Holy Communion Anglican Church
East Greenwich, RI – Standing Firm on Biblical Truth and Christian Tradition
Our circumstances are constantly changing, but our hope in the Lord Jesus Christ is constant, rooted in the promise of the God with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. This is why if we limit our gratitude to that which is shallow, such as our possessions or our own personal accomplishments, then we will quickly be uprooted when the storms of life hit us.
Disquietude is not a word we hear every day. It refers to a state of anxiety or uneasiness. Understood this way, we pray for eyes of Faith to behold the Transfigured Christ, in light eternal, to transport us from the anxieties and trials of our daily lives, the darkness of our temporal world.
Beloved, the victory that Christ won over sin has given us greater blessings than those which sin had taken away from us. Let Lent be a reminder to us that there is a much higher purpose that exists beyond our mortal pain, as we march on to the joy of our Easter Vigil in this life, and eternal reward in the next. O happy fault!
We may not be able to see all which God is doing to redeem our present difficulties, but we can see His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, standing before us, ready to sustain us, and asking, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” My dear brothers and sisters, we have seen Him; He is here, and He is able to keep us from falling and bring us to his glorious presence, without fault and with great joy. May we respond like the man born blind, saying, “Lord, I believe.”
The Incarnation – the Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ – shall for all all-time illuminate the darkness that inevitably surrounds our world and our hearts with its light — and bring hope and joy to the faithful Christian soul.
As with the Israelites, the world where we once worshipped no longer exists. The way forward is only through the wilderness, through the desert. And God will make a highway and a river to lead us, but it is our responsibility to follow him and not go astray. Thus, it is not about your way or my way, but about God’s way. May Holy Communion Anglican Church in 2022 and beyond be faithful to follow God’s way, wherever it may lead.
Not only is Christ our hope, but He is also our comfort. In His flesh, Christ understands every difficulty and affliction we face in our daily lives. Christmas reminds us there is no problem we face that our God does not understand, nor does He let us face it alone.
Beloved, the darkness we see and hear all around us will not soon (if ever) dissipate, and yet there is a pure light shining into the darkness right now. At a time when the depths of depravity to which humanity can fall are so dramatically on display, the radiance of the grace filled humanity of Saint Mary the Virgin shines out even more magnificently, cutting through the darkness of sin and offering a beacon of hope.