The Rector's Annual Meeting Address

THE RECTOR’S ANNUAL MEETING REPORT
The Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany
January 31, 2010

PARISH NECROLOGY
On this date, January 31, 2010, being the fourth Sunday after the Epiphany of our Lord, I prayerfully open the 85th Annual Parish Meeting with a call to silence and to prayer.

Let us pray for those of our parish family who have gone to rest in Jesus over the past year. Let us pray:

O God of grace and glory, we remember before You this day our faithful departed: Romesh Algama, Richard Barr, Fr. William Belury, Archie Crow, Doug Dickerson, Ernest Knudsen, Alan McClellan, James Meyers, George Stuard, and Dennis Williamson. We thank You for giving them to us, their family and friends, to know and to love as companions on our earthly pilgrimage. They now have come to know the strength of Your presence and share in the fellowship of Your Saints. In Your boundless compassion, give us faith to see in death the gate of eternal life, so that in quiet confidence we may continue our course on earth, until, by Your call, we are reunited with those who have gone before; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Good morning!
The Church of Jesus Christ is indeed a wonderful and a sacred mystery. We are privileged by God to be found worthy to share in His glorious work at the level and depth that we do.  Among all the descriptions of the Church that could be used for an illustration, I want to turn to St. Paul’s statement from Ephesians 1:23.  Paul writes that the Church is... Christ’s Body, the completion [or the fullness] of Him who Himself completes [or fills] all things everywhere. Eph 1:23

The Church is Christ’s Body: Jesus is living in and through the Church just as He promised: “and behold, I am with you always, to the close of the age.” Matt 28:20

The Church is the fullness of Christ on earth… Jesus explains: “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father.” Jn 14:12

The Church enables creation to achieve its right and perfect end, which is to be a new creation in God and this is achieved by filling the universe with Jesus Christ.  This commentary by St. Paul on the mystery of the Church is a powerful reminder of our place within this great mystery and it’s an appropriate way to open our Annual Meeting.

St. Paul is pointing to Christ’s union with His Church and His deep love for her. Through the Church’s physical presence in the world and as a result of her worship and prayers our Lord is filling up “… the whole universe with His presence” (Eph 4:10b) extending to all creation the fruits of the Cross and the gift of Heaven. The Church eagerly waits for all of this to come to fruition (Rom 8:18-25) and she waits “…with patience.” (Rom 8:25b).

Can we be a patient people?
Patience here does not mean sitting still; rather it means active perseverance. The Greek means to not swerve from our deliberate purpose in mind but to remain loyal to faith [ie, to the “mind of Christ” 1Cor 2:16] and pray even at the high cost that calls for the greatest trials and sufferings.  Perseverance is what the parable of the vigilant steward is all about. Jesus said:

Be dressed in readiness, and keep your lamps burning. And be like those who are anticipating their master’s return from the wedding feast, so that they may immediately open the door to him when he comes and knocks. (Lk 12:35)

The word “anticipating” in this Parable means “to expect a promise to be fulfilled” and is often translated as “waiting for their master’s return.”  The Church is a community of faith that knows her Master and is joyfully waiting for His return in glory.

We know

1. He is always present under the elements of the Holy Communion. Christ gives us His Body and Blood so that “He may dwell in us and we in Him.” (BCP 1928p.81 and 1979 BCP p.336 and Jn 6:56 and 14:20);
2. Jesus does not refuse any one who seeks Him to know and to live His mind (Jn 6:37-40);
3. So... we remain loyal; our lamps are bright and getting brighter; we are growing grace-filled in holiness and we are calling others to join us in this life of grace; so we never stand still, but we keep moving forward in faith.

Let us not fool ourselves.  We are living in challenging times.
Having said all of this, yet we know that Christians are living in challenging times and even under death threats and persecutions. But the Church has always lived in such times. Being leaven and love in any culture at any time in history or even in the present day is a high calling. Of course we do expect things to be better. After all, for the last 2000 years Christianity has been much of the DNA of Western culture, and now Western society from Europe to North America is showing signs of permanent amnesia; forgetting its roots, its history, its identity.

Do you recall these words by Charles Dickens from his book, The Tale of Two Cities:

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to heaven, we were all going direct the other way…

So we could say that we are living through the worst of times; at least for orthodox Christians because the whole world seems like it’s being turned upside down and falling rapidly upon us!  Whichever way we turn to avoid fallout we don’t see a readymade way to go. How do you escape from this craziness? It’s easy to be convinced that it’s impossible to escape, so what many Christians do is to barter with the culture to find some peace with the world.  This kind of despair is what the Tempter is looking for; the reaction he wants from us.

But it’s also the best of times. It is the best because in such hours of challenge the Church’s moral courage has never been found stronger. History shows that when we face the darkness with the Light of Christ, His Light turns fears and worries into hope, earthbound eyes are turned upward to eternity, man finds himself, and his soul is nourished in the mercy of God.

What it takes is for Christians to not swerving from the purposes God has given us, rather it means to pray earnestly even if the cost means we must face the greatest trials and sufferings.  This call to bring God’s Light to a darkened world is why Christ has chosen the Church to distribute His grace to all. The Church carries deep within her memory truth and the experience of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ and His holy Ascension into Heaven. (2 Cor 4:10,11)

We know how the truth of Christ has changed the world for the better and it has changed people’s lives for good! The Church is an earthenware vessel, fragile and ever so inadequate. But the fountain of God’s grace is found within her frail reality.

