What did Jesus say about the Bible?

[This is the second in a series of What did Jesus say about... studies. The worship bulletin is here.]
Many (most?) Christians are uncomfortable with the Bible. They think they can't understand it. They may be offended by parts of it. They don't know their way around it. They are hesitant to be identified with some "Bible-thumpers". We may--even subconsciously--avoid the Bible.
Your view of Scripture has a profound effect on your view of theology and God and life. And all of us view Scripture with a bias. There is more than one way to look at the Bible and at theology. The views that are held by many protestants--particularly evangelicals--are only 100 years old.
But what did Jesus say about the Bible?

Matthew 5.17-18 Jesus' aim was not to tear down the Old Testament, but to use it as a foundation to build upon.

Matthew 5.21-48 Mark 10.2-8 Jesus refused a strict literal interpretation of the Law, and sought to reveal the spirit or intent behind the Scripture.

Matthew 4.1-11 Jesus took seriously the demands of Scripture on his life and way of living

CONCLUSIONS

The Scriptures cannot be dismissed as something "for another time".

We must read the Scriptures prayerfully and seek to see and understand the heart and mind of God behind the words.

The best place to find guiding principles for my life is in the Scriptures.
Psalm 119.11, 103-105

An enjoyable morning

I rode my bike this morning to the monthly South District (of the Desert Southwest Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church) youth directors' meeting. We meet at Beyond Bread on Campbell. So that's about an 11 mile ride for me. I have new steel-belted tires that Mindy installed for me yesterday (thanks!).
So the ride was enjoyable, and I took a different route than I usually do. Normally I go Broadway to Tucson Blvd to Glenn to Campbell. Today I took Broadway to Wilmot to Pima to Forgeus to Edison to Tucson Blvd to Campbell. Can you visualize that?
Our youth directors meeting is my favorite morning all month. We gather over good food and good conversation. I enjoy catching up with my friends and talking about what is going on around the district.

Family Photos

I've posted a few family photos on my facebook profile. Scroll down to "photos". Yeah, I know, big surprise. I know my photobucket contains tons of photos. This is an attempt to make some photos more accessible.

Jeremiah Is Preaching/Tijuana 08

Jeremiah Smith will be preaching in the Refuge this Sunday. I will be over in the sanctuary presenting our high school missions project for this summer: Tijuana 08. Youthworks is the missions agency that is facilitating our trip. We will work with kids in a VBS-like setting, and will build houses. Photos of our 2004 Tijuana trip are here and more info about our project is here. You can check out the worship bulletin with this week's Scriptures here.

Race for the Cure

Yesterday we had a great experience at the Race for the Cure! The weather was awesome, and we had about 30 (maybe more) people from our church involved! I really enjoyed talking with everyone before and after and during the Race and the Survivor Ceremony was really good! We carried a sign, so our church got some free advertising. In the competitive race, our runners placed like this:
55 Scott Kadous
91 Micah Rochin
149 Tyler Jones
189 Jordan Dansdill
and Collin Nelson didn't have his timing chip and I haven't found Chris Dansdill yet.

NO CHURCH THIS SUNDAY!!

Is that headline a shocker for you?? This Sunday, the Refuge services will not meet in fellowship hall. Several of us are participating in The Race for the Cure. I wonder how people are taking this? But wouldn't this be kind of a test? Is the Sunday morning worship service such a sacred cow that you can't cancel it to do something really good to help people and reach out to the community? Don't get me wrong, I have heard NO criticism at all of this decision. Growing up in a church that emphasized "three to thrive" (Sunday morning, Sunday night and Wednesday night church), it feels funny to me to not be at church on Sunday morning. Plus, I'm always at Catalina on Sunday morning. That's my comfort zone.

Easter Sunday Worship!

Can you believe that Easter is already here? You can prepare for worship by reading our Scriptures for Sunday (1 Corinthians 15.1-20, 30-32, 58), by looking at our worship bulletin, and by looking over our Experiencing Easter Worksheet.

Race Team

We now have 4 members on our Catalina UMC Race for the Cure team! Get busy signing up!!

Sunday March 16

This Sunday is the Sunday before Easter, that means it is Palm/Passion Sunday. Read the explanations below to understand the significance of this week in Christian worship. Also, there is a section about the Stations of the Cross. This Sunday's worship will be more experiential in nature. We will have posted throughout the hall the stations of the cross, using prints from "The Way of the Cross" by Ted Degrazia. The original art is on display in Tucson at the Gallery in the Sun. You can view these and reflect on the suffering of Christ. We will also have several prayer and meditation stations that are part of the resource Experiencing Christ's Passion.

The worship bulletin for this Sunday is here. It includes an interesting article about what happened during each day of holy week.

History of Palm Sunday

As soon as the Church obtained her freedom in the fourth century, the faithful in Jerusalem re-enacted the solemn entry of Christ into their city on the Sunday before Easter, holding a procession in which they carried branches and sang the Hosanna (Matthew 21, 1-11). In the early Latin Church, people attending Mass on this Sunday would hold aloft twigs of olives, which were not, however, blessed in those days.

This Palm Sunday procession, and the blessing of palms, seems to have originated in the Frankish Kingdom. The earliest mention of these ceremonies is found in the Sacramentary of the Abbey of Bobbio in northern Italy (beginning of the eighth century). The rite was soon accepted in Rome and incorporated into the liturgy.

Everywhere in medieval times, following the Roman custom, a procession composed of the clergy and laity carrying palms moved from a chapel or shrine outside the town, where the palms were blessed, to the cathedral or main church. Our Lord was represented in the procession, either by the Blessed Sacrament or by a crucifix, adorned with flowers, carried by the celebrant of the Mass. Later, in the Middle Ages, a quaint custom arose of drawing a wooden statue of Christ sitting on a donkey (the whole image on wheels) in the center of the procession. These statues (Palm Donkey; Palmesel) are still seen in museums of many European cities.

PASSION SUNDAY

In the past, Passion Sunday was celebrated the week before Palm Sunday. So you had Christ crucified before he ever entered Jerusalem. This was rectified in the Revised Common Lectionary, and Palm and Passion Sunday came to share the same week. Hoyt Hickman in The New Handbook for the Christian Year says this. “Many persons have asked why the new calendar and lectionary now shared by historic Christian traditions have combined Passion and Palm Sunday into one and have suggested such an extensive amount of Scripture. To understand why this has been done , one must first recognize that the passion story is a highly dramatic and unified whole and is absolutely central to each of the Gospels. It demands to be heard in its wholeness, rather than in small bits and pieces. To focus on this story one Sunday and then the following Sunday to back up to the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem breaks the unity of the whole sweep of events from the triumphant entry through the passion and crucifixion to the resurrection. There is also a pastoral reality to face. Most persons in church on Passion/Palm Sunday will not be there again until Easter Day. To go abruptly from the lesser joy of the entry into Jerusalem to the joy of Easter, without being addressed by the passion and the cross of our Lord, is to impoverish our experience of the Gospel.”

