My dear parishioners of St. Timothy, Greetings in Christ
This weekend as you read this and as we celebrate the 21st Sunday in Ordinary Time, I can’t believe that I begin my 9th week here at St. Timothy and what a great blessing it has been so far. It is always humbling to see how good God truly is and how much grace He pours out to us whether we are aware of it or not. My time here has already been a profound reminder of that for me in my own heart, as God continues to work on me, and continues to form me as a priest after His Son, Jesus Christ the High Priest. I was told so many good things about this parish and about the people here, but my experience so far proves that the stories don’t tell the whole truth and experience is so much better than stories. As Psalm 116:12 says, “How shall I repay the Lord for all the great good done for me?” This has been the disposition of my heart and I know it will continue.
At this point, school has been back for a few weeks already, faith formation is gearing up to begin again, youth ministry is getting ready to kick off, many of our ministries are preparing for their fall launch, and we are getting swamped by work, sports, untold hours driving to and from places picking up and dropping off people, and here we are trying to stay sane in the midst of it all. It is easy for us to gain the impression or understanding that holiness and a relationship with God is to be found during the precious few minutes when chaos and craziness subsides, and we can actually focus on prayer and listening. I know that I’ve been reminded in my heart these past weeks that holiness isn’t found absent from that busyness, but it is to be discovered in the midst of it. My prayer for all of us as we settle in to the chaos and new routine of the school year, is that we are able to encounter Christ amidst our busyness, because that’s where he is waiting.
In Christ,
Fr. Anthony