Recently I watched a show about the early pioneers. Those individuals and families who traveled westward in covered wagons in search of a new life in a new promised land. Their journeying would take them by way of long, rugged and dangerous paths including the California Trail, the Oregon Trail, the Mormon Trail, and by other routes. At times they were forced to leave behind items they could no longer carry, scattered along the way. And many had to leave behind family members and friends too – the ones who had lost their lives before journeys end. We hold these pioneers in high esteem since they not only speak to us of the nation's brave history but present to us a strong, rugged, individuality, a self-sufficiency and toughness that are a hallmark of the American spirit. Their experience of dirt, grit, blood, sweat, and tears were far from the luxuries of a kingly palace or hall.
As you may know I was born in England. You may not know though that my school was but two streets away from Buckingham Palace and it was not unusual for my friends and I to head over to the palace at lunch time. On occasion we would stumble upon a parade of horses and carriages, and we would witness the pomp that accompanies the life of a Queen. We saw her several times, as well as, other members of the royal family, looking regal and majestic.
We may very well say that the English have their royals and we – well we have our rugged individuality which expresses our freedom, and the liberty to pursue happiness. Though we cherish and exalt these worthy ideals, they also signal for us a deep need, to not only cherish and exalt, but to reverence and worship. For while it is certainly true that we were made for love, for prayer, and for the pursuit of truth, we were also made to worship. This drive and need to worship is built into our very DNA, we will worship; for we do not have an option, we do not have a choice. It is like eating and drinking and breathing. It is knitted into the very fabric of our being. But what is it that we worship – a queen, a king, an idea, or something or someone else? Some people worship a career, or the authority that comes along with lofty positions or public acclaim. Some we know worship money, or power, or a perfect house, the idea of a perfect family, or a skill or ability, or nothing but A grades. Some worship at the throne of stardom or social media, or YouTube and TikTok, spending hours in attendance, like a courtier before a king’s throne. These areas of life can become millstones, weighing us down, or signs that lead, not to a promised land, but a barren wilderness. For true worship is meant for, is designed for God alone. We were made to worship the one true God and to know him and grow to love him more deeply over our lifetimes.
As we approach the end of the year, our readings include apocalyptic scenes that speak of the end times and of the final revelation. In our first reading Daniel has a vision of one like the son of man. The one who receives, dominion, glory, and kingship. Our Lord is that King but how fortunate are we to have a King who does not pass by riding in a carriage on the way to a banquet to which we have not been invited. We have a King who meets us and joins us on our journey. A king who himself knows blood, sweat, tears, pain, loneliness, and betrayal. It is easy to declare him as our King, for so he is. More challenging though is making him truly the Lord of our Lives since by doing so we may recognize what needs to change in us, and what we may need to leave behind.
We do have a king but this king desires more, wants more than just subjects, he wants to be the Lord of our lives. To be at the hub from which all activities of life fan out like spokes in a wagon wheel, each one nourished and empowered by the Spirit. Part of our journey to the promised land requires of us to relinquish that which prevents us from moving forward – past sin, old grievances, long held anger at God, missed opportunities pondered and constantly revisited, and the list goes on. Like those early settlers we too must leave aspects of our lives scattered behind on our own spiritual trail.
Is Jesus really the Lord of your life and mine? If so, what do we need to jettison, to abandon, to bury, in order for the Kingdom to be revealed? This is the question before us – something to ponder and consider. This journey ends with the arrival at the promised land where we will no longer be called pioneers, sojourners, or pilgrims, but saints. Looking back, we will see all that we had abandoned and left behind, so as to make this King the Lord of our lives.
Lord Jesus, King of the Universe, help us to see clearly that which holds us back and prevents us from journeying forward. Give each of us the courage and strength to let go of all that binds us, grace us with the faith to trust you, and to make you the Lord of our lives. Until we too, God willing, arrive at the promised land. Amen.
Deacon Peter Bujwid, Saint Agnes
Arlington, MA.
Sunday 24th November 2024
