January 2021

PASTORAL LETTER

Dearly Beloved in Christ,

“Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that has been given you in Christ Jesus.” (1 Corinthians 1: 3-4)

As we say goodbye to 2020, we realize the losses we have grieved and the victories we have won. We have opened our eyes to the reality of the world’s absurdity and joyfully acknowledge the absolutes of God’s divine plan. Amidst all confusion, we have never lost faith, shrunk back, or remained motionless. Throughout the year we have endured with all diligence and steadfastness. You are God’s chosen people, a holy priesthood and warriors standing on the front lines of spiritual encounters.

We have stepped into yet another year and it is necessary for us to give thanks to our Creator, Saviour and Comforter God for journeying with us in the past in every circumstances. While approaching the year with a heart of gratitude let us recommit ourselves to the Almighty God with a resolution. Let us dream big and try to imagine ways of how we can play our own part in making this world a better place. Each of us are called out to make our own contributions to its realization.

Several things may appear very different compared to the past. Nevertheless, we shall work together, and with the grace of God, we will make the best out of every difficult situation. We are sure that the Holy Spirit empowers us to do what is required and possible in the current situation. We go forward with the confidence that is given to each one who keeps looking at Jesus the Lord, who is the pioneer and perfecter of our faith.

The last verse of the prayer poem of the theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer may be apt to the lives of many of us. He wrote it to his loved ones from prison a few months before his martyrdom:

By loving forces wonderfully sheltered,
we are awaiting fearlessly what comes.
God is with us at dusk and in the morning
and most assuredly on every day.

May the Spirit lead each one of us to understand in a deeper way the mystery, that we live in this world but we are not of this world. May the realisation of this truth bring us the inner freedom to live with calmness the challenges before us! May the year put us on course so that we can keep on serving using the varied gifts that the Lord has given to each of us. We are all uniquely created by God.

May our Lord and Saviour be someone to whom we can turn in our weak, joyful and painful moments; may He be our rock, our shelter and our strength! Be blessed in His presence as we go forward in service this year.

 

Yours in His Service,

Pastoral Team – RTMC