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3/15/2011 |
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From Pastor Richard’s Desk March 2011
Ash Wednesday
 What do ashes have to do with Ash Wednesday? With Ash Wednesday fast coming upon us on March 9th, that’s not a bad question to ask. Quite simply, Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of the Season of Lent that leads up to Easter. It inaugurates a spiritual journey that prepares our hearts for the celebration of Christ’s Resurrection.
At one in the same time, the ashes are a reference to the ashes from which we came and to which we will return. They also serve as a reminder of our sins. Sin properly understood is not an old fashion way of humbly us by beating ourselves up with ever personal shortcoming. Sin is reflection of our relationship with the Lord of our lives.
Let me explain. One of the more helpful ways of understanding sin is anything that separates us from God. It’s as powerful a definition as it is simple. Brothers and sisters, what better place to begin a journey to the cross than with an understanding of the sin to which Christ’s sacrifice responds?
As we gather around the tables in the Charter Room the evening of Ash Wednesday we’ll do so mindful of the life into which we have been ushered owing to the atonement of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. What a privilege it is to be the objects of God’s loving grace and affection.
Join us on the evening of Ash Wednesday and let us start our journey to the cross of Christ together.
Grace and peace to you all, |
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2/11/2011 |
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Are you ready for the snow to stop? Believe it or not, up until about Christmas the thought crossed my mind that it might actually be a light winter this year. It hadn’t snowed and depending upon how one calculates it, we were about a third or so through the snowy part of winter with no sign of snow. We only had January and February to go. How much snow could we be in for? Don’t answer that question.
What I did was to assume that the future was going to be like the past. That tomorrow would be like yesterday and that all would be well. In a broken world, a fallen world, such assumptions can come at a dear price.
All this unexpected snow reminds me of the words of God’s servant Isaiah. It was Isaiah who ironically used the uncertainty in life to assure God’s people that all would be well. Isaiah addressed a people who had experienced exile from their beloved homeland and wanted nothing more than to return home. It was Isaiah who stated on behalf of God,
“Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed, says the Lord who has compassion on you” (Isa. 54:10).
Our Lord knows that in this fallen world “mountains shake”. In other words, things happen that we don’t want to happen and yet through it all, our God’s love is unfailing. When you’re facing the angst and uncertainty of life, when you’re faced with difficult circumstances; remember Isaiah’s words.
Be assured that our Lord’s love and compassion, His covenant of peace to which we belong, is not shaken by the passing, ephemeral circumstances we encounter through life. Rather, in the words of our Lord, “…my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed…”
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3/1/2010 |
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February 2010  LentI’ve recently completed my latest round of pastoral visits. I enjoy them very much. One thing I’ve noticed that many of these visits have in common is their perspective upon life. There’s no getting around the fact that the older one gets, the longer one’s perspective on things. The way one looks back over 28 years is not the same as how one looks back over 48 years or 68 years and so on. As the Bible makes clear, life has its seasons. Each season comes with its own perspective. Brothers and sisters, the life we live in the Lord has its seasons as well. Later this month we will enter upon the Season of Lent, a reflective, penitential time leading up to our celebration of Easter. Lent begins on Ash Wednesday a day we’ve traditionally marked with worship and a Soup Supper in the Charter Room. Lent is a season set aside for us, ahead of Easter, to reflect upon all that God in Christ has done. I suspect that our daily, day-to-day perspective is simply too short, too harried, too pre-occupied to capture the depth and breadth of God’s grace. It takes many days and much reflection; it takes a season. As the exiles discovered, through out all their circumstances God proved faithful to his word keeping his promise to his children. At the dawn of a New Year that heralds news of economic strife and war and rumors of war, that’s good to hear. It’s good to know that in spite of all we face in the year ahead we worship a God who knows our circumstances, who cares for us and who follows through on his promises. As those who are counted among the grateful recipients of God’s unmerited favor in Christ Jesus our Lord, please join the consistory and me around the tables in the Charter Room this Ash Wednesday, February 17th. What better way to begin a season that is intended to capture a sacred perspective upon the Lord and the life we share in His name.
Grace and Peace to you all, Pastor Richard |
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