Lead Me Lord by the Rev. Robin Hinkle

This past fall, I was blessed to begin in earnest my new role at Saint Michael as head of our pastoral care ministries. This calling is a true blessing to me as I have begun getting to know so many of you as we go through life’s ups and downs. It is a privilege to be with you in times of trial, and I have been so blessed to witness how God brings grace and peace and inspiration in so many circumstances. It is incredible to watch the everyday miracles in the lives of our ordinary events. The presence of God as we give these times to him, can make them extraordinary. The natural is glorified. The cross becomes a story of new creation and resurrection.

I will never forget how I saw this work of the Holy Spirit in a horrific situation in one of my past churches. It involved the sudden illness of a high school boy and his mother. The boy contracted mononucleosis, which for a lot of young people is a rite of passage. The “kissing disease” shared between a boyfriend and girlfriend, first loves. But in his case the disease triggered a genetic condition that had been lying dormant since his birth. Most children with disease die before they are 2 years old. My friend, however, miraculously lived into his teens. He was confined to the hospital as the medical team desperately tried to save him. His mother was with him the entire time. My friend lasted a little over a month before he finally passed away. I was a chaplain to him and his mother, stopping by almost every day for a moment of prayer, a respite from their medical reality. Together we ushered the Holy Spirit into the room, bringing a change of perspective illuminated by God and the eternal. Through our prayers, their lives became lives of deep faith. I witnessed how God brought peace and acceptance first to my young friend, and eventually to his mother. God was there every step of the way, every single moment, and when my friend died, you could feel heaven touching earth.

I share that story because I want you to know that we, your priests, and our entire pastoral care team are here to walk with you. Not just during times of trial, but in all phases of your journey. Yes, pastoral care is for those experiencing illness, injury, crisis and loss, but we are also here to joyously welcome births, celebrate new homes with house blessings, and guide discernment of vocation, employment, or just life. Pastoral care also includes small groups for grief recovery and divorce recovery. Pastoral care is for life, seeking and watching for God’s illumination in all life circumstances. My hope is that your entire life will become one of faith, with God guiding and sustaining all you do, experience, and endure, so that you will rely on and walk with God all day, every day, as He leads you in the way everlasting.