Lent - Week Four (Receive)

Week four – Receive

God’s word is living in that it can live in and through us.  While God’s word of love and grace does not change, we begin to hear it differently as we travel along our life’s journey.  We do not read a story or a passage with the same kind of understanding as when we were children.

Think of those places in your life that you have more thorough knowledge now than you did when you were younger.  When you were a child, driving a car just looked like moving the steering wheel back and forth.  With time and experience, you learned not just the rules of the road, but practices that lead to safer and more efficient driving.

We can say the same is true in our lives of faith.  In our discovering of God’s presence, we open ourselves and our hearts to receive that which God has to offer us.  Through this “old, old story”, we hear anew God’s grace. In the book of Lamentations, the author writes: “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” (3:22-23 - a good verse to remind ourselves about each and every day.

When we hear the story of creation, we find more than a story about our origins, it is about the One who created us in his image.  We see all of God’s creation from the perspective of God’s creative and evolving imagination.  We see ourselves as caretakers of that which God has entrusted to us.  As we look at the world around us and into the faces of others, we see God’s handiwork; we find God in our midst.

It is not just in the knowing about God, but it is in the receiving of what God has to offer each of us – our abundant life. 

In Diana Butler Bass’ most recent book (Gratitude: The Transformative power of Giving Thanks), she reflects on a presentation from Elie Wiesel, “When people lack gratitude, “something is missing in their humanity.”  People can “almost be defined by their attitude toward gratitude”. Weisel is not speaking of material goods. He means that our ability to experience life as a gift, to treasure that gift, and to feel its power, even in the most violent and demeaning of circumstances, is the very essence of human existence.  Life is the gift.  Not what we have, but that we are.”

In discovery the gift of life given us by God, we receive it with thankfulness and gratitude. We see the ways that God is already working in our lives and in our world.  We see the glass as not half full or half empty but overflowing with the love and grace of Christ that is poured out for all.

What have you received from God for which you are mindful?  What do you want to offer to God as a prayer of thanks? 

Pieces for reflection: each week, different passages, poems, songs, etc. will be suggested to use for your own reflections on the week’s theme.  Use whichever ones are most helpful for you.  As you do so, use the following questions to guide you in your reflections:

1)   What about this speaks to my own life?

2)   What might God be saying to me through this?

3)   How will I approach my life in a new way?

Suggested resources:

1)   Read Joel 2:18-27

2)   Read Matthew 25:1-30

3)   Prayer by Walter Brueggemann “The God who yearns and waits for us”

We are strange conundrums of faithfulness and fickleness,

We cleave to you in all the ways that we are able.

We count on you and intend our lives to be lived for you,

          And then we find ourselves among your people

          Who are always seeking elsewhere and otherwise.

So we give thanks that you are the God

   Who yearns and waits for us,

          And that our connection to you is always from your side,

          And that is because of your goodness

          That neither life nor death

                   Nor angels nor principalities

                   Nor height nor depths

                   Not anything in creation

                             Can separate us from you.

We give you thanks for your faithfulness,

          So much more durable than ours.  Amen.

Weekly reflections written and developed by Pastor Jennifer E.  Boyd

Additional Resources used:

“Gratitude: The Transformative power of Giving thanks” by Diana Butler Bass

“Awed to Heaven, Rooted to Earth” Prayers by Walter Brueggemann

The Millennial Narrative by Jaco Hamman (weekly themes gleaned from this book)

 “We will Remember” CD, songs and music by Christopher Williams

All Biblical citations are from the New Revised Standard version (unless otherwise noted)

Lent - Week Three (Discover)

Week three – Discover

From our recognizing and with our gathering, we soon discover the gift that we receive in sharing our laments. We see that we are not alone.  We find that we do not have the strength to pick up the pieces ourselves, there are others to help, to support and to gather with us.

 In this discovery, we find that God is already and always present in our midst. 

There are most certainly times when we cry aloud “where are you, God?” and when we are uncertain of God’s role in our lives.  Yet, God has been there the whole time.  God has not abandoned us, but rather has been waiting to welcome us home – just as the father welcomed his prodigal son home (Luke 15:11-32).

