On the Lord’s path….

Margaret writes: Earlier this month, I had the privilege of looking after my Grandson for a whole day.  He has just mastered walking and as I reflected on his baby steps, I was reminded of the steps we have already taken to awaken our sleeping giant.  As we now take our next step, we are reminded in Proverbs 3:5-6 that if we trust in the Lord with all our heart and lean not on our own understanding; in all our ways submit to Him, and He will make our paths straight.  The above photo reminded me of a local hill which I have climbed a number of times as you think you have reached the summit around 20 times before you actually make it!

I believe we are actually on His path and that we are continuing to nurture and plant seeds which will grow to maturity. Recently I was deeply encouraged by the Archbishop Oscar Romero Prayer.

A Step Along the Way

It helps, now and then, to step back and take a long view.
The Kingdom is not only beyond our efforts, it is even beyond our vision.
We accomplish in our lifetime only a tiny fraction of the magnificent enterprise that is God’s work.
Nothing we do is complete, which is a way of saying that the Kingdom always lies beyond us.
No statement says all that could be said.
No prayer fully expresses our faith.
No confession brings perfection.
No pastoral visit brings wholeness.
No program accomplishes the Church’s mission.
No set of goals and objectives includes everything.

This is what we are about.
We plant the seeds that one day will grow.
We water seeds already planted, knowing that they hold future promise.
We lay foundations that will need further development.
We provide yeast that produces far beyond our capabilities.
We cannot do everything, and there is a sense of liberation in realising that.
This enables us to do something, and to do it very well.
It may be incomplete, but it is a beginning, a step along the way, an opportunity for the Lord’s grace to enter and do the rest.
We may never see the end results, but that is the difference between the master builder and the worker.
We are workers, not master builders; ministers, not messiahs.
We are prophets of a future not our own.  Amen