Our heavenly Father has entrusted the dispensing of His grace to the weakness and fragility of human freedom! By way of the Church through her worship and prayers and sacraments and sacrifices the Holy Spirit reaches out to a sinful and broken world to unite all things to the Father through Jesus Christ (Eph 1:10).   So we are living in the best of times; because it is God’s time. Every effort we make, through everything we do, in our worship and prayers, even the worries we endure and the sacrifices of our time, talent, and treasure; everything God uses for one purpose and that is to connect to one more soul.

The power of Christian Eucharistic worship and prayer.
We must never forget what power lies in our worship and prayers. The word “liturgy” comes from the Greek meaning “the work of a people.” The Church’s primary duty and labor is to worship Almighty God: to love Him, to adore Him and to pray.

God can do so much through us for the salvation of many people when we free ourselves to adore Him in worship and in prayer.  We gather on Sunday morning to labor with God and with His angelic workforce for the furthering of His Kingdom. The result of our liturgy and prayers is that somewhere in some place in the world someone’s eyes have been opened, stubborn hearts have been softened, searching questions find right answers, life is blessed, and souls find peace.

Just think of what this all means. It means that God liberates and heals and restores as we worship and pray. This is a very good way to open our Annual Meeting, to be reminded that we are a prayerful community that faithfully worships the Lord.

Worship
St. John’s is a worshiping community. We are blessed to have Alan and Vivian Potts with us. Each year our adult choirs, children’s choir, bell choir, seasonal music, VBS music, and more continue to do so well. We also have a growing number of parishioners who are starting to play instruments and this is very impressive to see.

Just remember, there is always room for another adult voice, or a child’s voice, or a bell ringer. Our 9:00 am service can use additional voices in the choir. Maybe you play an instrument and you would like to share your gift at worship. Please speak with Alan.

Prayer
As a parish we are learning to pray in many different ways.

DOK

The Divine Mercy Chapter of the Daughters of the King is one such way. Rarely will a day go by that a prayer need is not passed among them or that a praise report is not shared when prayer has been answered. The Chapter meets most every month. If you are interested in becoming a Daughter I encourage you to speak with Sarah Stringer or one of the Daughters (look for the Daughters Cross) and consider joining their Discernment Classes.  Also, one of our Daughters, Julie Cosgrove, has published her first book on prayer, titled P.R.A.Y.I.N.G. It is available from Julie or from amazon.com. Julie is the retreat leader for the Diocesan DOK retreat to be held February 26-28th. Any woman of the Diocese is invited to attend the retreat.

Prayer Chain

Martha Anderson along with Mary Sue Coffman takes care of our prayer chain. This prayer information is public. You can call or email Martha or Mary Sue any time with a prayer request or ask to receive their email updates of prayer needs.

Lenten Program “Inviting God into your Life: A Practical Guide for Prayer.”

I encourage you to attend our Wednesday Lenten program which I have titled Inviting God into your Life: A Practical Guide for Prayer. That is actually the title of one of the books I will be using for the program.  The “practical guide” is actually the Ignatian Prayer method called “the Examen Prayer.” The program will be on Wednesdays at 7:00 pm February 24, March 3, 10, and 17. By the end these four weeks you will have learned how to put five steps to work that will help you listen more attentively for God’s voice; how to listen more carefully for when your own “inner voice” may be speaking; and how to review your day in light of God’s presence, and more. You will even have a prayer card that Diane has made to keep with you to lead you reflectively through each of the steps.  Join me in Lent!

First Fridays – the Holy Eucharist and Praying the Rosary

Some years ago a few parishioners asked me to teach them how to pray the rosary. At first there were only a few of us so we had the joy of meeting in homes once a month to do this. In no time, the Lord blessed this prayer group, and we grew to the size that we needed to start meeting in the Lady Chapel. On any given month we have had as many as 25 and as few as 12 or more.

We meet on the first Friday of each month at 7:00 pm. We conclude usually before 8:00 pm and for those who are able we go out for a simple dinner and fellowship.  Though the rosary is practiced among Roman Catholics, it’s a mistake to think that only Roman Catholics pray the rosary. Christians of all traditions have discovered the power and the peace that this prayer and meditation offers.  Join us and discover the peace and help this prayer can give you.

Closing
In closing, there are so many people to acknowledge for their tireless efforts and support of this ministry.

In particular I want to thank my wife Diane for her labor in the office and for her support in every way; and Fr. Jeff and his wife Becca, for their enthusiasm and for Jeff’s willingness to join our pastoral team; and Allan and Vivan Potts who labor to offer to God through music the best worship in Fort Worth; and Kristy Leaseburg and Georgette Lopez-Aguado and all their teachers and helpers who labor with our ministry to the children and youth; for Richard Moseley and Gail Kleinschmidt; for Becky Tredennick and Carrie McCoy; for Dorothy Gregory, Charissa Christopher and Kathy King, for their dedicated service and sacrifices throughout the year.

I appreciate all of you, and everyone;

God bless,

Fr. Klein