In our high-paced, information-inundated world, it takes a great deal of focus to make sense of life's most important questions.  It's easy to become distracted and distraction can lure us away from our values.  When our values change, our behaviors, the choices we make, and the way we live follows.  How can we get away from all of life's distractions and get back to basics?  How can "we make the main thing, to be the main focus?" 

      How can we make God our focus?

     The season of Lent is an invitation from God to us for a Divine Encounter.  Ash Wednesday is God's trumphet call to the church for such a Divine Encounter and the calling of our attention.  Lent is God's personal way of reaching out to us bringing things into order out of chaos, moving away from a world of too much secularity to a Gospel life of faith through relationship, purpose, and meaning. 

      Living out the Gospel life is our goal as Christians. 

     Encountering and conforming one’s life to the Gospel message, requires a clear decision and a constant process of "turning around," re- orienting and crystallizing one’s life around a new center which is the living person of Jesus Christ. In the spirit of repentance, we ask daily for the grace of deepened conversion to full life in Christ and seek to live this Grace in our whole way of life.  Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up the cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his life (Matt 16:24-25)?"

     We are redeemed by Grace through the power of the Cross of Christ. As we fully surrender all that we are and all that we do and all that we have to God, the very life of Jesus Christ, crucified, died and risen, comes to be lived in us and through us.

     During this day and days to follow which remind us more vividly of the mystery of humanity’s salvation and of the paschal celebration soon to come, we are bidden to purify ourselves by way of preparation as we strive for deeper faith.

     You are invited to come and share this deep aspect to the mystery of our faith with us at Anglican Community Church.  

     In all, let us be and live into the Glory of our Lord.

     In Christ's Love,

     Gus +