THE STATIONS OF THE CROSS

For Roman Catholics throughout the world, the Stations of the Cross are synonymous with Lent, Holy Week and, especially, Good Friday. This devotion is also known as the "Way of the Cross", the "Via Crucis", and the "Via Dolorosa." It commemorates 14 key events on day of Christ's crucifixion. The majority concern His final walk through the streets of Jerusalem, carrying the Cross.

The Stations originated in medieval Europe when wars prevented Christian pilgrims from visiting the Holy Land. European artists created works depicting scenes of Christ's journey to Calvary. The faithful installed these sculptures or paintings at intervals along a procession route, inside the parish church or outdoors. Performing the devotion meant walking the entire route, stopping to pray at each "station."
Today, images of the Stations (or simple crosses representing them) are on display in almost all Catholic churches. They serve mainly as a focus for Lenten worship services. But the Stations can also be performed privately, at any time of the year, even at home. Many organizations offer free or inexpensive, illustrated pamphlets for this purpose.
http://www.ixeh.net/faith/Stations/via-info.html
Although Catholic in origin, the stations have been adopted for meditation, prayer, and practice by many Christian groups.

RACE FOR THE CURE

The Race for the Cure is exactly one month from today. Here is how to get involved:

April 6 Reid Park

You are invited to be part of this life-changing event!
On April 18 1999, the First Annual Southern Arizona Race for the Cure took place in downtown Tucson. The event attracted 3,400 participants and raised $218,000. Today, nine years later, the Race for the Cure has been voted The Best Spectacle Event by the Tucson Weekly in 2004 & 2006, and raises over one million dollars each year.
Over the past nine years, the local Komen Southern Arizona Race has raised $5 million dollars. 75% of the net income has provided programs and services for breast health needs in Southern Arizona. The other 25% has gone to international research, with over one million dollars going to the University of Arizona.

Be part of our team! Pick up a registration form today or go to http://www.komensaz.org and click on “race for the cure” on the right side. Then click on “register” , then “register here”. Then click on “join a team” and then scroll down and find “Catalina UMC’.

Donate to our team! Go to http://www.komensaz.org and click on “race for the cure” on the right side. Then click on “donate or pledge” and then click on “sponsor participant”. Then enter a participant’s name. You can enter Richard Jones, Mindy Jones, Tyler Jones, or anyone else you know is participating. We will list more team member names are we receive them.

Volunteer! Volunteers are needed on race day and at the office or packet distribution locations (El Con Mall). Phone the office of the Susan G. Komen For The Cure Southern Arizona at 319-0155. The office is located at 4574 E. Broadway. Register online to volunteer at http://www.komensaz.org. Click on “volunteer” on the right side of the page, and you will be directed to a page with volunteer information.

Ask Questions! Our team captain is Mindy Jones. She is normally in the 9:30 Refuge service. You can email her at mindyrecycles@aol.com or phone her at 296-7103.
There will be no Refuge services on April 6! Instead of coming to church, come out with us and BE the church!

Jackson Pollock

This Sunday, is the final installment in our Paint by the Spirit series. We may come back to it again. This week our artist is Jackson Pollock.

There are many interpretations that can be given to Pollock’s work. It is sometimes referred to as Abstract Expressionism (as opposed to Impressionism). It is said to be an expression of what was inside the artist. Pollock himself said, “Modern art to me is nothing more than the expression of contemporary aims of the age that we're living in.”

Pollock practiced an “all-over” style of distribution of line and color that prevented climactic emphasis on any one point.

Pollock’s paintings had no center and this may be his main message—that the age in which he lived lacked a center, a focal point.

Notice Pollock’s comments in this interview:

WW: Mr. Pollock, there's been a good deal of controversy and a great many comments have been made regarding your method of painting. Is there something you'd like to tell us about that?
JP: My opinion is that new needs need new techniques. And the modern artists have found new ways and new means of making their statements. It seems to me that the modern painter cannot express this age, the airplane, the atom bomb, the radio, in the old forms of the Renaissance or of any other past culture. Each age find it’s own technique.

WW: Mr. Pollock, the classical artists had a world to express and they did so by representing the objects in that world. Why doesn't the modern artist do the same thing?
JP: The modern artist is living in a mechanical age and we have a mechanical means of representing objects in nature such as the camera and photograph. The modern artist, it seems to me, is working and expressing an inner world -- in other words -- expressing the energy, the motion, and other inner forces.

WW: Would it be possible to say that the classical artist expressed his world by representing the objects, whereas the modern artist expresses his world by representing the effects the objects have upon him?
JP: Yes, the modern artist is working with space and time, and expressing his feelings rather than illustrating.

I think Pollock was painting what WB Yeats wrote in The Second Coming.

National Gallery of Art site concerning "Lavender Mist"

Good article and several works here.

Our Scripture for Sunday is Psalm 46.

The worship bulletin for Sunday is here.

February 24, 2008 Paint by the Spirit: Degas

The history of the life of Edgar Degas can be found here.

The worship bulletin for Sunday is here.

A video of Degas' work

Notice this painting by Degas. It is called Ballerina with Woman with
Umbrella on a Bench. It is one of many paintings of dancers that Degas made. Degas painted his dancers as much at rehearsal and class as he did in performance. Was he celebrating all of life? Was he valuing the process as much as the product? Was he demonstrating that the beauty of the performance could only come about as a result of great effort? And what do we make of the woman next to her? Is this her teacher? Is it her mother? Is it her governess sent to escort her to rehearsal? Does her somber clothing reveal what the brightly-clothed ballerina really thought of dance? That is was a drudgery? Is the painting showing us that the mundane in necessary to produce the beautiful?

In one of his songs, Bob Dylan said, “Behind every beautiful thing, there’s been some kind of pain.” As we see the ballerina rub her ankle, we see the truth of that statement.

There is meaning and purpose and value in all of life, even your suffering. I do not believe that everything happens for a reason, but I do believe that every experience has value. I believe that every experience impacts our lives and shapes who we are. Just as class a practice were an essential part of the lives of Degas’ dancers, suffering and trials will be inevitable parts of our lives. But we believe that God will REDEEM our suffering. Suffering is not good, but something good can come from it.

It seems that our life is like the life of the dancers. It made up more of the mundane and painful parts than the beautiful parts. What do we do? How can we keep our heads up when all we see coming down the road at us is more of the same? I think in Romans 8 Paul gives us 4 handles to help us keep a grip when life is hard. Paul said in Romans 8.18, “I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing to the glory about to be revealed in us.” This verse reminds me of the second painting [Degas Ballerina]. Doesn’t that sound like the words of a dance instructor to her charges? I know rehearsal is hard. I know you’re sore. I know your feet hurt. But when the curtain opens and the lights come up, you will forget all about this. What are these 4 handles that allow us to get a grip on life? How can we come to focus on the glory and beauty of life over the suffering?

