"Lord, you now have set your servant free, to go in peace as you have promised, for these eyes of mine have seen the Savior, whom you have prepared for all the world to see . . ." - Simeon's words at the presentation of Jesus in the temple (Luke 2:29-30)
Dear Friends in Christ -
Simeon had a dream. Before he died, he wanted to greet the Messiah. He was 100% confident that the Messiah was coming, and he didn't want to miss him. So he dedicated his life to the work of God in God's temple. And he waited. And he worked. And he prayed. And he never gave up his dream. Eventually he held the baby Jesus in his arms.
Evalyn, my priest friend from Kenya, had a dream. Ten years ago, when I first met her, she told me all about it. She wanted to build a school in the very poor, very remote town in which she grew up. She waited. she worked. She prayed. She shared her dream with me and many others in such a vivid way that I could see the school in my mind. Ten years later, the school is beginning its third year, full to capacity with 120 students in preschool through third grade. When Evalyn came for dinner on Sunday, she had photographs of the students and their school. It's just exactly as she described it years before it actually existed.
What's your dream? Everyone needs to have a dream. I sense that God is working on revealing more of his dream in me, in St. Paul's. So I'm waiting. I'm working. I'm praying. What is the next dream God will plant in our hearts?
For me, it's a particularly good day to be thinking about dreams because today is the anniversary of the fulfillment of two dreams. Nine years ago today, I was ordained to the priesthood. Eight years ago today, my beloved daughter was baptized. As I celebrate the fulfillment of past dreams, I am filled with joyful anticipation of discovering what God has for us next.
Rejoicing,
Janet+
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