Dear Church Family,

It’s been a blustery few weeks. Day after day, the wind has howled through the trees around my house, shaking loose what seemed like every dead stick and brittle limb. I would head outside, spend an afternoon gathering them from the yard, and finally step back with a sigh of satisfaction at a job well done. But inevitably, the next morning, I would wake up to a fresh batch of fallen sticks—new debris scattered across the grass. The wind had done it again, shaking loose more dead wood that I hadn’t even realized was still hanging on.

At first, it was frustrating. After all, I had just cleaned everything up! But after a while, I began to see something deeper in this cycle. The wind, as annoying as it was, wasn’t causing the mess—it was revealing it. The sticks were already dead. They were just clinging to the branches, hidden and unnoticed, until the wind exposed them.

It reminded me of Hebrews 9:14 (ESV), which says, “how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God.” Just like the dead limbs in the trees, we all have "dead works" that linger—old habits, pride, selfish motives, or empty routines. And while we may clean up the obvious ones from time to time, there are still more clinging to our hearts, unnoticed and unaddressed.

God, in His grace, often uses the winds of life—trials, disruptions, or even just unexpected challenges—to shake loose what doesn’t belong. It's uncomfortable, even irritating, but it’s a necessary part of growth. If we’re not careful, we might become complacent when we see a bit of progress. We might say, “Look at how far I’ve come,” and settle into comfort. But God loves us too much to leave us there.

Just like those stubborn dead limbs, He knows what still needs to fall away. And He uses the winds to help us see it.

So let us not grow weary or frustrated when the gusts return. Let us not resist the process of pruning and purifying. Instead, let us be thankful for the God who continues to cleanse us, not just once, but continually, so we can fully serve the living God with a renewed heart and a life full of purpose.

Even in the wind, He is working. Let it blow. Let the wind do its work!

Loving you all, 
Michael