Scripture: "Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that has been given you in Christ Jesus, for in every way you have been enriched in him, in speech and knowledge of every kind— just as the testimony of Christ has been strengthened among you— so that you are not lacking in any gift as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ. He will also strengthen you to the end, so that you may be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful, by whom you were called into the partnership of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord."
1 Corinthians 1: 3-9
Pics: Penny Hurley
Music: "He Shall Feed His Flock Like A Shepherd" from The Messiah
performed by San Antonio Messiah
Listen here: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=699056191027883
Message: The Shepherding of Hope
We know the rich history of our past, and the accompanying warm, comfortable, familiar feeling that enfolds us...we celebrated once again on Heritage Sunday. We reveled in the certainty of our unchanging long history.
While we hold this special time and known message in our hearts and minds, we can explore the depths of our spirits where the creative unknown lives.
The unknown that waits for us, just as every treasured act and celebration in our history was at one time unknown.
Let your faith and hope shepherd you to a place where compassion and incertitude meet.
"Scriptures do not offer rational certitude. They offer us something much better, an entirely different way of knowing: an intimate relationship, a dark journey, a path where we must discover for ourselves that grace, love, mercy, and forgiveness are absolutely necessary for survival in an uncertain world. You only need enough clarity to know how to live without certitude! Yes, we really are saved by faith. People who live in this way never stop growing, are not easily defeated, are wise and compassionate, and frankly, are fun to live with. They have a quiet and confident joy. Infantile religion insists on certainty every step of the way and thus is not very happy."
Fr. Richard Rohr
Advent [meaning “coming”], to the Church Fathers, was the right naming of the season when light and life are fading. They urged the faithful to set aside four weeks to fast, give, and pray—all ways to strip down, to let the bared soul recall what it knows beneath its fear of the dark, to know what Jesus called “the one thing necessary”: that there is One who is the source of all life, One who comes to be with us and in us, even, especially, in darkness and death. One who brings a new beginning. —Gayle Boss [1]
All Creation Waits: The Advent Mystery of New Beginnings