8.18-25 HOPE gets us through the hard parts of life. What is hope? Hope is the belief or maybe even the suspicion that something better is ahead of us. God’s redeeming of our souls in mercy leads us to hope that God will redeem the rest of our lives.

8.26-27 The SPIRIT INTERPRETS OUR PRAYERS to God. Life can be so hard and so mind-numbing at times that we don’t even know what to pray for, how to pray, or if we have the desire or strength to pray. The Spirit interprets are prayers to God in accordance to his purpose for us.

8.28-30 GOD’S PURPOSE WILL BE WORKED IN US through suffering. God will use the experiences of our lives to form our character into a Christ-like character.

8.31-39 No matter how bad things get, GOD ALWAYS LOVES US AND IS WITH US. I remember when I was little and I fell and hurt myself badly. I remember sitting on the front porch of my house in my father’s lap. My dad being there didn’t make it hurt less or heal faster, but it was extremely comforting to me just to be with him. So it is with God. God will ALWAYS be with us during our hard times. Is God even closer during our painful times? Psalm 34.18 tells us that God is near to the brokenhearted.

What’s hurting right now in your life? Where is the pain, the frustration? You can know that just as sure as God forgives your sins, he is going to redeem the rest of you, too. You may be confused, hurt. God knows just what you need, you don’t have to come up with some eloquent prayer. You don’t have to figure it out. Pain and suffering are not pleasant, but God can work in us through them. Are you dealing with hard stuff right now? Is your life a disappointment to you? Are you feeling hurt? God is near.

February 17, 2008 Paint by the Spirit: Cezanne

An Old Woman with a Rosary

The poet Joachim Gasquett tells us that this is a portrait of an ex-nun, who lost her faith and "escaped" from her convent. Gasquett found her wandering aimlessly and provided shelter for her. In Cézanne's portrait, she looks back upon a life that must have had significant pain and inner torment. And as she looks forward, she knows the days remaining to her are dwindling rapidly. So it is appropriate that the colors are somber.

[http://www.arttoheartweb.com/cezanne.htm]

But where is the light in this portrait? It is not in the hands that hold the rosary; the tool for prayer. The light is in the face. The face reflects the interior life of the woman. The face is the focus of light in the painting and her eyes are open and her eyebrow is raised with a hopeful expression.

How can this woman who has undoubtedly known so much turmoil, suffering, doubt, and anguish be hopeful at the end of her days? How? Why does she turn to prayer for her consolation, when she apparently lost her faith? Is it just a comforting habit? Is it the comfort of routine? If this was what Cezanne wanted to express, would there have been light and indications of hope in the painting? Probably not.

Cezanne was telling us that there is consolation in Christ; there is hope in Christ; and that anyone can come to Christ. Cezanne was a very religious man, a devout Catholic. You would think that we would turn away from this woman who was more than a “lapsed” Catholic—she had denied her faith, she had broken her vows. But in the simple act of prayer, this woman found her peace; her consolation in Christ. She was a member of no church, she had no organized religion. She had the religion of the heart; and in this she found the peace of Christ.

Look at Matthew 11.28-30: ‘Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. ²⁹Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.’

This is not the prevalent view of faith, of religion. For many people, religion or faith is burdensome. It is filled with do’s and don’ts and people are always judging you, and on top of all you have to do to get by in this life, you have a new set of demands: God’s demands. Either conventional wisdom (sometimes supported by a 1000 years of tradition is right or Jesus is right.

Who was Jesus talking to? People who were tired of carrying their burdens. What kinds of burdens do we carry?
our past
our sins
our worries
our hurts
our bitterness
our regrets
our failures
our what ifs and if onlys
our doubts
our confusion
our uncertainty

Jesus offers you rest. This is not necessarily the rest of inactivity, but it is certainly rest from struggle. We are meant to live following God’s way, the path of Jesus. This will be liberating for us. Restful. It will be like coming home.

Jesus asks that we come to him. Jesus asks that we enlist ourselves with him. Jesus asks that we learn his ways. This is how we will find rest. This is how we will find consolation.

Notice what Romans 8.12-16 says. When we live according to the Spirit, the inner witness in our souls is given voice and is strengthened.

1 John 3.14-24 tells us that practical acts of love will resonate in our souls that we belong to God.

A video of Cezanne's works is here.

The worship bulletin is here.

Paint by the Spirit the Sequel

We had such great response from our series Paint by the Spirit in the fall (and I enjoyed doing it so much) that we are bringing it back for four Sundays in Lent. We will begin on February 17 (Invite a Friend Sunday) with Cezanne. Other artists to be considered are Degas, Cassat, and Pollock. We consider their work, we look at their life story, and we consider how Scripture and the Spirit of God connects with their art. Join us for this feast of the visual senses.

What I'm Listening To

In the last week, I have been listening to these four CDs the most:

Linkin Park Minutes to Midnight

Bruce Springsteen Magic

Jimmy Eat World Chase This Light

[I received Magic for my birthday (11/29) and Minutes and Chase for Christmas.]

Top Twenty-Five Vineyard UK Praise and Worship Songs

The Perfect Church

This is my title for my message this Sunday. It is a little inaccurate. I make up titles two weeks before, when I am sending info in for the Catalina News. Sometimes my topic changes completely, and sometimes I stay on the same subject, but come up with a different conclusion or perspective. This week it is the latter. I am going to talk about the church and how we can be more of what we should be, but I'm going to take a little different approach.
We are going to watch and discuss the short video "You" from Nooma, featuring Rob Bell. We have seen a few of these videos before, always good; always thought provoking.
The worship bulletin is here.
The Scriptures for this week are:
Acts 2.44-45 All who believed were together and had all things in common; they would sell their possessions and goods and distribute the proceeds to all, as any had need.
Romans 12.4-5 For as in one body we have many members, and not all the members have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another.
1 Corinthians 10.16-17 The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a sharing in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a sharing in the body of Christ? Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread.
Colossians 1.18 He is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that he might come to have first place in everything.
Ephesians 4.15-16 But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love.
Ephesians 5.29-30 For no one ever hates his own body, but he nourishes and tenderly cares for it, just as Christ does for the church, because we are members of his body.
1 Corinthians 12.12-27
Romans 8.20-25

Are we part of the problem, or part of the solution? This is the question that the church of Jesus Christ must ask. This is the question that Catalina United Methodist Church must ask. This is the question that you and I must ask of ourselves.

Invite a Friend

Sunday February 17 is Invite a Friend Sunday at Catalina UMC and at The Refuge. Invite someone to come with you. We all promise to behave and not to stare at the new people!

Yeah, I know.

I know I said I would catch up and be more regular with my blog, and I know I didn't. But I'm trying.

Sunday, January 20: The Amazing Seth Ginter!!

Seth is preaching this Sunday while I will be away on Snowblast 08. Photos from last year's event are here (password is Catalina).
Anyway, Seth has gave me his Scriptures and good article to supplement the message, and I put them in the worship bulletin.
I promise to blog more next week!

