Called to Life by the Holy Spirit

 

The season of Easter is drawing to a close as the great feast of Pentecost draws near. The feast celebrates the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in a special way. This feast through the outpouring of the Holy Spirit shows us that community and openness are valuable gifts. It is an invitation to new beginnings and to celebrate our inherent goodness.

In the letter to the Ephesians (1.17-19) we read: “I pray that God… give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know Jesus, so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you.” 

Each day the Spirit is present in our living, moving, and being. Each day the Spirit infuses us in our vocation and the way we carry ourselves in it. Each day the Spirit enables us to share, serve and create. Each day the Spirit awakens us to the depths that are stirring the soul. Each day the Spirit encourages us in our relationship with Christ, to allow the wisdom and revelation of God to penetrate our living and lead us into the fullness of life. Each day the Spirit asks us to utilize the eyes of the heart and listen well for we are enlightened by God, whether we can see it or not. Each day we are invited to know the hope which is ours, for in Christ hope is our daily blessing.

As the feast of Pentecost draws near and then as we live into the days and months after Pentecost let us ask ourselves:

How am I part of the community? 
How do I value others in community?

How open am I to the promptings of the Spirit?
What new beginning am I being asked to consider? 
How am I inviting the Holy Spirit into this new beginning?

Where is the Spirit calling me to live, move and be in new ways?
Are the eyes of my heart opened or closed? 
Can I trust enough that the Spirit is present if I allow them to be opened?

What signs of hope have I encountered in these weeks of Easter?
What is my prayer to the Holy Spirit?

Holy Spirit, 
enkindle in us the fire of your love,
stir up in us the valuable gifts you willing share with us,
so that we may continue to be vessels of all that is good
and in turn be a blessing to others.
Amen.

Pentecost is the Feast Day for the Franciscans of Canada. 
The Holy Spirit is our patron as we continue to preach the gospel in Canada. 
We humbly ask for your continued prayers and support.

Peace and All Good.

Photo Credit: Jon Tyson

Awakened to the Generous Peace of Christ

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. 

I do not give to you as the world gives. 

Do not let your hearts be troubled, 

and do not let them be afraid.” 

– John 14.27

“I do not give to you as the world gives.” This one little line echoes in my ears and I am grateful. I am grateful that the generosity and peace of Christ are beyond what I imagine and beyond the attempts that we try to establish. Our efforts in living a Christian life are always a desire to reflect Christ, which in itself is noble and worthy. Beyond our noble and worthy attempts and efforts I believe the true generosity and peace of Christ which is refining and purifying is woven into the ordinary. I believe that we catch glimpses of it in our daily lives. 

Where have you encountered the generosity and peace of Christ? 
On a walk? Watching the trees bud out? 

Pausing in prayer? 

Listening to a friend? 
At table? Reading scripture? Sipping tea? 

Making a pot of soup? In music? 

With a hug?

Our God comes to us in the ordinary so that we may begin to understand that the giving of God which is beyond our comprehension is indeed a daily encounter. One which leads to peace. One which allows us to let go of the troubles we so often let consume our hearts. One which reminds us that fear is not to be our ordinary rather peace hope, transformation and new life are our norms. 

Christ Risen is among us, offering God's peace and assuring us his Spirit continually awakens us to these blessings. Let us be attentive this week.

Echoes of the Good Shepherd

Who doesn't feel better, knowing there's someone there who cares for them?

-Siegfried Farnon, All Creatures Great and Small

All Creatures Great and Small is based on the true story of a young vet in England in the 1930s. I discovered the current television remake of this show on PBS (thank you PBS) a year ago and have enjoyed both seasons (with my Mom) so far. The simple and yet touching stories of community, relationships, creation, and of the characters moving beyond fears, expectations, and judgments have been like comfort food. 

The quote from Siegfried, the patriarch of the family, seems to echo the words of Jesus, the Good Shepherd in the gospel of John (10.27-30). There is great comfort in hearing a familiar voice, in being known and knowing we do not walk alone. Who doesn’t like to be cared for and known? This is the gift Christ offers us time and again. Over the course of the two seasons of All Creatures Great and Small, each of the characters has come to discover the gift of being cared for, being reassured by a loving voice, and also being challenged to grow and trust in the unity that makes them a family and community. It echoes the Good Shepherd present with us in our living and being, assuring us and caring for us.

