All Saints Anglican Cathedral Edmonton

When I was a Child...

When I was a child and teenager, one of my favorite times of year was the beginning of September. This may seem strange to some, but I always looked forward to going back to school. Two things loomed large in that: being back with my friends in the familiar day to day pattern, and the expectation of learning new things. I still get fleeting moments of that when September rolls around in our life in the Church, in part, because it reminds me that Christian life bears some resemblance to that yearly pattern. On one hand we have the familiar patterns and cycles of the Church year, we start back in to "regular" schedules, people who have been away often return, and things seem to "settle in" to the usual pattern. On the other hand, there is always the potential and promise of something new. God is at work making us grow, drawing us deeper into our relationship with Jesus and with his people in our community of faith.

Both sides of that equation are important for us in our journey of faith, both as a community and as individuals. It can sometimes be easier to enjoy the comfort and warmth of the familiar, but when we end up focused on that alone we can begin to stagnate. An image that might illustrate this would be sitting in a sailboat with the sail packed under the seat. The wind of the Holy Spirit cannot take us where God wills, when we are not willing to move. On the other hand novelty is an equally enticing mistake. The constant pursuit of new things can be like a gardener planting seeds and then pulling up the seedlings to plant more seeds before the old had a chance to take root, grow and bear fruit. Another image might be trying to build houses without foundations, or designing airplanes without reference to the laws of aerodynamics.

We are gifted with the record of God's revelation in Christ that we have in the scriptures. We are also gifted with a rich tradition in teaching and worship. We are gifted with friends, sisters and brothers in Christ. All of these have the warmth and comfort of the familiar. All of these are the roots and soil in which we stand firm and from which we grow. We are also gifted with God's Holy Spirit; God's living and personal presence breathing, moving, changing and transforming us until we do the will and work of Christ and live his presence in the world. When we are true to both of these necessary ways of seeing and being, then we find that they are not in competition, but like left and right hands working together. God is at work in both, building us up in love.

September can be a busy time, but it is also an important time to attend to both the old and new ways that God is at work in our lives.

"I pray that, according to the riches of his glory, he may grant that you may be strengthened in your inner being with power through his Spirit, and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being rooted and grounded in love." (Ephesians 4:16,17)