Paint by the Spirit Returns in February

One of the studies that received the most favorable responses that I've done is Paint by the Spirit. In this study, we considered four well-known artists (Van Gogh, Picasso, Monet, Rembrandt) and the spiritual significance of their works. We will do a second series of four artists beginning February 17.
This Sunday is also our Bring a Friend Sunday at Catalina. You can use our topic as a conversation starter to invite friends to view great art and hear how the Scriptures relate.
I have not chosen artists yet, but am considering Degas, Michelangelo, Cezanne, Reubens, Renoir, Jackson Pollock, and Cassatt.

I was mad; I was sad; I was frustrated.

If you can stand it, view a slideshow of game photos here.
Yes, the Arizona Wildcats lost last night to ASU. ASU. I can't believe it and I hope you can't either. Yes, Jerryd Bayless was still out of the lineup. Yes, Brett Brielmeier re-injured his shoulder. But ASU? If you can't get up for this game, what do you expect post-season? I wonder why Kirk Walters didn't play. Does Coach O have something against him? I don't know. I'll never give up on the Wildcats, but last night's game was a severe disappointment.
At least the Suns won.

The Baptism of Christ

This is the second Sunday in the season of Epiphany, and the theme in the lectionary for January 13 is the Baptism of Christ. The theme of Epiphany is presenting Jesus as the Christ, so it is understandable that his baptism would be part of this consideration. At the baptism of Jesus, the Holy Spirit descended on him like a dove and the voice of God was heard proclaiming "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." Our worship bulletin for this Sunday is here.

But why was Jesus baptized? People came to John to be baptized "confessing their sins" (Matthew 3) and for "forgiveness of sins" (Mark 1). If Jesus had no sin, why was he baptized? There are several theories as to why Jesus was baptized.

Some scholars believed that it was at the baptism that Jesus became the Christ. If this is so, there would have been no need for the miraculous birth. If this were so, John would not have recognized Jesus for who he was BEFORE the baptism.

Some hold that John's baptism was part of the initiation rite for the ascetic group living in the area known as the Essenes. It is true that John was an ascetic, hermit-type character. But Jesus never was. In fact, the Pharisees and John's disciples questioned him about his lack of asceticism (Matthew 9.9-17).

Another view is that Jesus was baptized to connect his life and ministry with that of John the Baptist. This works to a certain extent. Notice in Matthew 3.2 the message of John: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” Then notice in Matthew 4.17 the message of Jesus: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” There is a significance to the connection between Jesus and John. The Scriptures are clear that John was the forerunner for Jesus; one who goes before and prepares the way. In our language, John was the advance man for Jesus.

I am most convinced by the idea that Jesus was baptized to identify with us. Jesus was baptized not because of HIS sins, but because of OURS. When John objected to baptizing him, Jesus said, “Let it be so now; for it is proper for us in this way to fulfill all righteousness.” Jesus came to John to be baptized because he was identifying with us fully; with our human condition and need completely. As Jesus identified with us at his baptism, so we are identified with him. We are also now God’s beloved child in whom God is well-pleased (2 Corinthians 5.21, John 1.12). So, it can be said that the baptism of Christ is an extension of the incarnation. Jesus continued to show that he was truly “Emmanuel, God with us.” And as Jesus’ baptism identified him with us and our condition, so our baptism identifies us with Jesus and his condition (Romans 6.3,4).

I will elaborate on this Sunday!

Epiphany This Sunday, January 6

The worship bulletin for this Sunday is here. There are a lot of cool traditions centered around Epiphany. You can read about them here. There is more info here; especially read about the traditions associated with Epiphany. I think the ideas of "chalking the door" and the Epiphany cake are especially cool.

Sunday December 23

The final theme for Advent is LOVE. Here are the Scriptures:
John1.1-18
Philppians 2.5-11
And here is the worship bulletin.

Third Sunday in Advent

The worship bulletin for this Sunday is here. The theme for this week is JOY. That's good, right? We all would like to, maybe NEED to, feel more joy. It's what makes the holidays special, isn't it. It seems to me from the Scriptures that joy is related to redemption. We can have joy because of redemption. See, that is why happiness is different from joy. As it has been said before, happiness is usually associated with happenings (my circumstances in life). Joy comes from knowing that I have been redeemed by God, that the biggest questions in life are settled, and that even though I may have hard times, God will work through them (redeem them) in my life (Romans 8.28).
Scriptures for this Sunday:
Isaiah 35.1-2, 8-10
Luke 2.1-20

How Big Is Your Footprint?

My wife Mindy (what? as opposed to my other wife?) sent me a link to this quiz. It measures your ecological footprint. I scored 15, when the average for my age/area was 24. Lower is better, so I guess that's good. But I would like to drive less, conserve energy more, use less water, eat more local food, and eat less red meat.

HeartSupport

HeartSupport is a website that is a support group for people struggling with addictions, depression, eating disorders, etc. Give it a look. You might need it. You might know someone needs it. I got the link from Marko.

Speaking of Darfur...

The problem is not solved. Go here to take action. However you feel about our current administration, this is one issue they've gotten right. If you are having trouble getting interested in the situation in Darfur, rent the movie Hotel Rwanda. It's about Rwanda, not Sudan, but it gives you an idea of what genocide is like. I've liked Don Cheadle ever since I saw him in Traffic.

Didn't I Say This Sunday?

Read this article about the situation in Darfur. It relates peace and justice, as I did Sunday, as does Isaiah.

Christmas Stuff

The folks at rejesus.co.uk have put together an awesome collection of Christmas stuff. Some is fun, some is meditative. You should check it out!

Look! I'm a dancing elf!

Well, I made a total elf of myself today...and 3 other unsuspecting friends. At least they used to be friends, I don't know if they will be after they see this!
If you have to blame someone, my wife sent me a link to this site.

What Would Jesus Buy?

I received an email today from Rick McKinley, one of the lead guys in the Advent Conspiracy. It is about the movie What Would Jesus Buy? which is sort of a parody and it is put out by Morgan Spurlock (Super Size Me). The movie is opening in Tucson at the Loft this Friday, December 7.
Here is the article:

// WHAT WOULD JESUS BUY?

Rick McKinley Pastor Imago Dei Community

I got a surprise email from Morgan Spurlock the day after Thanksgiving.. His new movie What Would Jesus Buy? was premiering in Portland that weekend. You may remember Morgan from his movie Super Size Me.” Morgan had heard about [AC] Advent Conspiracy and as we talked we found we shared a similar desire to see the story of Christmas re-told. He was kind enough to invite my family and I to the showing.

The movie deserves a viewing and will start some great conversations on consumerism in our culture and the systemic effect it has had on our culture.

I really encourage you if you are in a city where it is playing to go see it and take some people with you. Morgan is a great guy and he agreed to come to Imago and let me interview him the next morning at Church. Watch it here if you like..

We have a better story to tell at Christmas, let’s tell it well.

