We have all grown up with different traditions, and ways of doing things. Some we are very comfortable with, some we are frankly nonchalant about because we have done them for so long, and some we disregard or dislike because they don’t fit into our “comfort zone”. I have been through a lot of these changes having gone from Southern Baptist churches, to word-of-faith churches, to Calvary, to Presbyterian churches, and now to Anglican tradition. There are many things I have had to “adjust” to from an IFB upbringing, and many things I have just plain left behind – and thankfully so. One thing that I am so thankful to God for, that I so often reflect on the beauty of, is the rich spirit of tradition, liturgy, and seriousness involved in the sacraments and Christian holidays by the Anglican church. It is amazing! Having not grown up with these customs, I certainly, as I said before, was not used to it. But now, it has become such a part of me, I can’t imagine going back!
As Christians, I think our tendency (and really, as humans in general) is for the every day to become so mundane for us. I know as a parent, I daily find myself struggling with this. It’s like sometimes, after the third mess to clean up in one hour, or the fifth fit thrown by a child, or the third meal needing to be made, the beauty and wonder of what I am doing is easily lost. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying you need to do a little dance every time you are scrubbing vomit out of the carpet with glee on your face. What I am saying though, is oftentimes I find myself having to stop and say: “Wow. These children are mine! All three of these beautiful gifts are mine! I get to nurture their so very tender, fragile, and often rebellious hearts today. They are my disciples, and I have the privilege of learning from them, teaching them, playing with them, loving them, feeding them, changing them, and being their mother. So many women cannot do this, even though they desire to. So many children are in homes where they are abused constantly, and left malnourished and unloved. Today, I have the opportunity to make these childrens’ lives not only joyous, but filled with the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ, that they may take what they have learned to the world around them, serve Christ’s people, and share His love.” My! When I think of it in those terms, how quickly the mundane becomes so beautiful, fun, exciting, and purposeful.
This is how I experience church now, thanks to the care and thought put into the Anglican tradition. Every Sunday is an opportunity to remember what I believe, give God the reverence due His name, and with the sacrament, see Christ and His forgiveness before me as a reminder every time. The vestments, candles, decorations, and order of the service serve to make everything that is often the John-3:16-spouted-off-without-much-thought-put-into-the-words Christianity, into a Christ-the-real-true-living-Person-present-with-us-and-worthy-of-adoration-and-praise-and-reverence Christianity.
And so, on this Good Friday, I am so thankful for the Mass I attended last night, the one I will God-willing attend tonight, Saturday night, and Sunday morning, all pointing me to those blessed reminders, and making it real before my eyes. And to my Lord Jesus Christ, of all the things I have to thank You for this day, the one I want to thank You the most for is this:
You take us from darkened eyes, to the understanding of your Word, hearts that long to love and obey You, and You give us opportunity time and again, to build our house upon sturdy ground. I think of the sins of my past, of which I am so ashamed, and so many of which I committed knowing full-well the consequences, and that I was cheapening Your grace, and yet, today, and every day, every hour, every second I have the opportunity, by Your grace, to repent, turn, and do that which is honoring in Your sight. Today, to me, You are the God of second, third, fourth – endless opportunities. I will not always obey perfectly, but by Your grace, I can always learn, repent, and call on You for all these things. Thank You for this moment, to make yesterday’s mistakes just that – yesterday’s.
`R
