Brothers and Sisters,
Grace and peace be with you all! I am sure you will agree with me that we are living in interesting times! I don't think there is any place on this blessed earth, where the effects of the COVID 19 pandemic are not being felt and where people are not engaging new ways of being that challenge what they would usually call routine. Only this morning I heard from a friend in Botswana, who just wanted to check in with me, to ascertain how we on this side of the globe were faring. No place...no one, is exempt from the wrath of this pandemic but even so...and of this we must be careful to take note...no one is exempt from God's loving presence and tender mercy!
As ministers of the Good News (Gospel), you and I are being called in this time and season, not only to cry out to God on behalf of all the suffering and those who are constantly placing themselves at risk to serve in the health and essential services; we must also cry out to him for a fresh outpouring of his Spirit, that we may without fear, make our way to Galilee (Mark 16:7), knowing that he has gone ahead and will meet us there. Yes brothers and sisters, this is not just a time to plead for help; this is an opportune time to seek deeper intimacy with God, for only by such intimacy, will we be able with joyful anticipation, walk the path he has asked us to take.
In his reflections for today, Richard Rhor noted that "The genius of Jesus' teaching is that God uses tragedy, suffering, pain, betrayal and death itself, not to wound or punish us but to bring us to a larger identity.'
Understanding and hence embracing that larger identity I daresay, is inextricably linked to a spirituality that has the cross at its core; one in which surrender is a joy-filled response to the sacrifice Jesus made; so Rhor continues...
"Unless the single grain of wheat loses its shell, it remains a single grain (see John 12:24). The shell must first crack for the expanded growth to happen. In such a divine economy, everything can be transmuted, everything can be used and nothing is wasted."
In light of the above, I am inviting you to join me in a study of the book of Acts of the Apostles. There is no doubt that God is, as a consequence of and in the midst of the present challenges, calling us to a New Normal. To fully comprehend the part we each must play in its fulfillment, we must do as our spiritual ancestors in the Early Church did, during the post resurrection period. We must...
- acknowledge that as the body of Christ, we ought to engage the same activities that characterized Jesus' life and ministry.
- under-gird our individual lives and by extension the whole body, with prayer. This spiritual discipline must characterize our lives, singularly and together. In an intentional way, we must devote ourselves to prayer, as the foundation of our life and growth.
- allow the Holy Spirit free reign in our lives and so cause the body...the Church, to become the central point of divine activity in which charismatic leaders are nurtured, nourished and formed for the further work of ministry towards which we will be directed.
Consequent on the foregoing, I believe engaging a study of the Acts of the Apostles in an intentional way will help us experience in renewing ways, how the Early Church responded, in a time that was chaotic and different to say the least; a time however, in which their active waiting, as they were commanded by Jesus to be, resulted in their being imbued with power from on high, to take the message of God's love from Galilee to the ends of the earth.
I will not suggest a particular way to engage the study except to ask that we do so in an intentional way each day and more especially, that we share, in this space or in our What'sApp chat, what movements of the Spirit...what insights we are receiving. You will note that during this Easter season, the Revised Common Lectionary will be guiding us through sections of the Acts of the Apostles.
So my dear ones, I hope and pray that you and your family members will remain safe and well; that we will continue to adhere to the health and safety protocols issued by our local authorities; that we will continue to be of help and assistance, as much as possible, to those in need; that we will keep in heart and mind the fact that darkness always precedes dawn. We are at the dawn of a new day, in and by the grace of Almighty God. He has gone ahead to prepare the way and as such...
All is well.
Blessed love,
Grace+
(Edited by System Administrator - original submission Tuesday, 14 April 2020, 2:34 PM)