In Greek, the word for repent is metanoia which literally means to turn around.  It is a refocusing our attention.  It is no longer relying solely on our own strength, but turning back to the One who created us in shalom.

Lost in our own sorrow or shame, eyes blinded by tears and uncertainty, we do not see the One who has never left our side.  Mary Magdalene encounters Jesus at the empty tomb, but thinks that he is the gardener (John 20:11-18).  We too may meet Jesus unexpected ways or at the very least in the ways that we want God to be.

            

Henri Nouwen, during a dark time in his life, wrote in his journal: “You have to trust the place that is solid, the place where you can say yes to God’s love even when you don’t feel it.  Right now you feel nothing except emptiness and the lack of strength to choose.  But keep saying “God loves me, and God’s love is enough.”  You have to choose the solid place over and over again and return to it after every failure.”

Yet, God surprises us and appears unexpectedly when we were are ready to discover what God has to offer and not just what we think that we want.  Jesus is “the way and the truth and the life” (John 14:6).  It is in our turning to God that we discover the abundant life that God offers to us.

Reflect on the times when you have experienced a sign of God’s presence.  Maybe you had a sense of God as you saw something in nature or in a relationship with another person; maybe it was in something that you read or a piece of music.

Pieces for reflection: each week, different passages, poems, songs, etc. will be suggested to use for your own reflections on the week’s theme.  Use whichever ones are most helpful for you.  As you do so, use the following questions to guide you in your reflections:

1)   What about this speaks to my own life?

2)   What might God be saying to me through this?

3)   How will I approach my life in a new way?

Suggested resources:

1)   Read Joel 2:1-17

2)   Read Matthew 22:1-14

3)   Song: “And God descended” by Dar Williams (https://open.spotify.com/track/7jPYvh1s3cVIlnRN5hH1IN)

Lyrics:

Step through his trampled wall, the unhinged door betrays it all,

that far Within our faith we were all waiting.

The broken glass reflects the haze, it Shines like endless holy days,

struggling to remember what they're Celebrating.

Refrain: Well a God descended, and the real time ended.

His light was Lifted just above the law,

and now we have to live with what we did, with what We saw.

Well you mend your clothes and patch your roof

and slivers of God's Shattered truth grow tender

as the grass in clean swept yards.

But a savior Came and told us how the truth was all around us now,

abandon house and field And gather up the shards, (refrain)

You build your faith with strength and duty, build your Love,

but there's a beauty, well you know the scriptures tell,

there are a few Shards left in hell, and if we wanted God

we had to follow, follow him down, Him down.

There were picture torn out of their frames

and orgies where we lost our names,

ending all with Time's real desire.

Well you ask how God can curse you thus,

that's not a Question asked by us, we burnt our books and beds,

we fear we've lost the Fire. (refrain)

Songwriters: DAR WILLIAMS

And A God Descended lyrics © BMG Rights Management

Weekly reflections written and developed by Pastor Jennifer E.  Boyd

Additional Resources used:

The Millennial Narrative by Jaco Hamman (weekly themes gleaned from this book)

“The Inner voice of Love” by Henri Nouwen

 “We will Remember” CD, songs and music by Christopher Williams

All Biblical citations are from the New Revised Standard version (unless otherwise noted)

Lent - Week Two (Gather)

Our gaze lingers on our brokenness.  We recognize the shards of hurt, shame, and grief.  We wonder – what now?  Or why me?  What do we do with these pieces of the whole?  We know that we will not be the same, but what will we be?

We search for the pieces that have scattered, looking to see what can be repaired.  Gathering the shards before they cut others, tucking them away – in loss and sorrow, sometimes in shame or guilt.

We are quick to discard that which is broken, wanting only perfection and completeness.  We hide that which we think won’t meet the world’s approval.  We seek to just move on, thinking that if we don’t dwell on our brokenness that we can at least pretend that is all is right with our lives and world.

We gather up the pieces, placing them side by side.  We often feel very alone in our laments, isolated from others.  Some will disengage from others, not wanting to share their brokenness.

