Wednesday, April 3, 2013
Dear Sisters and
Brothers,
Happy
Easter!
The Great Fifty Days of
Easter began last Sunday and continues through the Day of Pentecost. Among the
Sunday readings for Eastertide you will be hearing selections from
The Acts of the Apostles and from The
Revelation to John.
It probably comes as no
surprise to you that these readings represent more than a haphazard choice by
the lectionary committee. On the contrary, these biblical books teach us that
the resurrection is at once about today and about eternity.
The Acts of the
Apostles traces the remarkable growth of the earliest Church.
It recounts the perils and power of following Jesus right here on earth. The
Holy Spirit creates a new kind of community and transforms individual lives.
Love, faith, and hope break out in the unlikeliest places.
All of this are the
shockwaves of the resurrection. And those same shockwaves are still rolling
through our lives today. Reflect on these lessons from
Acts as a vision of what we can be together in Western
Louisiana today.
Revelation
reminds us that our ministries today take place within an eternal framework. The
Lord feeds us each Sunday with his Body and Blood to nourish us for service in
the world. He sends us out to feed the hungry, shelter the homeless, visit the
prisoner, tend the sick, and defend the weak. We live every day with the desire
for God's reign on earth as it is in heaven.
Revelation
reminds us that God-and only God-will actually bring in the kingdom. Our good
works-motivated and empowered by the Holy Spirit-provide a sign that God is at
work, and one day his work will be complete. Jesus feeds and sends us to do the
good we can do in anticipation that, when he comes again, his Kingdom will be
perfectly established.
Being resurrection
people means that we live in love, peace, and joy today and anticipate with
confidence that the best is yet to come.
In Christ's
Love,
The Rt. Rev. Jacob W.
Owensby, PhD, DD
The Diocese of Western
Louisiana
P. O. Box 2031,
Alexandria, LA 71309
318-442-1304
bishopjake@diocesewla.org
http://pelicananglican.blogspot.com
https://soundcloud.com/jake-owensby