Hi Church Family,
I find it difficult to believe that Thanksgiving is next week!
Honestly, the last six to nine months have been most unbelievable. I was starting to wonder if we were seeing the end of times. It only takes one episode of the news to send me scurrying to the Book of Revelation. One particular day when my heart was particularly heavy with concerns of the world, a friend put it in perspective for me by telling me, “Girl, put your rapture rug away, Jesus is not going to come back for this hot mess of a bride!” And since I am the church, you are the church, and we are the church I started praying about being a hot mess.
I am the church. You are the church. We are the church. Each one of us plays a vital role in the divine plan. Galatians 3:27-29 says in summary that as we have been baptized in Christ we have put on Christ, that we are all one in Christ Jesus and heirs to the promise just the same as the original Apostles. God has promised to care for me and provide for me, allowing me to care for my neighbors.
When I open myself up to care for others, I find myself speaking to people more openly, more freely and more sincerely. I remember standing in a line at the grocery store and the woman in front of me had several children who were active (perhaps some might even classify them as out of control). I for a moment even let my mind choose annoyance at the chaos in front of me, but then my heart told my eyes to focus on the tired person in front of me. Her body language exuded defeat. The Holy Spirit used me to lean up close and whisper in her ear that it was okay, and she was doing a great job! She was important and her efforts were being recognized. A couple of tears ran down her cheek, but she stood taller and by the time she finished her transaction she was walking a little more confidently.
Make a friend, be a friend and bring a friend to Christ.
Let’s think about that: make a friend; be a friend; bring a friend to Christ. It is all about relationships. It is so easy to look at the world through an us-versus-them lens implying one side is right and the other side is wrong. Brothers and sisters, I ask us to look at relationships through the eyes Jesus has given us. Jesus used humility to build some of the most powerful relationships this world has ever experienced. His humble birth in a manager brought strangers from a strange land to worship him uniting and connecting east and west. Be willing to outreach to those who may be different from you so that we continue to grow the body of Christ. Fun fact, and completely off topic, but I just learned that a shark will only grow as large as its container. Let us not be the reason the body of Christ is stunted. Humility is hard. Relationships are hard. Life is hard but all of it is worth it! Truly listening and being present for someone may be the only experience of Christ they receive.
Luke 18:18-30 in summary is the story of a very rich man asking what he must do to obtain eternal life. The answer from Jesus to the people present in the story, his Apostles and even to us today is care for others. Humble yourself enough to honestly care for your neighbor as yourself. The Holy Spirit shared that relationships are not about me. Being a Christian is not about me it is about giving me up to follow Jesus. Sharing the love that God shared with us by giving us his Son to die on a cross for our sins. During this stewardship season, I am asking each of us to give more of our time, our talents, and our treasures to grow ourselves, our parish and the body of Christ.
In closing, I leave you with 2 Chronicles 7:14 (English Standard Version): “If my people who are called by my name humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”
Be well. Be a friend. Be the church. God loves you and so do I.
Macon
