Get Ready!

Welcome to Christ the King Sunday...

As we knowledge Christ the King, our faith enables us to see glimpses of the Kingdom of God in our midst. Regardless of the pressure and pain of whatever the world imposes upon us today, our finality is one of eternal life in God's Kingdom. Anything that we experience in the world (whether it is abundance or poverty) is merely an eye-blink compared to our ultimate life in Christ. The rulers of this world and whatever oppression or bondage we experience at the hand of sin have no ultimate claim upon us, because the Lord of Our Life, Christ the King has established his reign forever.

Today begins a week filled with a kaleidoscope of spiritual rhythms. Today we sing, pray and proclaim our praise and gratitude for the Lord of Life and Love. We bow down before the one who assures the final victory over all that oppresses the world...and who assures the ultimate outcome of life in faith: eternal life.

Then we have our National Day of Thanksgiving...a day of gratitude for all that we see before us in this life... for our home, family, friends, and for whatever resources we have that could be allocated for the greater good.

Then, some of us will be catapulted into a day of materialism (Black Friday)...we pray that as we go out and accomplish our goal of economic purchasing we will still serve as messengers of God's love and light. We will strive to be gentle of heart, mind and countenance in the midst of all sorts of energetic buyers who have not yet heard the Good News.

Then....we will enter our most precious season of spiritual preparation as we approach the First Sunday of Advent.

That's quite a spiritual dance,isn't it? And those are only the things I know are coming our way. As weeks often go, this week will also be filled with all sorts of unexpected twists and turns, blessings and challenges.

In the 1950 movie "All About Eve" Bette Davis said "Fasten your seatbelts, it's gonna be a bumpy ride!" at the beginning of a party when the complexity of people and relationships hinted that it would likely be a chaotic night. Not bad advice!

or.. as St. Paul has counselled...let's pray unceasingly and in all circumstances let's give thanks to our Lord!

Amen, Come Lord Jesus!