Still here Sometimes during a pastoral visit a person advanced in age or limited by handicap or illness asks me, ”Why am I still here?” or more pointedly, “Why doesn’t God just take me?” Any of us could be compelled to ask such a desperate question during a season of suffering. The following is a brief reflection using the Scriptures to assist such a serious lament. Our schedule is not God’s schedule A helpful “big picture” verse may be Ecclesiastes 3:1-10 “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace. The fact is our life is in God’s hands. He marks our days, the beginning, the middle, the end. Each day is a gift. It is an act of faith to recognize and savor this. It is a spiritual discipline to live with such gratitude and actively express it. Our principal act of worship is called the Holy Eucharist. “Eucharist” means “thanksgiving.” This is one reason why frequent receiving of the Sacrament gives great encouragement. The Lord feeds us with his Body and Blood. This gives us courage to carry on with gratitude for his love, his saving mercy, his promise of eternal life with him and find a reason for daily life even as we hope for a holy death since “the suffering of this present time are worth comparing with the glory that shall be revealed (Romans 8:18). . Passing on a Godly legacy The Prophet Elijah flees to Mount Horeb and hides in a cave. The Lord asks him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” The prophet replies with a lament, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, broken down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.” Elijah is abandoned, alone and persecuted. He is in despair not simply for his life but a reason to live. The Lord tells him to go forth and stand up. Next, the Lord reveals himself not in torrential wind, earthquake or a blaze of fire but in a still small voice. It is as light as whisper yet energizing as pure oxygen. At the Lord’s command, Elijah shakes his despondency and continues to witness to God, anoints a new king and chooses Elisha as his protégé to carry on the prophetic ministry of calling the people of Israel back to his righteousness. Perhaps the Lord is “keeping you around” so you can pass on a godly legacy to the next generation. Perhaps he wants you to tell your story and family history to your children, grandchildren, great children, anyone in the younger generation. They will be blessed to learn of God’s faithfulness in the past. If you do not do it, who will? Intercession for the needs of the saints Saint Paul writes in Romans 8:26-7 “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will.” The need for intercessory prayer is endless. Frequently, the person confined to home or bed has learned by default, design or necessity how to be comfortable with stillness. This stillness is conducive to listening and cooperating with the Holy Spirit who intercedes for the needs of the church and the world. I once knew a man confined to bed due to full body paralysis and dependency upon a respirator. Once a day he would go through the alphabet in his mind and use each letter to trigger names of family, friends, people in the news, leaders in the government and culture. Then he would pray for them. For example, he would pray, “A is for Andrew. Lord, please guide my grandson Andrew as he decides what to study in college. B is for Betsy. Lord, bless my sister Betsy and relieve her pain, help her cope with arthritis. C is for Carl. God bless Carl one of the janitors who works here. Help him, his wife and their new child.” Only in heaven will we know the great effect of our prayers, “Glory to God whose power working in us can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine” (Ephesians 3:20.) God is not finished with me yet The Christian life is a pilgrimage. It begins at conception and courses beyond the grave to eternal life with God. The earthly stages are a process of God conforming us to the image of Jesus. This is why the Lord calls us to follow him, not to a place, but to a way of being. He wants us to be transformed into our Heavenly Father’s sons or daughters. This why we work out our salvation, “in fear and trembling” (Philippians 2:12)) not so much because we fear God (though we ought to fear disappointing or offending him) but because we are not altogether holy and he is holy. For us to spend eternity with him, he has to make us holy. This hurts. It requires us to die to sin and selfishness. Notice the Hail Mary prayer ends, “Pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen.” There are the only two times that really matter in life, right now, and the day we die. The longer we live on earth the more the Lord purifies us. The more we cooperate with his grace, the more peace we receive. Be served so others can serve Most people have a difficulty receiving care and compassion. This may be especially true if they need partial or total assistance with the basics of life like bathing, eating and dressing. Such dependency on others, family, friends or professional, can cause you shame even wound your sense of dignity. You can feel helpless or useless and even infantile. Yet, this wounding of pride may be exactly what God intends. By grace, your humiliation matures, by acceptance of mortality, and you can become humble. Like the Lord Jesus on the cross, one can be totally exposed and vulnerable. He surrendered to this deplorable state for the sake of love. Your own succumbing to weakness and neediness can be an occasion for love as you let yourself be served and loved by others. Where there is such charity, God himself is there.