Siegfried’s quote also reminds me of the encounter I have had in being a child. I have been privileged to have a Mom (and Grandmas) who have exuded care my whole life. They have been echoes of the Good Shepherd by lending their voice to life-giving words, encouragement to live in life-giving ways, and have shown me how to live in the Way, the Truth, and the Life which is promised to us. It is because of this that I have been able to live out my vocation and hopefully encourage others to live out theirs. As we honor mothers and those who are like mothers to us, I am very much aware of the gift of being cared for and the great sacrifice that takes, it is indeed an echo of Christ the Good Shepherd.

Photo Credit: Rod Long

The Abundance of a Resurrection Breakfast

If someone were to come up to me on the street to do a survey on scripture and ask me: “What is your favorite Easter gospel story?”

I would respond “John 21.1-19” – the post-resurrection breakfast on the beach. 

Why is this my favorite gospel story? There are three reasons which stand out for me as I reflect on this gospel this Easter Season:

1. Christ meets us in our ordinary routines.

2. Even if we return to familiar patterns Christ meets us there and calls us to new life again and again.

3. The hospitality of Christ is an abundance that leads to mission. 

In our ordinary living, Christ is here and present… there is no place that he can’t be, I believe that sometimes this can stun us. What do you mean Christ can meet me at the sink full of dishes, the lonely night on the couch, the walk through the park, or as I fold the laundry or mow the lawn? Well, if our Savior could meet Peter on the other side of the resurrection in his comfortable space of fishing, I think it is safe to say that he will meet us in our ordinary routines.

I have always been intrigued that Peter and this crew of disciples went fishing. Maybe to deal with the grief and shock, or maybe as a place to process the fact that Jesus had appeared to them alive at least two times before this. I know I have spaces that I like to be when I need to process and work through stuff; regular ordinary familiar spaces to me… just like Peter on the fishing boat. 

So, in the ordinary, whether broken or healed, seeking or centered, Christ meets us there and invites us to life. It is here in this invite to come and have breakfast with Jesus, something so familiar, that Peter is invited into new life. 

In this resurrection gospel – Jesus doesn’t say, “Hey guys, cooked you some fish after your long night of not catching any, come and get it whenever you get a chance.” No, rather, he invites, “Come and have breakfast” they gather, they sit down, and they enjoy a meal. I can only imagine, stories shared, laughter echoing off the lake, questions surfacing, uncertainty trying not to be noticed. Jesus doesn’t freak out on them and say, “guys… really… you went fishing, after all, I have shown you, after my resurrection, you went fishing.” No, he meets them in that moment and then invites them to be aware of the familiar patterns, the ordinary of life, and pay attention to that he is transforming that with new life – with the abundance of God’s goodness, mercy, and deep love.

When Jesus asks Peter three times if he loves him, it’s not about punishment or mockery, it is about depth. The depth of how abundant Christ’s love truly is. It is about this abundance of mercy which Christ pours into his life and then sends him forth… feed my lambs, feed my sheep. That invitation to Peter was not just for Peter, it is for all of us. 

What is the last thing Jesus says to Peter in this post-resurrection gospel? “Follow Me!” Those two words probably rang in Peter’s ears when he heard them at the breakfast on the beach, for they were the same two words in which Jesus first invited him to new life, some years earlier. “Follow Me!” Jesus was saying to him: “You followed me in preaching, teaching, and healing, you followed me to the cross, and even though you denied me, still I invite you to follow me in this new life, this transformed life that meets you in the ordinary and asks you to trust that the abundance of God does as Psalm 30 proclaims… “raise me up.”

Consider how this moment impacted Peter and transformed his life, for as we hear in the Acts of the Apostles (5.28-41) how the apostles were witnesses to Christ and rejoiced in being able to claim the name of Jesus. That can only happen from a transformed heart that focuses on the “wisdom, honour, blessing and glory” (Revelation 5) that is Christ meeting them in the ordinary moments of life and transforming them so that they and we also can hear Christ say, “come and follow me”

My dear friends, we are people of the resurrection. We have inherited new life and are called to live it out. Each new day we are invited to begin again, to encounter Christ and see where he is inviting us to dine with him and how he is calling us to break the fast, to be reminded that he dwells so close to us.

Jesus was a great host, including everyone always and extending invitation to even those who choose not to embrace his message of life. There is strength, vulnerability and freedom in sharing a meal with each other. We are reminded of this each time we gather at the Eucharistic table and hopefully each time we gather at our own tables… even if it is by ourselves. We are always invited to dine with our Risen Lord. The Eucharist is the steady invitation to join him again and again and be nourished for the new paths and new realities which are ours. Then the thrice questioned Peter about his love awakens in us the depth of how intimately Jesus desires to be in our lives. He does not see us by our weakness or sinfulness rather he sees us created in love, made of divine light with the capacity to love and make known his love as we feed his sheep. 