- Rick

Other 6

I found another cool site today. It's called "Other 6", which refers to the other 6 days of the week besides Sunday. It is intended to help us see God at work in the other 6 days of the week that do not have a time committed to God (like worship). You can add bubbles about how you saw God this day, or about how you need to see God show up in your life. You can read where other people have found God, or where they need to (and you could pray for them). You can even download an application that reminds you to look for God in your daily life. Give it a try!

3 Minute Retreat

In the right side column you will find a link to a site called "3 Minute Retreat". It is a way to pray and engage Scripture online in a meaningful way that is also short and convenient. The retreat may take more than 3 minutes--you can pray and meditate for as long as you like at some points. I liked it. Give it a try.

The Second Sunday in Advent: PEACE

December 9 is the second Sunday in Advent. Our theme in The Refuge is PEACE. Our Scriptures are:
Isaiah 2.1-5
Isaiah 9.2-7
Luke 1.67-79
Isaiah 32.16-17

Notice what these Scriptures say about peace and how it relates to the coming of Jesus, the Christ.

The images in these Scriptures are of light and peace together. The Isaiah passages also emphasize the authority of Christ as the source of peace.

The Luke passage brings in to the mix spiritual peace, and he also employs the image of light.

God will bring peace, but we can work for it now.

Christ has authority—all authority—and he will bring peace to this world. He will bring peace by bringing light. The light will dispel our fear and will show us the path to peace. Right now, we can experience Christ’s peace by experiencing his forgiveness.

Light and peace characterize Christ’s kingdom. As the kingdom of God is advanced—as more and more of the world and the situations and people in the world come into line with the desires of God—light will come and peace will prevail.

Christ’s kingdom is advanced and peace comes when justice prevails.

How can we work for justice? Will YOU work for justice? Will YOU work for peace?

God will bring peace, but we can experience it now.

Only God’s salvation brings peace. Let the light of God search through every corner of your life. Commit the things exposed by the light to the forgiveness and tender mercy of God. Feel the peace of God. Your guilt is gone. You can stop worrying about failing to measure up. Your shame is now baseless. You no longer need to fear death. When you let go of those things, you are free to step out into the light and to be guided by God into his peace.

We accept God’s forgiveness and we enter into life and light and salvation. Have you accepted the forgiveness that God offers in Jesus Christ?

We accept God’s forgiveness because our attempts at following Christ are imperfect at best, interrupted by our impulses and pride, and often misguided.

This week's worship bulletin is here.

The Big 5-0

Last week (November 29) I turned 50. That's right, I was born in 1957. I had a really good birthday. Originally, we planned to do something active outside involving volleyball or maybe kickball, but the weather was bad all last week. Instead we moved inside and had a lot of fun anyway.
My family took me out to eat and to a movie on Friday. That was a lot of fun, too. We went to On the Border, and then to Crossroads to see Gone Baby Gone.
All in all, a great weekend. And no, it doesn't feel any different being 50. And yes, I've received SEVERAL mailings from AARP wanting me to join.

Bob Dylan

Most people who know me know I am a huge Bob Dylan fan. Even though I am old enough to have been around during a big part of his career, I really became interested in the 90's while I lived in West Virginia. A guy in my church told me about Bob's Christian albums, and made me some tapes. I was hooked. Now I am a fan of all things Bob Dylan. For the record, my favorite CD is Time Out of Mind from the late 90's. The article from an email from Relevant below is very revealing.








What sent shock waves through the industry, the media and his fan base was the news that Bob Dylan, the symbol of protest against the Establishment, had placed his faith in Jesus. The Jewish icon of counterculture was now a born-again Christian; Bob Dylan had come to believe that Jesus was the fulfillment of the messianic prophecies found in the Hebrew scriptures, just as the Jewish writers of the New Testament had maintained.

The initial shock of hearing that Bob Dylan—Bob Dylan!—professed to have a personal relationship with Jesus was followed by utter confusion. How could this be? There seemed to be no sane explanation for this bewildering turn of events. Some cynics charged that Dylan had been brainwashed, others argued that he had simply sold out; the popularity of contemporary Christian music was on the rise, and he had decided to cash in on the booming genre.

Most baffling of all, though, was the seeming contradiction between Dylan’s Jewish ethnicity and his newfound passion for Jesus. Many in the Jewish community felt that Dylan had betrayed his heritage; others apparently unaware of any Jewish believers in Jesus found the whole situation incomprehensible: How could a Jew believe in Jesus?

But what about Dylan’s spiritual leanings prior to 1979? Before his experience with Jesus there were numerous indications that he was familiar with the teachings of the New Testament; he hadn’t exactly been silent about the person of Jesus.

Having grown up in a Jewish home, a young Bob Dylan would have had more than a passing acquaintance with the Hebrew language and Scriptures. Perhaps equally—or even more—influential was the gospel music he heard on the radio late at night, when from his home in Minnesota he could pull in a signal from far-away Shreveport, La., a thousand miles to the south.

Dylan still remembers when he was 12 and first heard the legendary gospel group the Staple Singers. “At midnight the gospel stuff would start,” he said.

As a 22-year-old in 1963, Dylan referred to Jesus in his lyrical masterpieces “Masters of War” and “With God on Our Side.” The former included an overstatement that had Jesus drawing a line on His forgiveness; the latter asked a question loaded with heavy implications: Did Judas Iscariot have God on his side? You’ll have to decide that one for yourself, Dylan wrote. Regardless of the answer, one thing was certain: If the pop genre had a coffin, then as a lyricist Dylan had certainly just driven a few nails into it.

Despite these and other biblical allusions in his early lyrics, on more than one occasion Dylan flatly denied having a personal faith. Claiming to have tried out several different religions, Dylan said he had no religion of his own. He believed individuals and churches interpreted the Bible to suit their own needs. God is all around us, he said, but people don’t respect or recognize Him; after all, look what they did to Jesus when He walked on the earth, he pointed out.

Dylan may not have claimed a personal faith, but his own words indicate that God was very much on his mind, just as the Bible was very much a part of his life.

So obvious was the spiritual content of Dylan’s epic album Highway 61 Revisited, released in 1965 when the singer was 24, that journalist Michael Corcoran would later describe the lyrics as a translation of the Bible in street terms.

It didn’t take long before yet another role was assigned to the groundbreaking songwriter—that of prophet. While Dylan consistently shunned this role, it became increasingly clear that he couldn’t escape it. Gifted with extraordinary spiritual and moral insight, Dylan had become the spokesman for an entire disenchanted, disillusioned generation. Whether he liked it or not, he fit the prophetic bill.

Without question, Dylan’s upbringing, particularly his Jewish heritage, had significantly shaped who he is today. And clearly, late-night radio was largely responsible for shaping Dylan’s life as a musician, poet and spiritual seeker. The rhythms of the music, the cadence of the words, the passion of the stories all coalesced into a brilliant mind and soul centered on the spiritual nature of every aspect of life.

