Our lives are full of transitions

When I reflected today on the Ascension of Jesus into Heaven, I recalled a verse out of the Gospel of Matthew that is so human and describes so much the spirit of many of us:  "When they saw him, they worshiped, but they doubted."  (Matthew 28:16).  Yes, we believe, we can feel Jesus working in our lives, we can pray, worship and love ... and then we doubt.

In a reading from Acts (Acts 1:1-11), we watch as Jesus leaves us, His followers, as He ascends into heaven.  Those of us in His band of disciples watch from the ground below as He is slowly lifted up and away from us.  Matthew's gospel doesn’t depict the Ascension, but as the gospel concludes, the disciples are called to the mountain, eager to meet Jesus.  They see Him, worship ... and then doubt.

And how does Jesus react to that doubt?  With an incredible and inexhaustible love for us and our failings.  He looks on us with such love -- and sends us out to do His work!  He's not waiting for us be become perfect - He sends us out, doubts, fears, failings and all.  “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them ...”  (Mark 16:15-20).  He's not angry, disappointed or discouraged; He simply sends us as we are.

And so for now, for the moment, we set our doubts aside and begin the task He has given us.

"You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."

Our lives are full of "transitions."  We’re always moving from one relatively comfortable place to a new and unfamiliar place.  Dealing with Covid, graduating, getting married, having a baby, starting a new job, facing new responsibilities, moving into a new home, facing the death of a loved one, recovering from the breakup of a relationship, beginning to see a therapist, recovering from a heart attack, living with cancer - all of these, and many more personal examples we know in our experience, are transitions.  They take us from what we know, into the unknown.  They present us with a new mission, a new orientation, a new challenge, a new moment in our vocation, a new part of living our baptism into Jesus.

The Ascension of Jesus into Heaven is the feast of transition.  In the Acts of the Apostles, the very last words of Jesus to us are "you will be my witnesses ... to the ends of the earth."   Like the first disciples who heard those words, our transitional growth is from being tentative, afraid, anxious and maybe even doubting followers to being those who have received "power" when the Holy Spirit "comes upon" us.  Our mission is to replace Jesus in this world.  The power of His Holy Spirit remains with us, but we’re His "witnesses" in this world.  We are to be His "martyrs" - giving witness, giving evidence of our faith, with the commitment of our lives.

But times of transition are difficult.  We often cling to what we know and are afraid of what we don't know.  It's called a time of "transition" because we’re "in between."  We’re usually still longing for something that we must leave behind, some distinct loss.  What’s before us offers new challenges we haven't gotten good at yet.

So often we feel powerless, impotent, and insecure, on so many levels.  We’re not able to do so much, let alone be a witness of Jesus.  It’s too often why we cover up our fear and assert ourselves, in acts of power or control or aggression.  We become "counter-witnesses" in effect, saying:  "the power of Jesus' Spirit isn't here!"  Embarrassment at our powerlessness or our ineptitude need not lead us into discouragement or aggressivity in our dealings with our loved ones and others.  Jesus invites us to long for, to deeply desire, the power of His Spirit.  Only that power can help us and heal us.  The Holy Spirit is a spirit of comfort, to strengthen us in a deeply spiritual way.

On this day that we celebrate the Ascension of our Lord, which introduces this time of transition to our life in the Spirit, our life of mission, let’s express our desire for a renewal of the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives.  Let’s imagine the healing presence of the Spirit in each of our relationships.  This is where we’ll begin to witness to Jesus.  Let’s imagine how we can die to ourselves in our key relationships.  From there, our witnessing can begin to go out "to the ends of the earth."

If we’re able to celebrate in community today, let's prepare by not looking up into heaven.  Let's imagine ourselves "on a mission," as we get dressed today.  As we walk into church, let's feel the power of letting the Spirit "assemble" us there and "animate" us for mission.  Let’s lift up our hearts because it’s right for us to give God thanks and praise.  And with a renewed desire to celebrate the upcoming feast of Pentecost, let’s walk out of that church ready to begin our mission at home, in our faith communities, and with our relatives and friends.

Then let His last words drift down to us, “I am with you always, until the end of the age.”   We let those words settle into our souls, we feel them, we’re reassured by them.  We turn them over and over again in our hearts:  Always...Until the end of the age... I will be with you...