First Sunday of Lent, March 6th, 2022

 First Sunday of Lent, March 6th, 2022

The Gospel passage which we will hear on the First Sunday of Lent comes to us from the Fourth Chapter of St. Matthew.  Here, St. Matthew describes Our Lord's Forty Days in the Wilderness.  As we all know, the devil likes to take every opportunity he can to take advantage.  This is no exception.  He tries three separate times to take advantage and tempt Our Blessed Saviour while He is fasting.  Finally, the Lord  admonishes the devil by telling him:  "Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve." (v.10)   After this, we are told, the devil left Him and "angels came and ministered unto Him." (v. 11) There are two major points that we can take away from this:

First, Our Lord was fasting for forty days and forty nights and during this time, the devil came to tempt Him.  How many of us have sat down to pray, or sat down to read the Bible, or tried to concentrate while we were in church and every thought comes into our head:  we start thinking about what we're going to eat for lunch; we start thinking about something we should have done at home;  we start thinking about a movie or a TV show; etc.  I am sure this has happened to all of us at one point or another.  The point is this:  if the devil is bold enough to tempt Our Blessed Saviour, he is certainly bold enough to tempt you and me.  Some people let these distractions over-power them and keep them from prayer completely.  They take these "distractions" as some sort of a "sign" that they weren't meant to pray or that they can't pray.  If this happens, the devil has won.  Don't give the devil the victory.  Remember always that the devil will stop at nothing in order to keep you from growing closer to God.  If the devil can tempt Our Blessed Saviour, he will certainly tempt you as well.  Don't let the temptation stop you in your tracks.  Tell the devil who is in charge of your life and then move on!

The second point is that the devil will try to tempt us with things that are attractive to us, that are appealing to us.  He will tempt us with things that we would want and desire to begin with.  The devil will use any tool necessary to tempt you and me.  He will use food and drink; he will use power and money; he will use position and title.  Any of these things mentioned are not necessarily bad in and of themselves, but if they keep us away from God or if they stand as a barrier between us and God, then this is what makes them bad.  Also, many of these things that the devil tempts us with, we end up "worshiping" those things instead of God.  For example, how many people end up focusing on drink instead of God.  How many people focus all of their energies on gaining more and more power or more and more money?  In that example, that person worships money or power and never thinks about God.  Again, the devil does not want you to have a relationship with God.  He will use anything and everything to keep you from having a relationship with Our Blessed Saviour.

We need to counter these temptations by keeping our eyes fixed on Christ.  Always go towards Him and do not let any temptation . . . .  no matter how wonderful it seems . . . . prohibit you from having a good relationship with God.  Give God your heart.  Let Him be the ruler of your life.  Don't let "things" rule your life:  whether they be food, drink, power, riches, etc.  God should be the ruler of our hearts.

St. Margaret Church worships every Sunday morning at 10:30 AM at the Chapel at Marquette Manor, which is located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.

NOTE:  Keep in mind that we must enter in the main entrance of the lobby and sign in before we go to the chapel.  

Please Join us as we gather together as God's family to:  hear the Word of God; listen as God speaks to each one of us in our hearts; worship God in song and in word; listen to the King James Bible and the 1928 Book of Common Prayer; and, finally, receive Our Blessed Lord in Holy Communion so that we can be nourished for the journey we call life.  Take one hour out of your busy schedule to worship God, to honour God, to acknowledge the need for God in your life.

Quinquagesima, or the Sunday next before Lent, February 27th, 2022

 Quinquagesima, or the Sunday next before Lent, 

February 27th, 2022

I don't know much about construction or building projects, but it seems pretty self-evident that a building is in need of a strong foundation if it is going to remain standing.  Without a proper foundation, no matter how nice the rest of the building looks it will ultimately collapse.  In the Thirteenth Chapter of his First Epistle written to the Corinthians, St. Paul emphasizes what should be the foundation of our Christian Faith:  Love.  St. Paul writes:  " . . . and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not love, I am nothing" (I Corinthians 13:2)  Going back to the example of our building, the foundation is what gives it support.  It doesn't ultimatley matter how pretty the building looks, without a good foundation it will ultimatley fall apart, won't it?  This is the point St. Paul is making to the Corinthians . . .  and to us reading his words two-thousand years later . . . . that no matter what we do in life we also need a "base," if you will.  And this base is "love."  As Christians, St. Paul is reminding us that we need to have love as the "foundation" for everything we do: whether it be speaking to others, preaching, giving to charity, reacting to those around us, etc.  All of these have to have a "foundation of love" or else the acts which we do will be nothing.  They will mean nothing.   Our Blessed Lord did everything with love as His foundation.  "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son . . . " (St. John 3:16)   The problem is that it is very difficult for us to love at times.  It is difficult to show love to those people who are not lovable, so to speak.  And yet we know this is exactly what Our Lord did on a daily basis.  To be loving will not always be easy.  To show love will not always be easy.  To remember to be loving will be difficult at times.  But, as Christians, we are called to make the effort.  We are called to do our utmost.  We are called to keep trying as best as we can.  During this upcoming season of Lent, let us focus on showing love to God.  In so doing, I am sure that we will soon see that the love we show to God will spill over to showing love to those around us.  And in the world in which we live today, it could definitely use some more love and less hate. 

