Keeping the Faith in the Interim Time;

Thoughts, Views and Opinions from your Interim Vicar

“Have You Ever Seen The Rain?”

One of my favorite rock groups, “Credence Clearwater Revival” is made up of folks who grew up in the Mississippi Delta. That area has given birth to much of the music we Americans know and love, such as blues, rock and roll and jazz. We also know it as an area which has been devastated by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita this past year. The damage done by water can be very powerful. We saw the photos of people stranded on housetops and clinging to debris in the torrential waters. We also observed the looks on their faces as they saw the destruction to their personal property. Water, indeed, can be incredibly destructive.

But water is also the sustainer of life. Science tells us that ninety-five percent of the human body is composed of water. We need our daily doses of water to keep us from dying. We need water to clean our bodies, wash our dishes and do our laundry. We are very dependent on water to keep us going day by day.

But what happens when the water isn’t there? When drought takes over land which had been green and lush it can turn into a desert. All we need to do is to look at some of the areas in California and in the nearby states of Arizona, Nevada and New Mexico to see what the lack of water creates.

It has been a year since we began our transition journey together. It seems hard to believe the time has slipped by so quickly. When I came in early December 2004 people were telling me that we were experiencing “more rain than we usually have around here”. As the winter wore on, the rains continued just about on a daily basis. We saw the vegetation here in the Santa Cruz Mountains turn lush and green. As we drove down Highway 17 past the Lexington Reservoir we could see how high the water was, even covering some trees that now appeared to be in the middle of the enlarged lake. But so far this year the rains have not come. Sure, we’ve had some but not anywhere near what we had last year at this time. However, we hope that eventually the rains will come and our so-called “winter” will return to the mountains, the bays and the valleys that make up this beautiful region of the state of California.

Drought or lack of rain doesn’t always affect our physical environment. Sometimes we may feel that our personal faith life has hit a dry spell. We may even feel that we are forgotten and alone. But God doesn’t abandon us. God stays with us even through those days when we feel that the issues we face are just about too much for us to handle. That’s exactly the time when we are most in need of God’s grace and love. And that is often the time when God’s love breaks through, refreshing our spirit, like the winter rains of California refresh the mountains and valleys.

St. Philip the Apostle is a blessed place filled with many blessed, spirit-filled people who have been through many seasons of drought and rain. They are the real strength of this parish community. I want to personally thank them for being here through dry times and rainy seasons and for hanging in there during this transition time. The rains which will bring new growth and new life to this congregation are just over the horizon. But they are there!

As we begin a new liturgical year and prepare for Christ’s coming to us again, I wish you all a blessed and holy Advent!

Your faithful servant in the Lord,

The Reverend Barry Miller

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