Pastor’s Message for May 2023

Greetings, Friends,

     Did you know that May 18^th is Ascension Day this year? Ascension Day is a day celebrating the ascension into heaven of Jesus forty days after his resurrection. The day has become a forgotten holiday over the centuries for a number of reasons. For one, it is between two of the more famous holidays of Easter and Pentecost. For another reason, it is always held on Thursday. Most of the time, the holiday passes by without even a mention in many churches. It doesn’t come with any change in liturgical colors, or a day off work, fancy decorations, greeting cards, or specially prepared foods. It comes and goes without much hoopla. Maybe that’s why it has become my favorite Christian holy day.

     We acknowledge the Ascension of Christ in the Apostles Creed, but that’s about all the attention we pay to the event. Jesus was here. He’s not anymore. Where did he go? Well, according to Acts, the Resurrected Jesus led his disciples to a hill and as he was teaching them he was taken from their sight up into the sky. After a moment, he disappears from their sight. Like a small child watching a balloon floating further and further away until it can no longer be seen, the disciples stand there gazing up into the heavens, hoping to catch one last glimpse. For me, the key portion of the story is the message of the angels who appear to talk to the disciples after Jesus is no longer in sight. “Quit staring off into space and go do what Jesus said to do!”

     Friends, it can be tempting to keep straining our eyes, looking upward to the heavens for a glimpse of Jesus. But to do that is to forget that Jesus has told us that he is present with us today. Every time we serve the poor and needy, the widow and the orphan, the least and the last, we see the face of Jesus. The Ascension serves as a reminder that while it can be tempting to stare into the heavens to await the return of Jesus, Jesus is inviting us to participate in the work he is already doing here on Earth. Where will you see Jesus today?

God loves you, and so do I,
Pastor Jim