Peter and the disciples’ story intersect with my story and with yours, as our reality is transformed, our invitation to dine with the Bread of Life is real and our call to love is about life here and now not just on a beach by the Sea of Tiberias.

There is a quote at the front door of my parent's home. It is a German and Dutch proverb: “Hospitality is freedom and friendship for the guest.” Is this not the abundant hospitality of our triune God? That we are invited into this freedom and friendship each day as the beneficiaries of this hospitality is indeed a great gift in being people of the resurrection. It is the hospitality of Christ that says to us, “come and dine and come and follow me.”

Risen Lord

The gift of Your resurrection

is the abundance of our lives.

Thank You for being present

and for constantly calling us too more

because You love us more than we realize.

Risen Lord you are our all and you invite us to

encounter you again today.

Amen.

Photo credits: Paul Szewczyk and Clayton Holmes

Snapshot: Easter Hope

“Hope” - Dirk Hudson, Ireland dirkhudson.com Used with permission.

When life feels like it is in shambles,

when it feels broken, tattered, and torn,

when we feel perched on the edge

wondering what is next, 

if there is a tomorrow…

hope is always cradled within,

resting secure,

held by love,

held by the promise,

of new life.

Hope breaks free

from the limitations of life,

inviting us to rise up,

to be renewed,

for we walk with our Savior

into the resurrected life.

God of Easter,
your love never dies
leading us through the valley of death
into an authentic new life.

As we begin the festival of Easter
may our hearts know 
they are always cradled 
where hope lives
and that we too
rise to new life
for your love 
holds us secure 
forever.
Amen. Alleluia!

unknown artist – Sacred Heart Church, Red Deer

Reflections on “Hope”:

When I first saw the sculpture “Hope” in my friend’s office I was breathless. It struck a deep chord in me. 

The eggs were glistening, they felt warm and safe even if they were teetering on the ledge, amongst brokenness, rust, steel, and harsh conditions. My eyes immediately saw the broken pieces of the nest in the bottom of the container and I thought, “this is life, even in the brokenness, hope is here.” There is something about the nest that feels majestic and yet tattered – maybe another image for life. The container/box – although rusted and rough speaks of being given to its most, and yet has a warmth to it, not a tiredness. 

I can see the crown of thorns in the nest, and the broken pieces reminiscent of the blood of Christ. From the container/box holding the nest, I feel as if the nails that pierced the hands and feet of Christ have been cut. From here comes life – new life and hope.

The way the light cascaded across the eggs there was an invitation to be. To sit and gaze and be ready for them to hatch. To be present for this moment of transformation. It was only as I was processing all of this that my friend told me that this piece is called “Hope.” I paused, “well of course it is,” my heart said, “that is why I am drawn to it.” I live in hope; not an idealistic, fantasy illusion of well-being, rather in a hope that is beyond me yet lives within me. Hope that is gifted to me and yet also something I am able to gift. 

It felt like my heart was on display, cradled safely, being allowed to hatch open in truth, goodness, promise, freedom, and authenticity. This is where hope lives and how I try to embody it in my living, and encounter the Risen Christ. 

Life, it speaks to me of life and life is hope.

Easter Blessings

Snapshot 6: Holy Week – Encountering Christ in the Everyday

Love gazing on the loved

The loved gazing on Love

Mercy overflowing

Known in my anguish

A place of refuge

Hope restored

Strength

Freedom

Redeemed

 
 

God of Every Heartbeat,
your love is present in our living,
made known in the love of your Son.
 
The cross is our strength,
and the way which leads to life,
may we be more aware of this gift
in the encounters during this Holy Week.
Amen.
 
 

Photo Credit: Dmytro V.

(Lviv, Ukraine)

Snapshot 5: Not Condemned

As I rise up
in the morning light
the voice of God
catches my attention.

I am not condemned,
rather I am sent
to go in the way of life,
a new person,
my sinfulness left behind.

Scripture Inspiration: John 8.1-11

God of Love,

so often I feel caught up in my sinfulness,

and yet each time I feel trapped

you write on my heart:

“You are not condemned.”

May I carry this message into my living 

so as not to condemn others

rather to be an encounter of your mercy.

Amen.

Photo Credit: Melita F.

(Lake Ontario, Grimsby Lake Front)