Jesus didn’t have a white board.
He didn’t have a smart phone.
He didn’t carry a calendar.
At New Year’s, our pinnacle time of resolutions, new leafs,
goal-setting, and high-hoping we can’t help but be reminded that Jesus was
never described as one for whom planning was a huge priority. Jesus wasn’t
known as a plotter. He wasn’t a schemer nor did he seem to hold marathon
strategy sessions. In fact, the
most extended time of preparation we find him engaging in was in the Garden of
Gethsemane when he pulled an all-nighter… praying.
For Jesus, to plan was to pray.
It was to put aside his program in order to ask and accept
God’s program.
Most of the people I know spend more time planning than
praying. Maybe it’s our insecurity
– our need to feel more in control. Maybe it’s laziness Maybe it’s because we
might be scared of what we’ll hear.
This New Year’s I’m hoping to take time to pray. I hope to
lay my calendar before God’s feet and ask him to fill it in.
What would more praying and less planning look like for you?
Messages from Angels
If an angel appeared with a message from God just for you - what might it be? Here are some possibilities:
Dream bigger.
Push limits.
Press on.
Let go.
Relax.
It’s going to be alright.
Forgive yourself.
Don’t demand perfection.
Dance with your fear.
Think about the poor.
Obsess over others.
Ask yourself how well you’re living.
Don’t wait for an angel to hear from God. Listen to your heart. God’s got a message there.
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Reading
Pistis Sophia - GRS Mead
Mark - Morna Hooker
Sermons - Peter Gomes
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Reading
Pistis Sophia - GRS Mead
Mark - Morna Hooker
Sermons - Peter Gomes
Out of the Wilderness
When the dictionary defines wilderness as an, ‘inhospitable, uncivilized, and uncultivated region’ I can’t help but think about life in the 21st century. Inhospitable in the way we routinely lock doors and view strangers with suspicion. Uncivilized regarding the ways capital punishment, genocide, aggression, and violence are condoned. And uncultivated in the way all ranks of immaturity in entertainment, economics, and morality are promulgated.
So when John the Baptist declares his identity as, ‘the voice of one crying out in the wilderness,’ I can relate – I’m crying out in this wilderness too.
And my cry is like yours - we long for a world that’s more
hospitable, civil, and that lovingly cultivates the gifts that surround us. We
sorely desire a safer, more welcoming, more peaceful world that celebrates the
diversity of our gifts and supports the creativity with which we’ve been
blessed.
Call us out of that wilderness, O Lord. Take us to that
place of hospitality, civility, and maturity. Help us figure out what’s gotten between
your voice and our ear. Re-instill a holy longing. Stir up our Spirits. And
don’t just call us out of the wilderness help us transform it, so that everyone
else who’s stuck in here with us might see what you’re really up to.
How to Get Rich
The road to riches begins when we want something we don’t
have. If we stay focused and work hard we find we get it. But sooner or later
our happiness wanes because we quickly become accustomed to what we’ve just
acquired. Eventually we become bored so we seek something new to get or to do. Once
more, we stay focused and work hard, and find it’s ours. Soon after, the
boredom returns and the quest is renewed.
We do this again and again.
Making matters worse, we can find it harder to slow down and
enjoy what we have because we’ve become too busy running after the next thing
even though we will admit that we have more possessions and experiences than a
lifetime of savoring can do justice to. This is how wealth becomes poverty. And
yes, everybody does it.
The way to get rich and stay rich, then, is not about
endless acquisition but regular savoring. Taking delight in the things we have,
counting our blessings, appreciating, and taking real pleasure in the good
fortune we’ve enjoyed – that’s where true wealth is found.
Which brings us to Advent.
This is the season that invites us to do this - to regular
contemplation of the beauty and wealth that surrounds us. So take a moment.
Breathe deep. Think of one thing in your life that absolutely delights you –
not something you want, but something you already have. Sooner or later we
discover how rich we already are.
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Reading
The One Thing – Gary Keller
Alexander Hamilton – Ron Chernow
Mark – Morna Hooker
Mark – Morna Hooker