St. Margaret Church worships every Sunday morning at 10:30 AM at the Chapel at Marquette Manor, which is located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.

NOTE:  Keep in mind that we must enter in the main entrance of the lobby and sign in before we go to the chapel.  

Please Join us as we gather together as God's family to:  hear the Word of God; listen as God speaks to each one of us in our hearts; worship God in song and in word; listen to the King James Bible and the 1928 Book of Common Prayer; and, finally, receive Our Blessed Lord in Holy Communion so that we can be nourished for the journey we call life.  Take one hour out of your busy schedule to worship God, to honour God, to acknowledge the need for God in your life. 

Sexagesima, or the Second Sunday before Lent, February 20th, 2022

 Sexagesima, or the Second Sunday before Lent, 

February 20th, 2022

In the eighth chapter of St. Luke's Gospel, we hear Our Blessed Saviour tell the Parable of the Sower.  And in this parable, Our Lord tells the story of the sower who goes out to sow the seed:  some seed fell along the way; some seed fell on rocky soil; some seed fell on good soil; etc.  Our Lord, when He is finished telling the parable, describes what the parable means to the disciples.  In the parable there are different types of people represented:  those that hear the Word; those that do not hear the Word; those who pay attention for a time and then fall away; etc.  This reminds me of the many types of people we will encounter in our lifetime.  Some people we encounter are just that:  people we encounter.  Nothing more, nothing less.   While others become friends due to common interests or similarities.  Out of these, some friends become life-long friends, and others (through moving away; or getting another job; or going to another school; etc.) move on and we lose contact with.  

There are a variety of people in our life, and many of these people, I am convinced that God has placed them in our life to inspire us, to strengthen us, to encourage us, to be with us.  Obviously, many of these people placed in our life are related to us by blood:  our parents; our grandparents; aunts; uncles; cousins; etc.  Other people such as a spouse or  good friends, for example, God may have placed them in our lives to give us support along the way.  Each one of us can point out special people in our lives who have supported us or inspired us along the way.  I, for my part, can certainly point toward my parents; my grandparents; wonderful, inspiring priests who have blessed me with the Sacraments; I can point to wonderful friends who have been there for me.  Each one of these people, I am convinced that God has placed those special people in my life to encourage me along the way.  These people have touched my life.  They have played a part in forming the person I have become.  Certainly, as a priest, I can point towards many wonderful members of churches I have served who have been a wonderful inspiration to me.  God places special people in our life to assist us and to inspire us.  Let us always remember the fact that for others around us, we may be the one that inspires those around us.  You may be the special person that God has placed in that person's life to inspire him or her.  Let us always remember to inspire others to greatness.  Let us always remember that for the dedicated, committed Christian, we have the potential to be the "Face of Christ" in the world.  Let us never forget that God uses us as His instruments in this world to let others know about Him.

St. Margaret Church worships every Sunday morning at 10:30 AM at the Chapel at Marquette Manor, which is located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.

NOTE:  Keep in mind that we must enter in the main entrance of the lobby and sign in before we go to the chapel.  

Please Join us as we gather together as God's family to:  hear the Word of God; listen as God speaks to each one of us in our hearts; worship God in song and in word; listen to the King James Bible and the 1928 Book of Common Prayer; and, finally, receive Our Blessed Lord in Holy Communion so that we can be nourished for the journey we call life.  Take one hour out of your busy schedule to worship God, to honour God, to acknowledge the need for God in your life.

