Rectors Reflections January 2005

For Christians, every day is a New Year’s Day, an opportunity to start over, with a clean slate, as we attempt to live more and more fully into the “holiness” and “wholeness” which we are promised in our baptism. But it is not about making “resolutions”; it is about learning to ask for and accept God’s grace into our lives which forms the basis for real change and Christian spiritual growth.

In the book “Miracle in Darien ” by Bob Slosser, is a prayer written by Father Terry Fullam. As my Christmas and New Year’s gift to you, I would like to share my version of this prayer as a prayer for Saint John’s , and I would ask that you pray this prayer at least once a week, if not daily, for the next year.

Lord Jesus, we pray that you will somehow give us ears to hear, hearts to love, and wills devoted to serve; that in the days to come this congregation may be known, not for our glory, but for thine alone – a congregation of people who know the Lord and a congregation of people who serve the Lord by serving others; that this place may be an oasis, a place where people come to find out about you, where lives are straightened out and made whole, where people find the peace that passes understanding, and where God’s love excludes no one. Give us, we pray, a heart to desire these things above all else. We pray through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

On January 9, we will be participating in the most ancient of Christian rites, which has even deeper roots in ancient Judaism, the washing away of all that separates us from God. It is the Sacrament of Baptism, and as the Body of Christ we will be welcoming some new members into our communion and fellowship. The candidates, or their parents and sponsors on their behalf, will be asked to renounce the forces of darkness and evil, and to claim the saving power of Jesus Christ. We the congregation will also be asked to renew our baptismal vows. This includes the statement of faith known as the Apostles’ Creed – trusting in One God who reveals the Divine Self in three persons: the Father or Creator, the Son or the Incarnate Redeemer, and the Spirit or the Sanctifier (the energy of God which makes all things holy). We are then asked five questions, which you can find on pages 304-305 in the Book of Common Prayer. These are foundational to our Baptismal faith and life, and even though the Holy Spirit is not mentioned by name in the questions, each answer assumes the Spirit’s presence as we say, “I will, with God’s help.” I invite you to spend some time reflecting and meditating on those questions and your response.

Yet what does it mean to be baptized into the Body of Christ? First, it does not mean that God does not love us until we are baptized. All people are God’s children, and beloved by God. Nor does baptism mean that we Christians have made it into the heavenly life boat, and every one else will drown in the sea of hell. Rather, Christian Baptism is more like conscription. We are drafted into the army of God’s servants, adopted into God’s immediate family, with a just claim on the family’s wealth and resources and the family name of Christian. Then we are commissioned to bring the Good News of a God who makes up the difference between our failures and God’s perfect love. We are commissioned to do this through the actions of our lives, and not just the words of our mouths or the thoughts of our hearts. This is a big order for all of us, and so there we are – back to needing the power of the Holy Spirit to accomplish what would be an impossible task without God’s help.

My prayer for all of us this year of 2005, is that “with God’s help” we will be able to live into the prayer which was originally shared by Terry Fullam, and that it will become our prayer too. May God grant me wisdom as your rector to provide holy and wholesome leadership, and may we all find healing and new joy as we seek to serve the One in whose name we pray, our Lord Jesus Christ. And, hopefully, the people say “Amen.”