17 May 2012

As we draw near to the end of the "God’s Story" part of the Church Year, the important feast of Ascension offers some significant truths on which to build our life of following Christ. The challenge is to hold this event in the context of Jesus’ whole life and message – which makes it impossible to view it as a basis for a dualistic view of God, or a belief in God as somehow "separate" from creation. Rather, the image of human flesh and blood being integrated into the Godhead should leave us with the awesome realisation that God is more inextricably immersed and connected with creation than we could ever have dreamed!

May our meditations today draw us deeper into the mystery of incarnation and of the God who is intimately interconnected with God’s creation.

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20 May 2012

As the Easter season draws to a close, the final challenge of this part of the Lectionary, before turning to Pentecost, is for us to commit to Christlike holiness – which, as it turns out, is also a call to unity and community. For this task, we will certainly the empowerment of God’s Spirit that next week promises, but if we are willing to answer the call, our quest to live our connectedness will have deeply healing effects on our world.

May our worship connect us more deeply with God, with others and even with ourselves this week.

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27 May 2012

the power and significance of the Pentecost celebration is impossible to overstate, and this year the readings really reveal how far this gift of God’s Spirit reaches. Pentecost is not just about a few individuals receiving a euphoric experience. Rather, the outpouring of God’s Spirit reveals a whole new order for the entire cosmos!

May our celebration this year empower us and open us to find our place in the glorious, God-sustained unity of creation.

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03 June 2012

Trinity Sunday is the only week in the year when the focus of our worship is a doctrine. This year, though, the readings move the Trinitarian theme beyond the realm of purely intellectual fascination, into a very practical response to the radical transformation that comes from an encounter with this Triune God.

May the mystery of the Trinity challenge and change us as we worship this week.

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