I want to apologize that I have not been able to touch base here for a few months. I have gotten so far behind and my son and school has taken the front seat priority. It may not be 53 churches in a year, but we will get to those 53 churches. My son believes we will get back on the horse and keep it going soon. Please be patient with me and look out for new writings.
Thank you for understanding.
Monday, July 9, 2012
Sunday, May 6, 2012
Sunday, April 29, 2012
Sunday, April 22, 2012
Sunday, April 15, 2012
Sunday, April 8, 2012
Sunday, April 1, 2012
Sunday, March 25, 2012
Sunday, March 18, 2012
Sunday, March 11, 2012
Sunday, March 4, 2012
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Cedars Church of Christ 2-26-12
I took advantage of a good friends bring a friend to church day. It was about an hour away in Wilmington Delaware, but it was well worth the journey. I was introduced to a few people upon entering; some just came up and welcomed me. The look of the church gave me a good feeling inside. The outside of the church having a siding of wood that reminded me of the old country churches back in the day. Sitting at atop of the hill, it stands as a beacon to those that journey inside.
The chapel itself is just so natural. The wooden ceiling of the church is a design all on its own, along with the wooden pews. They seemed to have a shine to them, almost like they were new. If you can imagine a soft wood to sit upon this would be it. The atmosphere was warm and cozy on this windy day and I observed families and friends gathering in and all around me.
We began by singing songs. I love to hear the voices as they rise and lower. How the men sing really deep and low as the women sing crisp soprano notes. The music leader, his hands and arms intermingled with his voice leading us in song so beautifully.
The minister talks of the Great Event. The night our savior came and how we marvel at that. They bring the Golden ciborium’s up to the front to prepare for the Lord’s Supper we will share with one another later in the service. They inform us to fill out the prayer requests. The minister tells us to look to the East, the star in the sky is getting closer and closer over Bethlehem. He talks about the birth of the King, and what if Christmas was in February.
We sing some more songs to praise God and he mentions John 1:1-14. We sing a few more songs and he then shows us a very heart inspiring film called Birth of a King. This film made me quiver and tremble a little. It makes you see Mary’s strength in a whole different light. The minister reiterated the words to the song that went along with the video. “I will hold you in the beginning; you will hold me in the end.” Stories have been told of Jesus wrapped in swaddling cloth and Mary looking vibrant, but this film sort of shows the deep dedication Mary had for her Lord to follow what he told her to do, and the life she had to leave behind to birth give to the savior. The minister, Brad Carman, goes into details about the birth of Jesus, and how Christmas has become surrounded around pageantry instead of truth. He mentions if we have ever been to the Middle East where Jesus was born, that the barn was more like a cave. Bethlehem was Joseph’s hometown, why didn’t family give him a place to stay? There was no room for “Them” because of Mary and her immaculate conception she and Joseph were not welcome. He also said that Mary couldn’t have been riding a donkey, because only wealthy people had donkeys in Canaan. Mary had walked to Bethlehem, pregnant and alone only with her companion Joseph. Could it be that the birth of Jesus is not quite as we have told it? He emphasizes that we must be honest with ourselves when comparing our sentiment of retelling the birth of our king. Retelling stories so many times reminds me of the game whisper down the lane. He goes on to provide examples of why he feels the way he does. He told us that the time of year was more like September or October versus the 12-25 that we celebrate each year. He advised that all the Sheppard’s were out tending their sheep in the fields. This explains why the manger was empty and not full of livestock. Like I mentioned earlier the barn was probably more like a cave, and instead of swaddling blanket, Mary had wrapped Jesus in strips of cloth. The reason Jesus was born where he was born was because there was a census being taken and Jospeh returned home. Though Mary and him were not welcomed by family. This makes me really look at all those stories I grew up hearing. It sounds like such a struggle and a burden, and even after Jesus was born he was shunned. Both Joseph and Mary had no explanation regarding her conception. Both of them were alone in this world with only one another to lean upon. Because Mary had the unexplained pregnancy and because Joseph was associated with her, they both were shunned. The Magi that gathered around after the birth of Jesus probably didn’t show up until after many months, due to tending to their flocks. The three kings of orient probably were not kings at all. They were probably astrologers. The astrologers were from Iran which brought gifts to a family who had nothing and no one else supporting them. He mentioned the fact that after Mary conceived she went to stay with Elizabeth in the hill country of Judea. He said he remembers a time when someone would accidently pregnant they would be sent away and when they came back there would be no signs of the baby. I couldn’t even imagine what it would be like to be with child, to know that God’s son was residing himself in my womb. That I carried him around, knowing I should feel proud, yet lost all relations, all life as I had known it. What a hardship Mary must have endured. Thinking that once the child is born that he will be the savior, only to have people just mark him and not have anything to do with him. Denying him all the time as the messiah as the savior. He goes on to say that being born of the Holy Spirit is the power of the Testament of two simple people who risk everything to honor God. The birth of Jesus is also a powerful testimony to the love of God for us and the trust he places in us.
The birth of Jesus was recognized, but it was feared. God’s plan included everybody that all roads lead to Jesus. This story compels us to ask: “Do I have room for Jesus to be born in me?” The more church services I attend, the more I am learning about the bible and those who wrote the words and how everyone has been touched one or another by the words and the story surrounding this child that was born a savior.
A member of the church had been having some very tough times within his life. The minister shared his story with us and shared with us his shame and his loss, and how he has recently given himself to Jesus. Members of the congregation came up to this man, held him prayed with him and for him. This made tears well up in my eyes. To have such courage to ask for the help, to ask for Jesus to come into your life, to be welcomed within this community that during the service this time was for this one man. My heart prayed for this man, that he receive the healing that he needs. I have had moments where I too felt like I have lost everything, but never is everything lost. It’s like when you shut off a TV, there is still that little speck of white light that lingers. Even in true darkness there will still be a light. Even though this man has fallen on hard times, he has the support of his whole congregation to lift him up, to pray for him and to be there if he so needs someone to help get his life in order and in that process the path of recovery can begin.
