Letter to the Congregations: 10th October 2026

Our dear brethren,

Somehow there were no slowdowns on the highway through New Jersey on our way home from North Carolina. And it wasn’t until we were somewhere halfway across Staten Island that we began to see some traffic building up. As we merged onto the Belt Parkway from the Verrazano Bridge I could finally see the red line on the map as the real slowdown began. The estimated time to our home was only eight minutes. After the 10-hour trip we had just completed eight minutes seemed like nothing. My mind went straight back to North Carolina where we had spent the Feast of Tabernacles, specifically to the area around Lake Junaluska where it never took us more than 30 minutes to get anywhere. Even walking from the house we stayed in to the hall where we had services never took me more than 20 minutes.

As I was driving through the neighborhood running a few errands before the onset of the Sabbath I noticed some rather aggressive or absent-minded drivers. As traffic built on the Belt Parkway, and as one of my fellow motorists purposefully sped up so I couldn’t enter the highway, I made the last minute decision to take some back roads (or the Brooklyn equivalent of back roads) through quieter neighborhoods only adding a couple of minutes to my drive. In that moment I realized that, while I had just returned from the Feast of Tabernacles spiritually rejuvenated, the majority of my neighbors in the city were still fighting traffic on their daily commutes. They needed the Feast just as much as I did but they didn’t know that it even existed.

The challenge for me will be maintaining the peace and calm that I experienced at the Feast as I move forward navigating the city and the rest of life. A recent social media post from UCG intended for young adults highlighted a passage in the book of Galatians that I agree is a great reminder for all of God’s people as we transition from a week submerged in the hope of God’s Kingdom back to our daily reality. I’ll quote the verse as well as the surrounding verses below:

“Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith” (Galatians 6:7-10).

Brethren, let’s keep the momentum of the Feast of Tabernacles going in our hearts, in our minds, in our attitudes, in how we interact with those around us including “the household of faith” who hold the same hope that we do. Let’s share the stories of the Feast, let’s share the excitement we felt, let’s share the love of God and the hope of His Kingdom we experienced so others might also feel that hope and that love.

Our love is with you,

Lewis VanAusdle

Pastor, United Church of God

NYC, NJ, CT, Malawi, Zimbabwe