Dear Parishioners,
I was hoping that after the election, things would settle down. However, the political convulsions continue, and normalcy is still far away. Both in the church and without, there is tension and agitation. In my morning prayer, what does provide relief from the pangs of the world is God’s steadiness. God’s creation in the form of a beautiful sun, warm temperatures, bright, colorful trees, and a constant of love and grace continue to signal to us that while human agitation is still present (and probably always has been), we are loved. Even in the thick of it, God wishes to enter our hearts with his steady and joy-filled presence. As Philippians 4 tells us, “Rejoice in the Lord always. I shall say it again: rejoice!” God has not abandoned us or left us to fend for ourselves. Will he ever? We can easily think so and convince ourselves that we are in charge, and it is all up to us. But no, God’s guiding and steady hand is on our shoulders. His law of love is written on our hearts, and no matter the problems of the day, His will urges us to continue to walk in goodness. Can we fail and succumb to the dark powers of the day? Can we give in to our base desires for control, power, and selfish fulfillment? Of course we can, and we will be the less as a result.
We must strive for the higher things of God, those things that are promised by the Holy Spirit. The clouds of human expectations can blind us to believe so strongly in our own plans that God’s light cannot be seen, and we are left lost and wandering. Now is the time to pray for guidance. Now is the time to pray for God’s divine inspiration. Now is the time to call forth from our hearts that we need God’s presence and guidance. We need God’s steady hand on the tiller of our lives. Our impulses, agitated by the politics of our day, lead us to seek some human recourse, when what we need is the great wisdom of God, guiding us in a great arc of love and peace.
Blessings,
Deacon Steve