Beyond that, it’s anyone’s guess as to what other factors made Bob Dylan the man he is today—which, in essence, is the same man he has always been. The early influences that created in him an independent nature and the determination to live an authentic life are a part of the mystery that is Bob Dylan. Like few other entertainers, Dylan has resisted—or perhaps more accurately, completely ignored—all the pointless efforts his record company, fans and critics have made to get him to conform to their image of who he should be. Over a period of 40 years in the spotlight, Dylan has remained faithful to who he is and what he believes to be true.

Dylan doesn’t fit any of the religious molds that people have created, simply because Dylan’s personal expression of faith remains larger than any mold mere men ever could create. Meanwhile, as outside observers continue their efforts to pigeonhole him, Bob Dylan continues to sit at the feet of the Master on his personal hillside, listening attentively, questioning respectively, analyzing thoughtfully. Yes, this just could be where Dylan has been sitting all along.

This excerpt from Restless Pilgrim (RELEVANT) by Scott Marshall with Marcia Ford is featured in the current issue of RELEVANT.

Author: Scott M. Marshall With Marcia Forda

Scott M. Marshall with Marcia Ford authored Restless Pilgrim: The Spiritual Journey of Bob Dylan (RELEVANT).

Advent

This Sunday, Dec. 2, is the first Sunday in Advent.

What is Advent?

Advent, from the Latin adventus ("coming"), marks the beginning of the Church year (the Christian calendar), comprising the four weeks before Christmas. In recent years, Advent has been viewed as forming the first part of the three-part season of Christmas: (1) Advent; (2) Christmas; (3) Epiphany.

The season of Advent appears to have originated in Gaul (modern day France), in the second half of the fourth century A.D. At this time it was a three week fast before Christmas. We do not find the first mention of Advent in Rome, however, until the late sixth century.

From the beginning, Advent has been a season of preparation for Christ's coming. When Advent observances first began, Christians living in the West (the western part of the Roman Empire) emphasized preparation for the Second Coming of Christ. Christians in the East stressed preparation for the celebration of Christ's birth.

For many centuries Advent's overall tone was one of sorrow for sin and penance. But in keeping with the tone of the Scripture readings for the season, in our day the tone of Advent is one of anticipation and hope, as well as one of repentance.

This Sunday, our theme is HOPE. We can have hope because Advent calls us to watch for Emmanuel, God with us. God is with us. We can have hope!
The worship bulletin for Sunday is here, and a Bible study sheet for the week is here.

Happy Birthday!

Today (November 29) is my birthday. It's a big one...50! It's pretty good so far. I'm on vacation this week, so not much blogging.

Christ the King Sunday

This next Sunday (November 25) is Christ the King Sunday. Christ the King is always the last Sunday before Advent. Check out some history about the day. This is also a good article. Our worship bulletin for Sunday is here.
Our focus is this week is simple. What if the words we pray came true? What if God's kingdom did come? What if God's will WAS done on earth JUST AS it is done in heaven? What would that look like? Will that ever be a reality? What is our part in that?
The Scriptures for this week are:
John 18.28-19.16
Matthew 20.25-28
Colossians 1.11-20
Luke 4.16-21

This is another email article from Relevant. I am interested in the documentary described.

'Tis the season for shopping insanity. From the day after Thanksgiving (“Black Friday”) through Christmas and New Years, the malls teem with long lines and crying babies and the credit card companies cha-ching-ing their way to a fat and happy holiday. But what is wrong with this picture? How twisted is it that the sacred holiday we know as Christmas has been commandeered by our unquenchable obsession with acquiring things?

For one “preacher” and his “church,” something can and must be done. Reverend Billy and the Church of Stop Shopping are taking matters into their own hands—preaching against consumerism all over the country, calling out in the wilderness of bling for an urgent exorcism of credit-obsession and a preemptive strike against the evil empires bringing about the “shopocalypse.” Yes, this is for real.

In the new Morgan Spurlock-produced documentary, What Would Jesus Buy? (releasing this week in select cities), these questions are given some comically serious consideration. The film follows Rev. Billy and the Church of Stop Shopping Gospel Choir during their cross-country bus tour in the Christmas season of 2005, performing cleverly subversive protest “gospel” songs in churches, malls, Wal-Marts and Abercrombie & Fitch stores (among others).

I should probably clarify: Reverend Billy is not an ordained minister and doesn’t even call himself a Christian. The preacher persona (modeled after a sweaty, over-the-top televangelist) is simply a stage name for Bill Talen, an actor-turned-activist from New York City (via San Francisco) who grew up Christian but left the faith as a teenager. He adopted the “Reverend” title in 1997 as a way to creatively protest America’s increasingly excessive consumerism and corporate homogeneity (with Starbucks, Wal-Mart, and Disney being his version of the “axis of evil”). What began as his solitary street “preaching” in Times Square (the “Stonehenge of billboards”) soon became a “ministry” of sorts—the Church of Stop Shopping.

The “church” is essentially a volunteer performance art/activist group, comprised of 50 singers and an eight-piece band. Though several members of the “gospel” choir are preachers’ kids, the group does not claim Christian orthodoxy. The songs they sing may sound like Jesus jams (complete with robes, swaying and hand raising), but the lyrics are more about slamming Starbucks than praising God.

Indeed, the most provocative (and potentially offensive) thing about this film is the way it blurs the lines between sacred and secular, using the forms/traditions of Christianity to proclaim its message (anti-consumerism) that is more or less secular. Is it OK that Rev. Billy and the “church” of Stop Shopping poke fun at certain brands of Christianity as a means to get their message noticed? How should Christians feel about this? Are their methods—however subversive—worth the good ends toward which they fight?

These are all questions I discussed with Morgan Spurlock in an interview last week. A very gracious and affable man, Spurlock (best known for his film Super Size Me) understood and shared some of my concerns about how Christian audiences might react to the film. Spurlock agreed that Billy has a tendency to alienate audiences, but noted that, “Reverend Billy may turn off some people, but the strength of the film is not in the man but the message.”

When I asked him what exactly that message was, Spurlock responded, “Billy’s message is similar to the message of Christianity that we’ve lost sight of … Jesus was a radical guy,” he said. “He drove the moneychangers out of the temple. Billy is acting within the tradition of Christ by using theater as a means of reform and activism.”

For Spurlock, the over-the-top theatricality and subversive comedy in the film serve a larger purpose. “It’s a movie that reminds you what is important in your life,” he said. “The question of ‘what would Jesus do?’ forces people to consider their own actions and priorities.”

Spurlock hopes the extreme exhortations of Rev. Billy (“Stop shopping! Mickey Mouse is the Antichrist!”) will not turn people off but rather get them thinking about consumerism as a serious problem. “Stop shopping is a way to open a door,” he said. “No one is going to stop shopping completely, but we have to ask questions about the products we buy. Where is it made? Is the money going back into the local economy? We don’t think about these questions enough.”

“I think we can be conscious consumers, where we don’t just buy blindly,” notes Spurlock, who believes that Christians should especially resonate with the message of the film—since they of all people can understand how far we’ve strayed from the true message of Christmas.

