From the Rector

Dear Friends in Christ,

Under tension our muscles ache when they need oxygen — when we need to breathe deeply and pause and give them a chance to recover.

I wonder how many of you are feeling a deep ache of some kind? How many of our spirits feel like they’re straining, holding an unseen weight? This week we watched a political debate that was all tension. The news about the pandemic is a weight we all carry daily. Many haven’t seen family or close friends for months. 

I think our souls are like our bodies — they need a break. They need rest. They need us to pause and breathe deeply. This is where prayer comes in. Prayer is that chance for us to exhale, to breathe out the stuff that’s cramping our hearts, and to breathe in what we need to live — the breath of the Spirit.

It is also how Christians get stronger. More resilient. More like Christ. Just as it is during rest that our muscles repair, rebuild, and grow stronger, it is through prayer that our souls grow more ready for the trials of the day.  

I find that once I’ve been lifting weights for a while, the weight is lighter. If I’ve been hiking a bit then the next hike feels a bit easier and I can enjoy it more. The same is true of our souls — the more we rest in the love of God in prayer the more we are ready to weather the trials, changes, and chances of life. The more we are able to situate our heart and mind in the cosmic promises of Christ the less jarring and upending the challenges of our days. 

If we don’t give our muscles a break, then they snap under the strain. They tear and we find ourselves with spasms and injuries. Our souls are the same. They fray, snap, and tear without the rest they desperately need. Prayer and rest are not a retreat or a sign of weakness — they are the things we need to come back ready to handle life, able to put things in perspective, and prepared to love, serve, forgive, teach, heal, and more.

If you find yourself tense, angry, or exhausted please don’t forget to pray. Don’t forget to rest. Let your heart and mind dwell in the presence of Christ for just a moment so that you may remember that he’s never left and never will.

Yours in Christ,

Fr Robert