I am rather proud of the fact that I do not
make New Year’s resolutions. I
suppose that is because there is nothing new about that which I wish to revise
in my life. After a certain time
(or at least the length of my life thus far!) one should have a fairly accurate
understanding of what needs tending in one’s life.
Lest I be accused of ageism I am not saying
that such things as New Year’s resolutions are exclusively the domain of the
young. We should all be attentive
to the prospect of making changes for the better in our makeup, one would
hope. I am simply saying that as
time goes on one would hope there would be fewer surprises as to what should be
improved!
Each Sunday morning as I stand before our
congregation I marvel at the words of our Collect for Purity. I have long since left my discomfort at
its title and look into the hope-filled sentiments it embraces, the earnest
character of its intent. In
particular, the arresting words “Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the
inspiration of your Holy Spirit” wash over me like a breath of clean, fresh
air. Its implication is so
powerful and simple for me: we are invited to breathe in the Holy Spirit.
What further astounds me is that Cranmer’s
translation of this ancient prayer is often followed by a quick breath in the
congregation. The sentence
structure includes a comma which itself implies a breath. So, as I stand and listen to the words
rise from those gathered there often is an audible breath immediately following
as we are all breathing in God’s Holy Spirit at that precise moment.
It may just be wishful thinking on the part
of an often weary pastor but I am quite convinced that it does happen on
occasion.
At such times I am reminded that the
opportunity for us to amend things about us is as close to us as our next
breath. Indeed the very nature of the
expression “like a breath of fresh air” is at the heart of most desires for us
to change for the better. It seems
to me that rather grandiose attempts at amending our behaviour often lead to
less than successful efforts. No,
what is far more powerful to me, at least, is the humble reminder that turning
things around and changing one’s mind about certain behaviours (dare I say
repenting!) is better done on a much smaller scale: “Come on now, take a deep
breath and start over.”
Not a lot of showiness about it, especially
if we remind ourselves collectively each Sunday morning that that is what we
really want – to improve things in us.
The clincher is of course that we do not have to improve on our own. This new breath we take is prompted and
fuelled by the Holy Spirit.
It is not a declaration of self effort,
such as often happens at this particular time of year, but what I consider to
be a sincere acknowledgment of what can and does happen when we ask for God’s
help in amending our lives.
I do not think that should be left to just
once a year, do you?
Peace,
François