Even so, I can’t help but question the extent to which the “Christianity” invoked in this film mirrors the actual gospel that Jesus espoused. It seems to me that Spurlock and Rev. Billy’s group see Christ mostly as a great moral leader whose “message” could be summed up in words like peace, justice, equality and universal goodwill. But while this is all true of Christ’s message, isn’t there more to it?

At one point near the end of the film, Rev. Jim Wallis is interviewed and remarks that what Christmas represents—the birth of Christ—is the only thing that will ultimately fill the dissatisfaction that drives people to consume. But while What Would Jesus Buy? is good at pointing out the dissatisfaction that leads us to over-consumption, it stops short of Wallis’ claim that the answers lie in the person of Jesus Christ. Revered Billy says near the end of the film that “Christmas is about a child that will grow up to show the world peace … and you don’t have to be a Christian to believe that’s true.” Yes, that’s right, but “showing the world peace” is not all that Christmas represents. We can (and should) decry consumerism, the commercialization of Christmas, and the commodification of Christianity, but the ultimate call should be for a re-cast consumerism: one that is consumed with Christ and His commandments rather than cars and cappuccinos.

Author: Brett McCracken
To hear our interview with Morgan Spurlock, be sure to download this week's RELEVANT Podcast.
Brett is a grad student at UCLA's Film School and has recently started a blog at stillsearching.wordpress.com.

Family of disBelievers

This is another excellent article that I found in my email from Relevant.




One year after my mom’s wedding, I found out that my stepdad used to be Christian prior to meeting my mother. I’ve never asked why he lost his faith. My mom agreed to marry him on one condition: that he never return to the Church. So now, among the books on their library shelf, sit titles like The Atheist’s Bible and The God Delusion, right next to the untouched The Good News Bible.

As a teenager, I discovered this dusty gold book in my family’s collection. My mom only told me that it used to be hers, but never explained further. Today, I cannot imagine a younger version of my mother folding her hands in prayer. I often wonder if she used to talk to God and what made her give up on Him. I want to meet that little girl with dirty blond hair and ask if she could trust Him again.

When my parents divorced, I became a Christian, and the distance between my family and me grew. I continued asking God why my family appeared fine without Him. If Jesus was the Truth and the Way, why weren’t they seeking Him? But I began to realize that the transformation began with me. As my faith increased, my heart grew to hold a greater love for others, and my family began to notice those changes. When I chose to live for Christ, His purpose became bigger than my own.

My sister asked me one time, “What kinds of things do you pray for?”

“I pray for people, for Dad to be safe, for Mom to be happy and for you guys,” I said.

She asked what I prayed for them, and I told her I prayed that they would do well in school and make new friends, but in actuality, I pray to be a better role model for them. I pray that they’ll continue asking about my faith. I pray that the desire for knowledge and friendship will lead them into more discussions about Jesus. I know He works in mysterious ways. And one day, they’ll see something or meet someone who will stir questions deep within their hearts, and they’ll begin to wonder if He’s real.

Sometimes in church on Sundays, I imagine my mom sitting beside me, drinking a cup of grape juice during communion. I imagine her discussing the pros and cons of the pastor’s sermon with me. I imagine her pointing out an important passage of the Bible to me with authority. “Turn to 1 John 4:7,” she would say. I wonder if she secretly consults that gold Bible of hers once in a while and dog-ears a page or two.

My mom is my best friend, but I struggle with introducing my faith to her. She never voiced disapproval over my decision of faith, but she didn’t exactly support me, either. So I step cautiously around religious. I find myself rewording sentences so as not to come across as a Bible-thumping fundamentalist, and at the same time, I refrain from pointing out every positive experience and saying, “See, that’s God right there.” I don’t want her to think I have an agenda or that I’m out to save a couple more lives for Jesus.

Salvation is one of the most important concepts of Christianity that continues to puzzle me. While flipping through one of my mom’s school yearbooks, I found a baptism certificate hidden in its pages. So is my mom saved, or must she start over and repent because she lost her faith? It’s too difficult for me to imagine her or anyone else in my family enduring an eternity without God, so I show them love and attempt to bring Jesus into their lives. But is that enough? If they died tomorrow, will I have done all I could? Or will I feel guilty for not having done more?

I want to tell my mom that in all these years of suffering, God has never left her side. No matter what she was told in the past, He loves and forgives. I have never outright said, “Mom, I want you to know that Jesus loves you more than anything,” because I’m afraid of my words failing. In my mind, she would answer sarcastically, “Nice to know he cares.” And she’d say it with a lowercase “h” because He is just a pronoun to her.

For every unclear, unfamiliar and unknown situation I face with my family, I remain hopeful about God’s promises and confident that He will move in time. Lamentations 3:25–26 promises, “The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord” (TNIV). My family hasn’t witnessed the hours of tears I’ve cried for them, and they haven’t heard the hours of prayers I’ve spoken for them. But I don’t think those hours have been wasted. I know God hears me. The Bible says, “If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer” (Matthew 21:22).

I visualize these plans He sets before me—dozens of moments, hundreds of conversations and thousands of opportunities for me to witness and spread His message. I am called to love Jesus, to love others and to live a Christ-centered life. But how do I share the most important facet of my life with the most important people in my life when the two are incompatible? The answer is simply to love.
Author: Morgan Kirk

Morgan Kirk is an intern at RELEVANT Media Group.

Free Rice

Check out this simple vocabulary game. As you get words correct, the sponsors pay to donate rice to hungry people. You play, they pay, others get to eat. Simple enough, huh? BTW, my rating was 41. Thanks to Marko for this one.

Sunday November 11

[I check this page on Mondays for comments needing a response. On Wednesday, I switch it over to the topic for the next Sunday.]

This is the one Sunday per year that we get down to brass tacks about what we are going to do during the next year as far as our involvement in the church is concerned. This is Pledge Sunday.
This year, we are taking the approach of considering the promises we made when we were baptized, confirmed, or received into church membership. We promised to support the church with our prayers, presence, gifts, and service. In other words, it's not just about money. Our pledge cards for this year include all 4 areas. And our prayer and worship experiences will give us an opportunity to explore each of the areas and what God is leading us to do in each one.

Feel free to leave any feedback or discussion as a comment! Read the comments, and discuss with each other!

Questions or comments

Feel free to leave any questions or comments about The Refuge or anything at all here in the comments section. I will reply as a comment (so you will need to check back to see the reply), or you can include your email address and I will reply directly to you.

A New Way to Do Church

The article below is from an email sent to me by the folks at Emergent Village. It describes a development at Willow Creek Community Church (near Chicago). Willow is the quintessential megachurch and its pastor, Bill Hybels, is leader of the Willow Creek Association for likeminded churches.
I recommend reading the article below and following the links to watch the videos. In many ways, I think that this really is no big change in approach for Willow. When Bill talks about personalized spiritual develop plans, it still seems like he is being driven by a business plan and not led by the Spirit.
Spiritual formation only happens in community. And it happens almost by accident sometimes. As the people of God do the work of God and seek the face of God all by the Spirit of God, spiritual formation happens. Sanctification (as Wesley would have put it) happens.
You can do things to put yourself in a place for God to work. You can throw open windows in your life to let in the grace of God, but YOU CAN'T PROGRAM SPIRITUAL FORMATION.