Septuagesima, or the Third Sunday before Lent, February 13th, 2022

 Septuagesima, or the Third Sunday before Lent, 

February 13th, 2022

Have you ever had the experience of buying a product and before you knew it, the thing you bought proved to be no good.  Maybe it broke down.  Maybe it stopped working.  Maybe it wore out.  And you were disappointed because you spent your hard-earned money on such a piece of garbage.  Some things last longer than others but the bottom line is that everything we buy either breaks, or wears out, or goes out of style, or loses its' usefulness, etc.  In St. Paul's first Epistle written to the Corinthians, St. Paul emphasizes that Christians need to place their emphasis on obtaining a Heavenly crown which will never wear out, . . .  will never break,  . . . will never expire.  So often in life as human beings we get so wound up, so fixated on obtaining worldly things which ultimately will not last.   "Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible" (I Corinthians 9:25)  St. Paul is encouraging us to remember that we should put our efforts into obtaining the Heavenly Crown of eternal life offered to us by God.  And we do this by saying "Yes" to God.  We do this by doing God's will in our life.  We do this by living for God and not for the world.  

St. Margaret of Scotland Anglican Church worships every Sunday morning at 10:30 AM at the Chapel at Marquette Manor, which is located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.

NOTE:  Keep in mind that we must enter in the main entrance of the lobby and sign in before we go to the chapel.  

Please Join us as we gather together as God's family to:  hear the Word of God; listen as God speaks to each one of us in our hearts; worship God in song and in word; listen to the King James Bible and the 1928 Book of Common Prayer; and, finally, receive Our Blessed Lord in Holy Communion so that we can be nourished for the journey we call life.  Take one hour out of your busy schedule to worship God, to honour God, to acknowledge the need for God in your life.

Fifth Sunday after Epiphany, February 6th, 2022

 Fifth Sunday after Epiphany, February 6th, 2022

" Let both grow together until the harvest"  (St. Matthew, Chapter 13)

In this Thirteenth Chapter of the Gospel of St. Matthew, we read about the time in which Our Blessed Saviour told the parable of the man who planted the harvest of wheat in his field.  And yet Our Lord tells us that after the wheat had been planted, the man's "enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way" (St. Matthew 13:25)   When it was discovered that the tares were growing together with the wheat, the servants asked the man if they should go and gather up all the tares which were growing with the wheat.  The man responded that if they did that they would also tear up the wheat that was growing there as well.  Wait until harvest time, said the man to his servants, and both will be gathered up: the tares will be taken to burn and the wheat will be taken into the barn.

Many people wonder why bad things happen in life along with the good things which happen in life.  Man has been asking this question since the world was created, I am quite sure.  Obviously, God does not wish bad things upon His children.  But at the same time, we know that life is not perfect by any stretch of the imagination.  Bad things will happen in life, unfortunately.  Just like the tares and the wheat grew together in the parable which Our Lord told, so too will good things and bad things happen during our lifetime.  As Christians, we are called to make a choice between good and bad.  God has granted His children a certain sense of freedom to choose in life.  Similar to the parable, the enemy will plant bad things in our life as well.  As a result, in our lifetime we will experience good things and we will experience bad things as well.  How will we respond to the bad things in life?  Will we give up or give in?  Will we learn from our bad experiences and grow stronger as a result?  The key is to always have God close by no matter what.  Stay close to the Cross of Christ and always do everything with Our Blessed Saiour in mind!  

St. Margaret of Scotland Anglican Church worships every Sunday morning at 10:30 AM at the Chapel at Marquette Manor, which is located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.

NOTE:  Keep in mind that we must enter in the main entrance of the lobby and sign in before we go to the chapel.  

Please Join us as we gather together as God's family to:  hear the Word of God; listen as God speaks to each one of us in our hearts; worship God in song and in word; listen to the King James Bible and the 1928 Book of Common Prayer; and, finally, receive Our Blessed Lord in Holy Communion so that we can be nourished for the journey we call life.  Take one hour out of your busy schedule to worship God, to honour God, to acknowledge the need for God in your life.

Fourth Sunday after Epiphany, January 30th, 2022

 Fourth Sunday after Epiphany, January 30th, 2022

". . . but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed"  (St. Matthew 8:1 ff)

In the Eighth Chapter of St. Matthew's Gospel, as Our Blessed Lord was going into Capernaum, we hear how a certain centurion approached Our Blessed Saviour to implore His assistance.  The centurion told Our Saviour that his servant was very sick.  In essence, this centurion wanted Our Lord to heal his servant.   And yet this was not the main point of the story.  There were many people seeking favour from Our Lord.  In this same chapter, St Matthew tells us, for example, of the leper seeking healing from the Lord.  The thing that made the centurion stand out in the eyes of the Lord . . .  and what we should take note of as well . . . was the faith of the centurion.  For you see Our Lord indicated that He was prepared to go to the centurion's home to heal the servant but the centurion protested saying that he was not worthy that Our Blessed Saviour would come into his home.  So he said to Our Lord to simply  "speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed"   (St Matthew 8:8)  Our Lord was impressed with this man's faith.  Our Lord was impressed that this man, who was a Roman, a Gentile, Our Lord was impressed that this man had such great faith.  This man knew that Our Blessed Saviour could cure his servant.  This man knew Our Lord could get the job done.  In other words, this man had faith.  And we should too.  The problem with most of us is that we give up too easily.  We want God's help . . . . We desire God's assistance. . . . We want God to solve our dilema  . . . . But we want God to do things our way.  We want to be in charge.  We want God's help, yes. We need God's help, yes.  But we want God to do things our way.  Friends, we are called to be like the centurion and have great faith at all times.  we are called to put our faith in the Lord and let Him do the rest.  ". . . . but speak the word only" should be our prayer a all times.   ". . . .  but speak the word only"  If only our faith could be that great!

