From the Editor

CHANGING COLORS, UNCHANGING GOD

I remember the time I walked across the campus of Wheaton College and realized people were now looking at me not like I was a student, but more like I had to be a member of the faculty or staff or a visiting parent or grandparent on campus out of season.

Whatever young means, I realized I wasn’t there anymore.

“Youth is wasted on the young,” said someone. Maybe it was George Bernard Shaw, though what I’ve found in search for him is slightly different. The actual Shaw quote I’ve been able to find is, “Youth is a wonderful thing. What a crime to waste it on children.”

If this is true, well, we might just as well say that life itself is wasted on the living. But I think life is never wasted on anyone. Time and aging are not wasted; they are a celebration.

Autumn is a beautiful example of this. The days grow short, and the summer greens give way to blazing yellows, oranges and reds. God’s creation changes but his beauty never ends.

This month’s Connections demonstrates God’s goodness and work in people of all ages. Life is never wasted at any age when the Spirit of God is at work. And he is at work. Facing cancer like Barbara Shoemaker or a car colliding with a deer like Derek Johanik, God’s hand of strength and protection, his love and sovereignty rule our lives. Together we discover that there are things to learn, ways to grow, steps of faith to take.

A father helping a son brings him both COVID and poison ivy—a metaphor for serving in the church, one that seems both positive and spot on. Virginia Hughes points us to be faithful in the beautiful seasons of live and service.

It’s a great joy to experience yet another missions festival. Both festival missions speakers contribute to this month’s issue as well. Matt Smethurst goes against the grain of popular culture in another direction with his “Don’t Follow Your Heart.” Steve Krogh brings his pastoral insight to life in the context of another culture.

And looking to our local outreach, we have special articles on Repeat Boutique and a drive to help Caring Network.

In the midst of apples and pumpkins, let’s focus our hearts of the magnificence of creation, and on the abundant and never-ending love of the Creator.