Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for your brothers, love one another deeply, from the heart.  For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God (1 Peter 1.22-23)

September marks the one year anniversary of Hurricane Ike, and Galveston is offering many programs and exhibits to remember that day and to celebrate the progress that we have made to recover from the devastation that Ike brought. It seems odd to be “celebrating” while we still have so much to do and while so many are still displaced from their homes. But I suppose that it is very appropriate to pause in our work and give thanks for those things in our lives that are truly important: our families, our friends, and our faithful and loving God.

A primary theme of Galveston’s celebration is “rebirth.” Grace Church and many other churches and businesses on the Island have not just rebuilt, we have utilized this opportunity to better build for the future. Our church has been reborn in the sense that we have been able to replace the old with the new and upgrade our facilities to better provide for those who will come after us. Therefore, we celebrate all that God has provided in the midst of our hardship; and we look forward together to many more years of worshiping in our beautiful church.

This is also a perfect time to consider the ways in which our personal lives are being reborn. As we give thanks for the thousands of volunteers that came to help us recover from Ike, we should also consider how we can best return those acts of kindness. Rally Day! is a wonderful opportunity for doing just that. Many of our Grace folks have not returned to Galveston, so we need help with all of our ministries. We also want to give back to the community through our outreach programs, and there are several opportunities to help with those. All of us make up
the Body of Christ that is Grace Church, so I pray that everyone will come to Rally Day! and consider the many opportunities for returning the acts of love that were shown to us. We will also have our usual assortment of good food and fellowship, so plan to join us after the 9:30 AM service on Sunday, September 13th.

God continues to abundantly bless Grace Church in so many ways. And I pray that all of us will return those blessings by passing them on to someone who has not yet heard the good news of God in Christ. May God bless you and keep you all.

Faithfully,
Fr. Paul+