Twenty-Third Sunday after Trinity, November 4th, 2018

Twenty-Third Sunday after Trinity, November 4th, 2018

In the Third Chapter of the Epistle to the Philippians, St. Paul reminds us that our true citizenship is not here on earth.  St Paul writes important words for each one of us to ponder:  "For our citizenship is in heaven" (3:17 ff)  For the Christian, this is always important for us to make note of.  It is easy to forget sometimes, if you ask me.  Why do I say that?  We have a tendency as human beings to focus on the "here and now."  In other words, we focus on what is affecting us right here and right now.  If a bill is due right away, we focus on that specific bill and leave the others for later.  If we have a particular report due tomorrow where we work, we take care of that report now and worry about the report that is due next week  later.  We may need to paint the bathroom but first we need to take care of the broken faucet in the kitchen,  etc.  In a general sense, we human beings  focus on the things of the world:  satisfying our desires; paying the bills; putting a roof over our head; etc.  And all of these things are perfectly understandable but St. Paul is giving us a good reminder that while, yes, we are human beings and we have to focus on the "here and now" of this life, we also have to take care of our other citizenship as Christians.  As mentioned above, so often we go from project to project just trying to take care of what needs to be taken care of immediately or what needs to be done now.  And everything else can wait.  When it comes to being a Christian, though, this can not wait.  Being a Christian takes effort.  Being a Christian takes patience.  Being a Christian takes practice.  " . . .  our citizenship is in Heaven," St. Paul reminds us.  And, as such, we need to see the world and approach the world through the eyes of Christ.  This is difficult at times because the human side of us wants to only focus on "us:"  my needs . . .  my desires . . . . my wants . . . .  Even in dealing with others, we want things our way.  And yet if we are to be true, committed, devout, practicing Christians, it is not our will that needs to be done, it is the will of Our Heavenly Father that must take priority:  "Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven."   We must always remember that we are dual citizens . . .   of earth and of Heaven . . . . but our first allegiance is to God as Christians.  This is easy for us to remember when we are in church on Sundays but it is sometimes easy to forget when we are out in the "world," at our jobs, at the store, stuck in traffic, etc.   Thus, we need to remember the words of St. Paul:  "For our citizenship is in heaven . .  ."  We need to remember those words when we get stressed about the faucet breaking the kitchen.  We need to remember those words when our boss tells us at the last minute a report was due . . .  five minutes ago!   We need to remember those words when the whole world seems to be crashing down around us and everyone is getting on our nerves.  "For our citizenship is in heaven . . .. "

Join us on Sunday, November 4th, 2018 as we gather together to worship Our Heavenly Father.  Join us as we listen to the Word of God found in the King James Bible and the 1928 Book of Common Prayer.  Join us as we receive the Precious Body and Blood of Our Blessed Saviour at Communion time.

St. Margaret Church meets every Sunday at 9:30 AM.  We worship in the beautiful chapel at Marquette Manor, which is located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.