Happy New Year!
Luke 21:25-36
We are today standing at the very beginning of a new year, in the Christian year, the first Sunday in Advent is the beginning of the year! So Happy New Year everybody!In Advent, this Sunday has traditionally been the Sunday of Hope, in our preparations for Christmas. Our reading are talking about our final hope, our hope in Jesus coming again, and ushering in the Kingdom of God in all its fullness.
As this is the very first Sunday of the year, we need to look ahead, ahead to Christmas when we remember Jesus coming to earth, but as well we look ahead, to Easter, when we remember that Jesus died and rose for each of us, and further on, as our readings remind us, to a time when Jesus will return.
What does this mean for us? Jesus warns us to be prepared, to live in expectation, to live expecting that he might show up at any time. And he says more than that to…he says to "Stand up, and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near." This means to have courage, and hope, and I think that this means that we need to be intentional as we look forward into the New Year.
I suppose I could put this a bit differently…What do we hope for? What are our churches New Year's resolutions this first Sunday in Advent?
One bit of good news, is that we don't have to make resolutions like: we will visit our great Aunt Bessie more often, or that we'll lose those ten pounds as a church…
So what about some of our hopes for our life together as Christians?…not to say that it's not important to think about how each of us, as individuals, prepare for the New Year and Christmas, but we do need to think together about our life as a Christian community too.
I can think about several things that we have great hopes for together…for one, that the new Sunday School in the parish takes off, that we can reach all sorts of children this winter, and teach them about the good news that is Jesus,. Of course if we have a dream, if we want to see it through to reality we need to think about what each of us needs to do to support this vision. We should all ask ourselves, what do we need to do to help to reach children in our parish…who do I know that I could tell about the Sunday School? How could I help? And of course, even though the location is in Portland, it's not only Portland people that are involved. I hope that if there are children in the area, whatever the church, they would feel able to come and join in. And St Peter's and Holy Trinity have already helped by setting it up so that the kids can have a regular time. Way to go! I am proud of this parish, that it was willing to have it a bit harder in some ways, so that this outreach will have the best chance. But the job is only beginning, so if any of you can think of other ways that you can support this new thing, lets get at it!
What about other things we are resolved to do this year? The diocese has talked a lot about disciple making churches, and the search committee talked about how the aim of the church is to support this…how are we to be disciple making this year?
A disciple is simply a follower of Jesus, a student in Jesus' school.. following Jesus is about being transformed by Jesus, and in response to this, with the spirit's help, transforming the world around us. We are truly meant to gather here to be strengthened and empowered to go out to change the world!
So how does our church hope to help each of us, and outsiders too, become better followers? We are blessed by having three beautiful little churches to gather together in - how are we going to use them, this year to reach out to others?
One of the things that I hope we can do over the year is strengthen the small groups that meet. When I was working in engineering I sometimes had trouble making the time that I needed to get together with fellow Christians, you know, to go to a bible study, or whatever. But I found that when I did make the time, it was very important to my growth as a Christian. Our mission as a church is to gather as groups of friends, so that we can strengthen each other as we decide on all the little, as well as the big things in life. … alone we just don't end up living that way do we ....at least not very often. It is possible though. One thing that really helps is when you sit down with your best buddy to talk about what to do, about whatever, and he or she says, perhaps among other things, like to smarten up or straighten out,…where is God in all of this? We need to be there for each other. We need to be there in a way that is so much more than meeting each Sunday morning. Our Sunday morning worship, and our bible studies and home groups for that matter, are meant to be a starting place…a starting place to grow friendships and close relationships that help each of us live as we are being called to.
You know all this talk about small groups and gathering together as friends - family really - can leave out another part of what we are called to be as a church. We are called to reach out too.
Some of our neighbors don't know that there is meaning in life, more than just making the most money, gathering the most toys before you die. They don't know or care that partying until you drop really does end --- in dropping! More importantly, they don't know that there is a peace and joy in knowing and following Jesus, that is beyond everything that anything, or anybody else, can offer.
We are called to reach out to others, to tell them by our words and our actions. But joining - or even visiting in a close knit community can be hard. How can we be close knit, and open and inviting to others at the same time?
There is an answer…A church community can be soft on the edges, with a really solid core. So when people are visiting, they don't feel like it's hard to be a part of the group. They feel welcomed and accepted. They notice that we care, and that we have fun together. But as you get more into it, you find that there is a solid center…that as you get to know more and more about following Jesus, the community is there to help them understand and live in the way that God is calling.
As we go our separate ways this week, let us spend some time thinking about how our community will answer Jesus call in the coming weeks and year. How we will truly engage and help with all the new, and old things, we are doing as a church. And how we can grow as a community, growing closer together, and growing to become more open at the same time.
Amen
©2003 Steve E. Timpson
(613) 272-2360
P.O. Box 69
2764 Highway 15, Portland, Ontario
stimpson@ontario.anglican.ca