Pastor's Spiritual Reflections

By Fr. Leo Schneider (5/13/2007)

Dear People of Holy Name,

Transition always brings with it a tug between the past and the future. It is hard to leave what is familiar, like leaving for college, but it is also exciting to venture out into a whole new world of possibility. In the Gospel Jesus extends his peace to his disciples and prepares them for his Ascension into heaven. Things are not going to be the same for them, Jesus will not be physically present with them any more, but his Spirit will be with them to guide them and teach them, reminding them of everything he has taught them.

Growth and continual transformation are synonymous. Only inert and dead things don’t move or change. To live is to change. With this in mind we can learn to embrace change, knowing the Lord is in the transformations. We may even come to feel excited that we are entering a world of new possibilities.

Sometimes we sell ourselves and God short and settle for less than we can be. Difficult circumstances and experiences in life can set us back and even rob us of energy for a while, energy we need to get back on track with our hopes and our dreams. God may seem absent from our lives, but God is here with his Holy Spirit, and can achieve in us what we can not achieve on our own.

Reaching our goals is something we do with the help of others. No one travels through this life and finds the fullness of life alone. We need the wisdom and guidance of those who have gone before us, and it is this knowledge we build upon to discover what was only an idea or a hope generations ago. To find mentors and counselors who can help us discern our path is a good thing, and so too is learning the steps to get to our goal one step at a time.

As Disciples of Christ our primary goal in life is to know the Lord. To know him is to live in his Holy Spirit, seeking our inner peace in drawing close to him in prayer and action. To live in Christ requires time alone with him. We need to sit with the Lord who did not come to condemn us but to be our friend. He helps us believe in ourselves when we are weak and heals our pains in his love.

The Spirit prays in us whenever we pray. To sit quietly and contemplate the goodness of God is living in God’s Spirit. It is in our prayer that we pour out our hearts to the Lord, the good and the bad, the disappointments and even the anger. We need to get it out and the Lord wants us to be able to be honest with him. Trust me, God can handle it. Then we can relax in his care and allow him to speak words of healing to our hearts.

As we move toward Pentecost it is good for us to pray to the Holy Spirit and learn to wait upon the God of all possibility in our lives. We often think of God as Father and as Son, but we do well to also contemplate God as Holy Spirit. That alone may be a change in our prayer life that will open new doors and lead us into a new future.

Let us pray for the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives that we may know the presence of God and his goodness in our lives.

May the Lord fill us all with his Spirit!

In Christ’s Spirit, Fr. Leo