The Canopy Awaits

As the funeral procession
turned the corner, across the early spring field, I saw the blue canopy.
Drawing nearer the little cemetery among the farms, I though about my own
journey to that waiting canopy. When God calls me home, will I have done all
his will? I particularly thought about how I’d feel if I had not written a
memoir. Whatever happens, whether the book succeeds or fails in the
marketplace, I’m grateful for grace to be faithful to that sense of calling. At
least I won’t have that regret on my deathbed.

It’s Good Friday. Jesus
had fulfilled the purpose for which the Father had sent him. He’d lived life in
constant, immediate dependence on the Holy Spirit. He’d demonstrated the
passion and compassion of his father. "My food," said Jesus, in John 3:34,
"is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.”  Jesus was not weighed down on the cross with
regrets. He was fully present to the last will of the Father.

This moment, I’m feeling
stressed. I regret I’m not fully present to God’s work in the world. When we
stress about finances, or computer problems, or publicity snafus, we forget to
be grateful, humble, trusting. At least I do. I’m going to get off the computer
and mindful of the blue canopy awaiting me, go practice those virtues. Care to
join me?

Jesus, you are our
enabling and our peace. Come, by your Spirit, and bring that peace.