A concluding thought from Saint Ignatius of Loyola We should not fix our desires on health or sickness, wealth or poverty, success or failure, a long life or short one. For everything has the potential of calling forth in us a deeper response to our life in God. Our only desire and our one choice should be this: I want and I choose what better leads to the deepening of God's life in me.
I‘m excited to tell all of you about our trip to North Carolina last month for YOUTH QUAKE 2010. This is the beginning of a great Youth Group here at St. Anne’s!
We began our journey at 7:00am on Friday, drove down Rt. 81, through the foot hills of the Appalachian and Blue Ridge Mountains. I’ve never seen so many farms; cows, horses, goats on the snow capped hillsides. During our last stopped at Chic Filet in North Carolina, we met a lot of teenagers going to Youth Quake; we knew we were finally getting close. Someone said something funny and we laughed almost all of the rest of the way. We arrived around 7:00pm safely, thanks to your prayers and Kevin’s driving skill. We were able to check out our rooms, which were nice, and had time to stretch before the first session began at 8:00pm. We heard the band: “Unhindered”, two comedians: Lightning and Thunder, and then listened to Jonathan Hansen’s opening message He talked about the Holy Spirit and what it means to be redeemed. The next morning we all had breakfast together in the cafeteria. The facility at Ridgecrest is really nice: picture a small college campus surrounded by trees and mountains. The kids said they really liked the presentation at the morning session: “Your Identity in Christ” and some entertainment. After lunch there was a very conservative point of view presented from one speaker which prompted some great discussion about what we believe. After that we were ready for some dodge ball! While we waited for the game to begin there was an opportunity to speak with and take pictures with Patrick, the lead guitar player from the band. We had a great time playing dodge ball and meeting some of the other youth groups from the area. Most of the other youth groups were from NC, FLA and GA, but they were very friendly to us Yankees. On Saturday night we returned to the auditorium where the band played again and watched some interpretive dance. Sunday morning, Fr. Alan Hansen held a huge Episcopalian church service in the auditorium, and we felt right at home. The band played again – they were great. Just before leaving, we stopped at the coffee shop for coffee and smoothies. The kids were all together hanging out and playing checkers: they didn’t seem to want to leave.
We were blessed and lucky for such good weather in the middle of January. Kevin guided us expertly through the rain and fog on the long way home and we are very grateful to him for that. The best part of the trip for me was watching our kids interact. You can be very proud of their behavior; young ladies and gentleman. They truly acted like brothers and sisters in Christ. I feel very fortunate for the opportunity to get to know all of them and Betty and Kevin better.
A trip like this creates a bond, memories we’ll share, and friendships if you’re lucky. I think it was more than luck, I believe that the Holy Spirit was definitely involved. I want to thank Betty Carleo and Kevin Dick for chaperoning, to Daniel Cristinzio, Kurt Dick, Mackenzie Duffy, Kyle Schada , and Amy Vera for making this possible, and to all of you at St. Anne’s for supporting us. Check out the link for the pictures on St. Anne’s website.
SHROVE TUESDAY PANCAKE SUPPER TUESDAY FEBRUARY 16TH - We’re hoping to see all of the Jr. and Sr. High School students to help prepare and serve at the pancake supper. Chandler Johnson will be cooking again, and it’s always a great event.
I know I sound like a broken record but…..We are always looking for a few more voices. Full Time, Part Time, doesn’t matter. In this age of multi-tasking we know that you may have other responsibilities so we are happy to have you join us when you can. With the Lenten and Holy Week schedules coming up, we have a number of services for which to provide music and would definitely appreciate the help.
If you like to sing and have never done it with an organized group, no problem. We’ll make the transition fun and enjoyable. Please consider offering your time and talents through the Choir at Saint Anne’s.