Happy Reading!

Intentionality, Practice, and Vitality

Posted: 29 Oct 2007 08:34 PM CDT

As you’ve probably already heard, Willow Creek Community Church “repented” recently, with founding pastor Bill Hybels himself admitting, “We made a mistake. What we should have done when people crossed the line of faith and became Christians, we should have started telling people and teaching people that they have to take responsibility to become ‘self-feeders.’ We should have gotten people, taught people, how to read their Bible between service, how to do the spiritual practices much more aggressively on their own.”

There’s been plenty of reaction in the blogosphere.

Writing today on the Alban Institute website, Diana Butler Bass says, “Notice what Hybels says is missing: intentionality, practice, and vitality.”

Bass says these are the same three points confirmed by her 2004 research on mainline churches which found: “Congregations that intentionally engage Christian practices are congregations that experience new vitality” (The Practicing Congregation, Alban Institute).

She explains, “Intentionality involves choice and taking responsibility for individual and communal spirituality; ... practice is not a program, rather it is a meaningful way of life; and … vitality cannot be measured in terms of numbers as it means spiritual health and maturity. A vital congregation is one where all people—including the pastor—are growing members of an organic community of spiritual practice..”

Read the whole thing

Year of Living Biblically

This article is from an email I received from Relevant Magazine.
The author of the book featured in this article attempted to live for one year in obedience to every command of the Bible (that was not illegal). The result is the book described below. I found this excerpt article pretty interesting. Let me know what you think by leaving a comment.

Editor’s Note: The article is a portion of the cover story for issue 29 of RELEVANT. To subscribe to RELEVANT, you can go here.

For my book The Year of Living Biblically, I spent 12 months following the rules of the Old Testament. All of them. Hundreds of them. I followed the famous ones, such as the Ten Commandments and ‘Love thy neighbor.’ But I also followed the often-ignored ones, such as don’t wear clothes of mixed fibers, don’t shave your beard and, yes, stone adulterers.

It was an amazing, enlightening and life-changing year. It was a spiritual journey that moved from irreverence to reverence. You see, I grew up in a totally secular home. No religion at all. I’m officially Jewish, but I’m Jewish in the way the Olive Garden is Italian. Which is to say, not very. But in recent years, I decided I needed to see what I was missing. Was I neglecting something crucial to being human, like someone who goes through life without ever hearing Beethoven or falling in love? I dived into the Bible headfirst. And lo, it was awesome. I was surprised by how relevant much of the Bible’s ancient wisdom was to my 21st-century life. I was surprised by how baffled I was by other passages. I was surprised by how a lifelong agnostic like I am could find solace in prayer. I was surprised by how the Bible revealed my flaws and challenged me to be a better person.

Since I’m officially Jewish, I spent most of my year studying and following the Old Testament (though I did devote the last four months to the New Testament). I know that most Christians don’t follow a lot of Old Testament laws. And in fact, neither do Jews. Jews may avoid shellfish, as Leviticus says, but they don’t stone adulterers or sacrifice animals. Those were abandoned after the Romans destroyed the Temple in Jerusalem. But I wanted to try everything. As naive or misguided as it may have been, I wanted to get into the mind and sandals of my ancestors. And I’m glad I did. Because even the rules that seemed bizarre at first glance were thought-provoking and revealed important insights about faith, God and the Bible. THE FIVE MOST UNEXPECTEDLY WISE & LIFE-ENHANCING RULES Keep the Sabbath. I’m a workaholic (I check my emails in the restroom, in the middle of movies, anywhere). But the Sabbath taught me the beauty of an enforced pause in the week. No cell phones, no messages, no thinking about deadlines. It was a bizarre and glorious feeling. As one famous rabbi said, the Sabbath is a “sanctuary in time.” Give thanks. The Bible says to thank the Lord before our meals. I did that. But then I got carried away. I gave thanks for everything—for the subway arriving on time, for the comfortable cushions on my couch, for my high-speed DSL connection, etc. It was a strange but great experience. Never have I been so aware of the thousands of little things that go right in our lives. “Let Your Garments Be Always White” (Ecclesiastes 9:8). I chose to follow this literally—I wore white pants, a white shirt and a white jacket. This was one of the best things I did all year. I felt lighter, happier, purer. Clothes make the man: You can’t be in a bad mood when you’re dressed like you’re about to play the semifinals at Wimbledon or go to P. Diddy’s party. Don’t Gossip. When you try to go on a gossip diet, you realize just how much of our conversations involve negative speech about others. But holding your tongue is like the verbal equivalent of wearing white. I felt cleaner and untainted. Do Not Curse. I used to curse a lot. In fact, my computer password was, at one time, a particularly adolescent bodily function. During my year, I tried to scrub up my vocabulary. My new curse words were: Fudge, sugar and shoot. Whenever I said them, my wife would respond by whistling the Andy Griffith theme song. She can mock me, but the weird thing is, I think my G-rated language made me a less angry person. Because here’s the way it works: I’d get to the subway platform just as the downtown train was pulling away, and I’d start to say the F-word. I’d remember to censor myself. So I’d turn it into “Fudge” at the last second. When I heard myself say “Fudge" out loud, it sounded so folksy, so Jimmy Stewart-ish and amusingly dorky, that I couldn’t help but smile. My anger receded. Behavior shaped emotions. THREE RULES THAT I SUCCESSFULLY KEPT THE ENTIRE YEAR WITHOUT EVEN VIOLATING ONCE You shall not plant your field with two kinds of seed (Leviticus 19:19). My attempt at agriculture—some cucumber plants in flowerpots—wasn’t too successful. The cucumbers got to be the size of Good and Plenty candies and mysteriously stopped growing. But, I made sure the seeds were purely cucumber, not mixed. Do not sacrifice your children to Molech (Leviticus 20:5). In fact, I didn’t sacrifice my children to any pagan god whatsoever. You shall not take on your wife’s sister as your second wife. Well, it does help that my wife doesn’t have a sister. To see more about AJ Jacobs biblical year and the lessons he learned through Old Testament rules and New Testament principles (including his experience “stoning” an adulterer), check out the latest issue of RELEVANT.

Author: AJ Jacobs AJ Jacobs is the author of The Year of Living Biblically (Simon and Schuster).

All Saints Remembrance

This Sunday, we will observe All Saints Sunday at The Refuge. Technically, All Saints Day is November 1, but Protestant churches normally do not have a specific All Saints Day service, and simply observe it on the Sunday closest to the day (usually the Sunday after). Look at our worship bulletin for a short history of All Saints Day.
This Sunday is also Communion Sunday at Catalina.