Yet, it is in our brokenness that we most need others.  There is an African idea of “Ubuntu” which means “I am because we are”.  In Greek, the word “koinonia” speaks to community and fellowship.  In the beginning God created us to be in community, to be in relationship with others.

The cultural concept of individualism is a myth.  We cannot survive without others – whether for our food, infrastructure, health and the like – we live in community no matter how close or separated we may feel from others.  We are interdependent and need one another.

As Church, we gather to worship, learn, and serve together.  We can do more together than we can by ourselves.  We gather to share our lives and the ways in which we have experienced God’s presence in our midst.  We gather to name our laments together – for our own lives as well as the brokenness of the world.

Gathering reminds us that we are not alone.  More than mutual commiseration, we offer one another a place to have our laments heard.  Jesus says “come, to me all who are weary and carrying heavy burdens and I will give you rest” (Matt. 11:28).   We find this rest, comfort and support as God works through the gift of community.  Healing can begin as our pieces are re-formed in our gathering. We do not carry others burdens but support one another that they may carry them themselves.

                                                                      

With whom do you share your brokenness?  

          Who will lament with you?

Use your time of reflection this week to turn to someone you trust to share your laments.  Think about the communities that you are or have been a part of who have been a place of support and healing for you. 

Pieces for reflection: each week, different scripture passages, poems, songs, etc. will be suggested to use for your own reflections on the week’s theme.  Use whichever ones are most helpful for you.  As you do so, use the following questions to guide you in your reflections:

1)   What about this speaks to my own life?

2)   What might God be saying to me through this?

3)   How will I approach my life in a new way?

Suggested resources:

1)   Read Joel 1:13-20

2)   Read Matthew 20:1-16

3)   Song: “Gather” by Christopher Williams (link: https://open.spotify.com/track/6yuN8yfxGXbOqgMIbBB0Kr)

Lyrics:

To be known, to feel safe

To be honest and unafraid

To leave the past, run into hope

To find together we are not alone

Refrain

I need you

You need me

This is why we gather

This is why we gather

To remember why we matter; 

This is why we gather

To share our story, silence the noise

To hear the wisdom in the tremble of a voice

To carry healing for all the scars

To know we’re more than our broken hearts

Refrain

When we help each other fight the fear,

be present with one another

We will find that’s where the life of God is lived

To give courage, to hear it now

We are beloved this is holy ground

Refrain

Weekly reflections written and developed by Pastor Jennifer E.  Boyd

Additional Resources used:

The Millennial Narrative by Jaco Hamman (weekly themes gleaned from this book)

 “We will Remember” CD, songs and music by Christopher Williams

All Biblical citations are from the New Revised Standard version (unless otherwise noted)

Lent - Week One (Recognize)

Week one – Recognize

Life is constantly evolving and changing.  We may try to hold onto moments in time, but they quickly escape from our grasp.  Just as we sing “time like an ever flowing stream soon bears us all away; it flies forgotten as a dream dies at the opening day” (O God Our Help in Ages Past, ELW #632).  Even the good moments bring change to bear upon our lives – we are not the same today as we were yesterday.  We are ever evolving.

Sometimes these changes are gradual and other times abrupt and unexpected.  Sometimes we plan and prepare for them and other times, they come crashing into our midst.  Change, even good changes, can bring grief as we seek to make adjustments in our lives for our new circumstances.   And more often than not, we can’t undo the changes that find us.

We drop a cup and it shatters into a myriad of pieces as it hits an unforgiving surface.  It cannot be restored to its original state.  In the same way, our lives can be nicked, chipped and shattered as something drops away or changes.  Even as we heal, just like that broken cup, we will not be the same.

What are the changes that you have most recently experienced?

How are our lives like this broken cup? 

    What has been broken in your life?

          Your own carelessness? 

   That of someone else? 

By something else?

Recognizing our own brokenness and that of the world is the first piece that needs to be mended in order to move us towards peace.  Ignoring or discarding these pieces of ourselves will not bring shalom. Facing the truth of the changes and our brokenness provides the outlet for healing.

