Newsletter

December 2021/January 2022 Newsletter

Advent is upon us – the season when we anticipate the coming of Christ and prepare our hearts to receive Him. I encourage us to actively seek Christ this year. Those who seek Jesus will find Him. We’ll find Him in those people we love. We’ll also find Him in those people we don’t know or dislike because Christ is in all persons.

We’ll find Jesus as we give thanks for the blessings we have – such as health, life, and food. Even if our health and vitality are less than perfect, they are indeed a gift. Whenever I am tempted to feel shortchanged about having a less ideal life or health than another, I remember the example of a priest who was instrumental in my becoming a priest myself. She was an excellent priest who had served as an associate for about a decade at one of the churches I attended. The senior priest was challenging to work with and devalued her contributions at every opportunity. Finally, the senior priest retired, and the church asked the bishop to take the unorthodox step of appointing her the rector, and the bishop did so. After years, she finally was at the helm of this church and free of her boss's constraints.

Unfortunately, within a short time, she contracted an unusual disease that disabled her and forced early retirement in her 50s. I was certainly disappointed, and I can’t imagine how disappointed she might have felt. Yet, rather than complaining, she said how blessed she had been to have served in that wonderful church for so long. She found the grace of Christ even in this challenging time, and because she did, we saw God’s grace, too. I encourage us to look for the grace and love of Christ no matter what has happened to us this year. Because if we seek Jesus, we will find Jesus.

Randi+

December 2021/January 2022 Newsletter

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