A blessed Ascension Day to all. On this day the Church marks the Ascension of Christ into heaven after forty days of post-Resurrection appearances to his beloved followers.
On Ascension Day we mark the reality that the presence of the resurrected and ascended Christ is with us always and everywhere--in ways that were impossible when Jesus the Christ was confined in human form.
In ten days, on the Day of Pentecost, we will mark the coming of the Holy Spirit in power to stay.
What should happen in these ten days between Ascension and Pentecost?
On Sunday, May 12 we will hear from the Acts of the Apostles what the apostles did during those ten days. They didn't do exactly as Jesus had instructed. There's a surprise! You can read ahead: Acts 1:15-26.
We who follow Jesus are to follow his example always. Sometimes the apostles get it right. In those cases, we can be confident in following their examples also. Sometimes the apostles get it wrong. And in those cases, we do well not to follow their examples. Sadly, frustratingly, we probably follow the apostles' examples more frequently when they didn't get it quite right.
The apostles often exhibit an action bias, as do we. Sometimes we are called to take counsel, discern, dream, and resist acting too quickly. We are called to respond not to react. To live the difference between responding and reacting takes wisdom and patience and care. It requires trust as well.
As we continue to affirm along with Pierre Teilhard de Chardin "the slow work of God," I am reading Cal Newport's newest book, Slow Productivity: The Lost Art of Accomplishment without Burnout. I commend it to your reading as well.
We are coming up on the third anniversary of my tenure as rector of St Paul's. We have accomplished a great deal together. There is much, much more to do. And we have a number of important decisions before us as priest and people.
As we walk this road of ongoing discernment together, please give thought to your part in the work ahead. It will require more patience, more prayer, more wisdom, more energy, and more money. What is the Holy Spirit asking you to contribute?
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