Page 1 - November 2019

Parish
A Message from Hale
s we near the end of the church year, now is a
Agood time to look back at our progress and look
forward to our future. Similar to how we evaluate our
progress in education, business, and personal lives at
the end of every calendar year, we should evaluate
our growth in faith.
The church year begins with “Advent” and runs
through “Christ the King Sunday” which falls this
year on November 24th. The church calendar year
takes us through Christ’s life as a child, his ministry,
passion and death, the coming Holy Spirit and the
early church. Christians begin the season of Advent
in expectation. Expectation may seem difficult as
we are already Christians and already know Jesus, so
how do we make it new? Well, first by understanding
that we don’t yet know all of Jesus. No matter how
close we are to our savior, we know we can get even
closer. Progress never stops.
I am not a runner, which may not come as a surprise
to many of you. Yet, last week I saw that the record
for a marathon was broken in a closed environment
with a time of 1:59:40. Again, this race was not for
competition, but it set a mark that was never thought
possible. Now that this time as been set, I assure
you that more and more athletes will draw nearer
and nearer to the two hour mark in future races. The
secret to their success is that they have a goal, and
seek to run better and better each year, never giving
up on their expectations of victory.
Paul speaks of running a race with expectation at the
end of his ministry and near the end of his life in a
letter to Timothy. He says he has run the good race,
has fought the good fight and his prize is the crown
of righteousness which God will give him on that day.
As I think of the past year, I ask myself: have I run
November 2019
Voice
Open hearts. Open minds. Open doors.
the race to the best of my ability?” As we look back
we can probably see a way to shave a few seconds
off our time, a figurative way of saying that we could
probably do better. This year I want to be thinking of
what I can do better for the kingdom.
If we are running the race that Paul speaks of, the
race of faith, what is the reason for our efforts? Most
of us are overachievers and want to win. The beauty
of our faith is that even if we don’t surpass everyone
else, we will still win because Christ overcomes our
shortfalls. What is the prize? Everyone wants at least
a participation t-shirt. Yet, the prize in the race of
Christ is eternal life and a crown of righteousness.
The presentation of the prize is promised to be
spectacular. If a golf champion donning the new
winner with a blazer at the Masters Tournament is
special, imagine how much more remarkable it is
that in our race Christ presents us with the reward.
Paul actually says that the Lord will give me on that
day and not only me but to all who have longed for
His appearing.
This year I want to live my life as if I am longing for
Christ’s appearing. I want Him to see that I have run
the good race, I have fought the good fight and I am
ready. We need to look back and see where we are in
our faith, and then set some goals for the new year.
Let’s run the good race together.
Blessings
Hale