want our lives to be pointed.

So maybe this season of transition is also an opportunity to re-engage your faith. Maybe it’s returning to worship after a busy summer. Maybe it’s joining a small group. Maybe it’s serving somewhere. If this series has stirred anything in you, maybe it’s saying something to the people who are showing back up in your life. Or maybe it’s simply creating a little more space to pay attention to God in your everyday life.

And appropriately enough, there are some transitions happening around Good Shepherd too. If you worship at North Oak, you may notice a few things beginning to look different very soon. I won’t spoil everything yet, but I’m excited about some updates that will help the space better reflect the welcoming environment we’ve been creating across Good Shepherd—including some of what our Gladstone community already experiences. And I’m especially grateful that these changes are being made possible through the generosity of a donor who cares deeply about helping new people find a place at Good Shepherd.

This Sunday feels like a perfect moment for all of it. It’s Back to School Sunday, and we’ll take time in worship to pray over our students, teachers, school staff, and leaders as they begin a new year.But whether you have someone going back to school or not, maybe there’s a prayer for all of us in it: As another season begins, God, help us pay attention to what matters. Give us something steady to stand on. And help us choose the kind of rhythms that lead us toward the life we want to live.

I hope I’ll see you Sunday.
Matt