Holy Apostles Greek Orthodox Church

Every one wants to be a winner and if you were an Olympic athlete in Beijing you wanted to go for the gold. For many athletes, a silver or bronze wouldn’t do. Imagine only .01 seconds separated first from second. Your focus is on the gold! And if you were one of the rare athletes who received that prestigious medal you kissed it. You raised it over your head and showed it off. It was a reminder of the hard work, ‘impossible is nothing’ attitude, and victory.

As Orthodox Chirstians, it is not about 'impossible is nothing', but the miracle of the cross is everything! The reality that Christ conquered death is everything for us. The powers of death could not hold Jesus down, death could not shackle Him, could not defeat Him. Jesus confronted evil, sin, suffering, and death with love as expressed on the Cross.

Because of the reality of the Resurrection, the Holy Cross becomes our victory symbol that we parade with joy! When we elevate the Cross and bow down before it in veneration and worship to God, we proclaim that we belong to the Kingdom "not of this world," and that our only true and enduring citizenship is with the victorious saints in the "city of God" (Eph 2:19; Heb 11:10; Rev 21-22).

We are reminded to focus on the power of the cross in that it was the instrument God used to crush death. The Cross is the mighty pulpit where the life changing sermon given by Jesus changed the world. Christ is crucified and Christ is Risen!! Jesus proclaims, “I am the Light of the world, he who follows me will not walk in darkness but will have the light of life”. Jesus tells the world that God’s ultimate will is to restore humanity back to its original beauty, back to heaven, back to God, back to true life!!

As we focus on the cross, we realize that God wants to generate life in us, God wants to strengthen our faith within us, God wants to develop us to be true athletes becoming transfigured into His loving image. The cross causes miracles, heals pain and suffering. The cross gives meaning to life as it stamps out evil and allows for a fresh, and new way to live life.

Let’s get it straight that Jesus did not die on the Cross so we could live comfortable, well adjusted lives. Jesus’ purpose is deeper than that. Jesus wants to transform us as He leads us into heaven. Jesus wants to restore a relationship with us that is dynamic, alive and healing. Today, we are called to renew our lives through prayer, repentance, and opening our hearts to God’s love.

My hope is that we can faithfully follow Jesus at Holy Apostles striving to live a transfigured life in Christ. As your spiritual father, as your coach, I am asking that we ‘all’ rededicate our lives to Christ and truly commit to change, to healing to being restored.

May we change the way we use our time, talents, and financial resources. Lets all give God the best, the cream, the first fruits, not mediocrity, not the crumbs but our very best. God wants our precious time, not our spare time.

Let us all faithfully pray to our Lord asking how we can each personally contribute to make Holy Apostles a beacon that reflects the light of Christ. Let us faithfully read the Bible and live out what the Bible asks of us. We are to love God with all our strength, and to love one another as ourself.

Lets pray for our OASIS program, our Philoptochos, our Pre-School, our Mom’s Group, our Parish Council that we all become involved to the best of our ability and focus our time and energy to serve and glorify Him! Please pray for your priest that he is open and guided by the Holy Spirit

When we turn to Christ’s Cross, we see God’s victory over the Powers of Death. We will recognize that God can help us as we face our day. We also recognize immediately that we are meant to help each other. May we encourage each other, have compassion on each other, care for each other, and in this way bring Jesus’ love to each other

You all received your victory symbol at your baptism and as you wear your cross around your neck, as you cross yourself at mealtimes, as you cross yourself as you begin and end your day, remember the presence, guidance, direction and wisdom of our Lord. Remember God’s loving mercy. Rejoice in that you are given strength. “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me”(St. Paul).