In Desmond and Mpho Tutu’s book “The Book of Forgiving”, they talk about the importance of both telling our story and naming our hurts.  In doing so, we acknowledge and accept the brokenness that we are experiencing.  Being honest with ourselves and others help us to recognize our need for wholeness and with that, our need for God.

The prophet Joel begins his book with laments over the brokenness of the world around him.  Lamenting is the telling, the naming and the recognizing the pieces that have broken away in our lives.  Numerous Psalms also contain cries of lament (see Psalms 22, 88,137 as a few examples).

Using the resources below along with a times of prayer and reflection, recognize and acknowledge your own cries of lament for yourself, others and the world.

Pieces for reflection: each week, different passages, poems, songs, etc. will be suggested to use for your own reflections on the week’s theme.  Use whichever ones are most helpful for you.  As you do so, use the following questions to guide you in your reflections:

1)   What about this speaks to my own life?

2)   What might God be saying to me through this?

3)   How will I approach my life in a new way?

Suggested resources:

1)   Read Joel 1: 1-12

2)   Songs: “Hear This” and “Cry out to you” (link: https://open.spotify.com/album/1kdoLnB1Ixcchj11bD4i7q)

3)   Read Matthew 18: 15-35

4)   Prayer/poem by Joyce Rupp

It is time for me

To see the flaws

Of myself

And stop

Being alarmed

It is time for me

To halt my drive

For perfection

And to accept

My blemishes

It is time for me

To receive

Slowly evolving growth

The kind that comes

In God’s own good time

And pays no heed

To my panicky pushing

It is time for me

To embrace

My humanness

Weekly reflections written and developed by Pastor Jennifer E.  Boyd

Additional Resources used:

The Millennial Narrative by Jaco Hamman (weekly themes gleaned from this book)

“The Cup of our Life: A guide for spiritual growth” by Joyce Rupp

The Book of Forgiving by Desmond Tutu & Mpho Tutu

 “We will Remember” CD, songs and music by Christopher Williams

All Biblical citations are from the New Revised Standard version (unless otherwise noted)

Peace by Peace (Lent 2019)

We enter into another season of Lent, mindful of the world around us.  We see divisions, broken relationships and our own uncertainty.  We wonder if peace can ever be achieved in places where violence and hatred seem to rule.  We long for peace in our own lives.

The Hebrew word for peace is “shalom” – which is more than an absence of violence, but rather a sense of wholeness.

From the beginning, God created us in God’s image.  There was a sense of shalom and wholeness because of God’s creativity revealed through us.  Yet we sought and wanted to be like God.  As we looked to be other than what we were created to be, our shalom was broken into pieces and marred by sin.  In wanting control of our lives and the world, we lost sight of our God-giftedness.

We seek to restore this sense of shalom and wholeness to our lives and world, but always there are pieces missing.  We cannot “fix” or restore this shalom by our own will power.  We still experience our brokenness –caused by our own sin, the sin of others and the sin of the world.

It is only through God that we will once again find the wholeness that we seek.  It is only through the One who created us that true shalom is found.

What are the pieces that lead us to peace?

Each week through weekly reflections, cross-generational coffee hour activities, music, Wednesday Bible study and the like, we will explore pieces that will contribute to peace and shalom.

There are no quick fixes nor is it ever completed, but it is a journey that we travel piece by peace, moving towards the true peace of God in shalom.

Weekly reflections written and developed by Pastor Jennifer E.  Boyd

Additional Resources used:

“Gratitude: The Transformative power of Giving thanks” by Diana Butler Bass

“Awed to Heaven, Rooted to Earth” Prayers by Walter Brueggemann

“Beyond Words: daily readings in the ABCs of faith” by Frederick Buechner

The Millennial Narrative by Jaco Hamman (weekly themes gleaned from this book)

“The Inner voice of Love” by Henri Nouwen

“Circle of Grace: a book of blessings for the seasons” by Jan Richardson

“The Cup of our Life: A guide for spiritual growth” by Joyce Rupp

The Book of Forgiving by Desmond Tutu & Mpho Tutu

 “We will Remember”, songs and music by Christopher Williams

All Biblical citations are from the New Revised Standard version (unless otherwise noted)