The Gift

I am about to do a new thing, now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?...Isaiah 43:19a

“I won’t be here for long.”  It was 2002 in Windhoek, Namibia.  I had just arrived in the country and was living out of a suitcase in temporary housing while waiting for the apartment that I would be living in for the next two years to open up.  I was explaining to my predecessor why I hadn’t put out any of my mementos or put any art up on the walls, and I will never forget her response.  

“Grant, be where you are.  A lot can happen in a week or a month that can change you forever.  Don’t miss out on those gifts while you are waiting for life to begin.”  

Ever since, I have thought about those words and often found them to be wisdom. 

We worship a God who is from before the beginning, and will be beyond the end.  And yet is constantly bringing about new things, new life, new possibilities in our weary world.  As we celebrate this season of resurrection I am regularly struck by the richness of God’s abundant care that doesn’t leave us where we are, but regularly draws us into new life.  It’s a gift, really.  A gift that reminds us both of the impermanence of our achievements and the eternal steadfastness of God that holds us and loves us in, with, and through the ins and outs and ups and downs of this life. 

As you may already know, through much prayer and deliberation, I have decided to accept admission into Georgetown University’s Post-Baccalaureate Pre-Medical program in order to explore the pull to medicine that has been present for me ever since I served as a chaplain resident at Fairview University Hospital.  The road to this decision has not been straight or obvious, but I believe it is where I am being led, and I trust the one who has traveled with me through Namibia, Montana, the Twin Cities, the East Central Synod of Wisconsin, and so many other places, the one who has been a faithful companion through so many joys and losses, will continue to walk with me there, and you here, as well.  

My time with you has been brief, but there has been much good in it.  We’ve worshiped and sang together, songs both old and new.  I got to preside over the baptisms of three new siblings in a single service, and preach on the faith of Faith Lutheran Church in Clintonville and on the God who is faithful beyond all our measures, as we commemorated the holy closure of that congregation.  We’ve sat around tables with play-dough and post-its, whiteboards and paperwork, talking about real joys and concerns for the congregation, our good God, and the real, good, possibilities that are before us.   We’ve worked together to provide tangible support for our neighbors as a reflection of the love of God that is poured out for us and this world.  

There will always be more to do, more to say, but let us be blessed in this: that in Christ there is always abundant, new life beyond all our leavings and endings.  In my first Wave article upon my arrival, I said that “it is good to be here now,” and that that goodness is rooted less in any particular place or time than in the God who gladly shares God’s goodness wherever we might be.  It has been good to be here, and I look forward to the path ahead for both me and this synod as we continue our labors in the vineyard of our Lord.  

Yours in Christ,

Pastor Grant Applehans
Associate to the Bishop
Director for Evangelical Mission