Last Sunday Before Lent

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
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Welcome to worship as we celebrate this last Sunday before Lent begins.; a commemoration of the Transfiguration. Peter’s response to Jesus being transfigured with Moses and Elijah (great prophets of the even by then distant past) was the desire to make three dwellings for them i.e. to bask and remain in this moment of glory. What follows after this gospel however, is a coming down off the mountain. Immediately then, on the following day Jesus met amongst a crowd and a child in need of healing, an argument about who was the greatest followed amongst the disciples and Jesus sets his face to Jerusalem. Very down to earth staff. This is so much like everyday life. We can have the most amazing experiences on day and then brought back down to a stark reality the next. ‘Such is life.’ This is where having lives grounded in faith (imperfect as it may seem) and prayerfulness come to the fore. One of the first things I did following my sister calling me about my dad’s death (we were still on the way to Armidale) was to pause and pray with my family. To me the promise of transfiguration is that God is not only to be found on the mountain, but also in lowest and roughest places and times of our lives. Christ’s journey to the cross is also a great reminder of this. This week will begin the season of Lent. May this coming time of reflection help us to find those spaces, whether on the mountain-top or down near the gutter to recognise the God who in Christ loves us and is with us.

May we journey well with Christ this week.
Fr Ian.