St. Margaret of Scotland Anglican Church worships every Sunday morning at 10:30 AM at the Chapel at Marquette Manor, which is located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.

NOTE:  Keep in mind that we must enter in the main entrance of the lobby and sign in before we go to the chapel.  

Please Join us as we gather together as God's family to:  hear the Word of God; listen as God speaks to each one of us in our hearts; worship God in song and in word; listen to the King James Bible and the 1928 Book of Common Prayer; and, finally, receive Our Blessed Lord in Holy Communion so that we can be nourished for the journey we call life.  Take one hour out of your busy schedule to worship God, to honour God, to acknowledge the need for God in your life.

Third Sunday after Epiphany, January 23rd, 2022

 Third Sunday after the Epiphany, January 23rd, 2022

In the Second Chapter of the Gospel of St. John, we hear the first recorded miracle which Our Blessed Lord performed.   "And when they wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine." (St. John 2:3)  You see, the newly married couple had run out of wine at their wedding feast.  This may not sound like a big deal to us but back then it would have been a huge embarrassment for the young couple.  So the Blessed Mother turns to the one person she knew could help.  She asked her Son to do something about this problem.  As we read in Verse Four of this chapter, it would seem that Our Blessed Saviour comes up with two quick excuses:  "Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I to do with thee?  mine hour is not yet come."  (St. John 2:4)  Yet without missing a beat Our Lady simply says to the servants at the feast:  "Whatsoever He saith unto you, do it."  (St. John 2:5)   Our Lord changed water into wine.  St. John tells us: "This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth His glory; and His disciples believed on Him."  (St. John 2:11)

If Our Blessed Lord can change water into wine, I am sure He can change just about anything.  Remember that this was simply " . . . the beginning of the miracles . . . " (v.11).  As we read through the Gospels we read about all the various miracles which Our Lord performed.   Sometimes we find ourselves in a fix that we can not seem to get out of.  Whether it be financial difficulties . . .  or bills we can not afford .  .  . or we are in need of a job . . . . or we have just screwed up royally and do not know where to turn.  Our Blessed Lord can help us.  Our Blessed Lord can help to fix things.  Our Lord is certainly able to do great things.  Our Lord said:   " . . . the works that I do in My Father's Name, they bear witness of Me." (St. John 10:25)  And yet how often do we doubt?  How often do we never go to God for a miracle because we are simply too stubborn?   How often do we not give our problems to God because of a lack of faith?  Our Lady did not doubt.  Our Blessed Mother did not hesitate.  When she knew something needed to be done for this young couple, she knew she could not help but she knew who could.   "Whatsoever He saith unto you, do it." (v.5)  We have to have the same firm faith as Mary.  We say we believe but then we hesitate.  We say we gave our problem to God but then we stop and look back.  It is time for us to stand firm in our faith.  It is time for us to place our trust in God.  In the world in which we live, people place their trust in money and wealth . . . they place their trust in products they believe will change their life . . . people place their trust in booze and pills to take their hurt away.  At best, these things are nothing more than a "quick fix."  "Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and He shall sustain thee: He shall never suffer the righteous to be moved."  (Psalm 55:22)  Give your burden to God.  Have faith that God can perform a miracle in your life. 

St. Margaret of Scotland Anglican Church worships every Sunday morning at 10:30 AM at the Chapel at Marquette Manor, which is located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.

NOTE:  Keep in mind that we must enter in the main entrance of the lobby and sign in before we go to the chapel.  

Please Join us as we gather together as God's family to:  hear the Word of God; listen as God speaks to each one of us in our hearts; worship God in song and in word; listen to the King James Bible and the 1928 Book of Common Prayer; and, finally, receive Our Blessed Lord in Holy Communion so that we can be nourished for the journey we call life.  Take one hour out of your busy schedule to worship God, to honour God, to acknowledge the need for God in your life.