Eastertide Week 2: Freedom

Because of Jesus' crucifixon and resurrection, we are new creations.  As Easter people the old is gone and the new has come.  We are free to be in this world and not of this world.

As Easter people we have free-will to choose however we have an advocate, the Holy Spirit who will intercede on our behalf and we have a Savior who will forgive us our sins.  God is a God of second, third, fourth and fifth etc. chances.

Freedom in Christ allows us to not be slaves to the hiearchies, the material goods and other trappings of this world.  God desires us to be who she has called us to be.  Each one of us is unique.  We are not living into our calling if we are copying someone else's relationship with God or we have become a nurse because that seems like something religious people should do.

In the scriptures, Jesus tells us to cast all of our burdens upon him and he will give us rest.  Like Max Lucado said in one of his books, put all of your burdens in the suitcase and let Jesus have the suitcase.  That is the tough part, experiencing true freedom as a disciple of Jesus the Christ means giving up control and moving on.

We are free to move on and not look back.  Lamentations says that God mercies are new every morning.  As Easter People let us claim our freedom and stop trying to old wine into new wineskins as the scripture says.  Let us allow our freedom in Christ to fill us with his love.  Let us allow this love to flow out in fresh creative ways to the world.  Our freedom is meant to draw others to Jesus not promote him like some program or list of rules that will get you to heaven.

"True encounter with Christ liberates something in us; a power we did not know we had,  a hope,  a capacity for life, resilence, an ability to bounce back when we thought we were completely defeated, a capacity to grown and change, a power of creative transformation." - Thomas Merton

Eastertide Week 1: Faithfulness

Faithfulness is one of the fruits of the spirit.  Practicing faithfulness means honoring our baptismal vows and keeping our commitment to being Jesus' disciple.  What does faithfulness look like in 2015 on the other side of the Resurrection?

I spent the Triduum and Easter with the sisters at St. Scholastica.  Being faithful for them means trusting God even in the midst of having to sell some of their property and make changes in how they do things.  It means showing up for prayer and demonstrating hospitality even when they don't feel like it.  Faithfulness for some means accepting a new job and moving to a place that they know nothing about.  For others, it is giving of their time to visit shut-ins and pray with the sick.

Faithfulness means listening to God's call and doing the best you can with what you have been given.  For me it means serving God as a wife, a spiritual director and a graduate student.  In all of these roles, I am called to do  my best and to show Christ's love in my daily tasks.

Yet giving God our best does not mean being perfect or checking off a list everyday; it means showing up and letting God work through us.  We do this  best by being willing and by asking God for strength each day.  In this we can take a lesson from the Sisters; while perhaps we cannot meet in a church for 30 minutes everyday at noon but we can pause throughout our day and dedicate our work to God.

Faithfulness is ongoing and for those of us who believe and live on the other side of the Resurrection; we are called to be committed to Jesus the Christ in all we do.  Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die;" (John 11:25. NIV).  The Resurrection transforms when we keep our promises and allow God to lead.