The Shepherd’s Vigil, 11/03/21

“But Thomas was not with them when Jesus came”               
John 20:24

 We often refer to Thomas, the disciple of Jesus, as Doubting Thomas.  He wanted some tangible evidence that Jesus had risen from the dead, not just the stories.  The reason Thomas had concerns is because he was not with the others when Jesus appeared in the room with them.  Maybe a better name for him would have been Absent Thomas.

We have all known the feeling of missing something unbelievable or special when we were not there to see it.  All we have is the stories from friends who inevitably say, “you should have been there”.  When the reality becomes evident, we always wish we hadn’t missed it.

Jesus is present in powerful ways in the mission and ministry of New Horizon.  However, in these days of emerging from the pandemic and the development of technology it is easier to be absent.  Convenience is nice but it can cause us to be mentally and emotionally absent.  We each need to find ways to engage in faith or we will miss the opportunities that are around us to experience Jesus.  We are “doing church” in new ways and reaching more people; that’s great.  But it would still be easy to miss the movement of God because we were just not engaged.

Thomas had friends who were willing to tell their story of an encounter with Jesus.  Thomas got his encounter with Jesus.  Keep telling your story because someone needs to hear it.  Engage in the community of faith for that is where Jesus’ presence is felt.  Don’t let yourself be absent.

Joyfully,

Pastor Rafe