Fr. Jordan Easley - January 29th
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The BEST Super Bowl
I love talking with people about football, especially as we approach Super Bowl XLVI (That’s Extra-Large-Very-Intense, for those of us who don’t read Roman numerals). It seems like everyone I talk to has allegiances, and even the folks who don’t care much about the sport have picked a team. And that’s just the PRE-game banter.
I love watching people watch football even more. When it comes to the actual game, that’s when you see folks get really excited. The Super Bowl’s the bet time to see the quietest, most serene people explode with energy like you never thought was possible. So this got me thinking: if watching (and talking about) football is this much fun for us, then how much more fun is watching US for the saints in heaven?
Hebrews chapters 11-12 tell us that we (God’s Church) are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses – folk like Abraham, Moses, Joshua, Rahab, Gideon, and David. Even though these people lived before Jesus Christ came to earth, they persevered in their faith in God, through hardship and childlessness and wandering and torture and death. “These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised, since God had planned something better for us.” [Hebrews 11:39-40}.
Today, however, we have the Church’s full revelation of Jesus. We don’t just have to “hope” that God’s promises are true; they have already come true! Jesus has come to earth, lived among us, died for our sins, risen from the dead, ascended to heave, and sent his Spirit to live inside of us. We have “something better” that the saints of old never had.
And right now, all the saints in heaven are excitedly watching as we run the race that they ran. Only because we have the full revelation of Jesus Christ, the race is WAY more exciting than when they ran it. They are cheering for you! Even more importantly, Jesus himself is excited for you as you run this race. He isn’t just watching you and cheering for you. He’s gone ahead of you. He’s made the way for you. He’s running beside you. He’s working inside of you. “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders…and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus the author and perfecter of our faith. [Hebrews 12:1,2].
Your Brother,
Jordan
The Rev. Jordan Easley
Assistant
Meeting
A meeting, according to the dictionary, is an act of coming together or assembly of persons for a purpose. It can also describe a body of persons or an assembly for religious worship, for example, Quakers meeting. I like this definition: a meeting is a place or point of contact, junction, union, as in the meeting of two roads or the meeting of the waters.
Today, immediately following the 10:30 service, St. Paul’s will have its Annual Parish Meeting. Let’s anticipate that we will be meeting with God and with one another as we finish the Year of Freedom, 2011, and enter into the fullness of 2012, the Year of Expansion.
At our meeting, we have much to celebrate and to discuss regarding what the Lord has done for us, is doing, and is about to do. As we meet, let us give Him thanks.
See you at the meeting,
Christopher
The Rev. Christopher P. Leighton
Rector
Anthony of the Desert
This Tuesday, Christians around the world remember the life of St. Anthony, who was the first well-known monk in the history of the Church. He was the first monk to create monasteries and the first monk to live in extreme seclusion from the world. Yet, for much of his life, Anthony was just a regular guy.
He was born in 251 A.D. into a wealthy Christian family in the city of Cooma in Egypt. He inherited a large fortune when his parents died, and he seemed content with his life until the age of 34. One day, however, as he was sitting in church listening to the Gospel lesson, he heard the words of Jesus to the rich young ruler: “If you want to be perfect, go, sell all your possessions and give it to the poor, then come and follow me.” Anthony heard these words as if the Lord was speaking directly to him. So he did exactly that. He sold everything, gave it to the poor, and then went to live in the desert of Egypt. There he lived in a cave for twenty years, praying, fasting, and living in God’s presence. After this, there were so many people who were drawn to his life in the desert, he was forced to create monasteries just to shepherd them all. He lived to the age 105.
Anthony was radical! Honestly, my first reaction to his life was to feel guilty. I asked myself, “Could I answer a call this extreme, if the Lord asked me? (Even if I weren’t happily married, I don’t think I could!) Then I remembered that the Lord never uses guilt to speak to us (Satan does a good enough job with that!) So, I took another look at St. Anthony’s life. I asked, “Lord, what places in my life have I not surrendered to you? What things have I allowed to become idols in my life? What is replacing you as the number one priority?”
Take some time this week to ask these questions of our Father in heaven. Give him time to respond. He will show you. He probably won’t call you to go live in the desert, but he will show you the things you need to surrender to him. Just ask long-lived Anthony; it’s a healthy habit.
Your brother,
Jordan
The Rev. Jordan Easley
Assistant