The Golden ciborium’s were passed around. One held the Body of Christ and we broke of it shared it and ate of it in remembrance of him. The other was filled with many tiny transparent cups holding grape juice symbolizing the Blood that Christ had shed for us. Many blessings and we pray for them, and they handed out another ciboriums in which we could share our abundance with the church and it was our turn to give back to God.
After the final prayer, I went to visit my friend in the nursery. I had never seen such a beautiful nursery in a church before. It was like stepping into a small version of Heaven for little kids. In it there sat my friend in a comfortable rocking chair. She could watch the whole service through a window, and there were speakers set up in there so that she could listen to the service. The great added feature was the room was soundproofed. Those in the pews couldn’t hear in and those within could still feel they were a part of this holy day. Being a mother, this was just a blessed room that any parent looking for a good congregation should visit.
Cedar’s Church of Christ is an inspiring place, and a congregation that has made me think and ponder on more stories of the bible that have been retold many times causing a ripple of the whisper down the lane game. My son and I have begun reading “The Story” in hopes of finding our own mysteries within the bible. Thank you Cedars, your community was welcoming and very inspiring!
Things to Reflect On:
Cedars Church of Christ
Here I Am To Worship
God is Good All the Time
All Hail King Jesus
I worship you, Almightly God
Highest Place
John 1:1-14
Jesus-Name above all Names
Birth of a King
Be Born in Me
The Story
Mark 14:14
Luke 22:11
Luke 2:4-7
Luke 2:15-20
Matthew 2:1-11
Luke 2:8-14
Why Did My Savior Come to Earth
Sunday, February 19, 2012
WellSprings 2-19-12
Spiritual Friendship-How to Save a Life
I was supposed to do a Jewish Sabbath on Friday, but life didn’t see this in the cards. I have a tendency to prepare myself for different services, to review and learn a little more about the congregation before attending. Since life happened on Friday and I missed the Sabbath, and since I had no church researched I thought I would take this opportunity to re-connect once again at WellSprings. The last time I had visited was the first of the year, and Ken wasn’t speaking at this one. Plus, after life happening on Friday, I thought it be best to surround myself with familiarity and friends and a chance to hear Ken speak.
The music is always that which makes me want to sing out loud. One of the first songs was “Help” by the Beatles. I find with the services that the songs are always well chosen for the sermon. The next song was “Bridge Over Troubled Water”, which always makes my heart cry. One of my fondest memories of this song is that of my friend singing at karaoke and me being his muse sitting next to him. I lost my friend a few years ago to a massive heart attack. At his funeral this song was on a continuous loop over and over and over again. I recalled the last time I saw him, he was always singing this song. This song and many others will safeguard his memory in my heart forever. We then sang “Energy”, which is one of those songs that could quite possibly get stuck in your head.
We then light the chalice and say the opening prayer together. Ken had commented that songs are not just to be sung, but they are to be lived. The energy seemed to be low keyed until Ken asked for a re-do of our good morning. Ken has a way of beginning at point A of a story and rounding it out in a way that is clever, entertaining and insightful. He was talking about his drive to the church on Sunday mornings and how he sets his car on cruise control. He can be going the desired speed for that of a highway driver, and then come upon a car who is going half his speed and he finds himself stepping on the brakes. He compares this to how we should do this in our own lives, sort of like taking inventory and slowing down and just being in the here and now. He then asks us to show our hospitality to those that are around us. It’s such a buzz when this happens. People are hugging and shaking hands, and there is such a sense of camaraderie within this church.
We then sit down and focus on the quote by Thict Naht Hahn, “If we want to enter heaven on earth it begins with one conscious step and one conscious breath.” Really, this is the God honest truth. I am finding a deeper sense of calm just going within myself, instead of always searching outside myself for some sort of mellow maker. If I take a deep breath and I take a conscious step, I find myself truly being within this life. We take our moments of silence, where I take this time to silence myself, my worries and my angst from the week that has just ended. We share our abundance with the church, and we sing a song once more before the sermon begins. It’s called “Swimming to the Other Side.” Some of us tend to think of Sperm swimming toward the egg of life when singing this song. In a way, when listening to the song you can almost imagine life emerging.
Ken’s talk this Sunday was on Spiritual Friendship and how to save a life. Again, he begins with a glimpse of his life and has a way of connecting it to all facets of her life, his life and my life. Ken is a die hard New York fan. He talks about the NY Giants big win at the super bowl, he talks about the NY Yankees and their wins. He then talks about the NY Nicks and their losses and how we as Philadelphia fans can sympathize with him. He talked about Jeremy Lin and Arne Duncan and the conversation that took place between the two of them. Ken stated that America is a lonely culture. How the majority of us Americans are hyper competitive and hyper comparative. He goes on to say that we all have utilized social networks. These networks are only glimpses of who we truly are. It shows but a tiny little fragment of who we really are. Renee Brown does these talks on Ted Talks about courage and vulnerability and shame. Ken advises to really check these out. Facebook is a way, amongst other social gatherings, in which people can make connections and see that the things they thought only happened to them also happen to others. That we are not alone in this world and someone out there always has it worse, and someone out there always has it better. Then he said it, the phrase that has been on my mind since he said it. “To whom can we show our shame?”
Quite honestly there are not many people I show my shame to. They may hear my oh woe is me tales, but my shame is something that can be hidden so deep down inside only those that are truly close to me are witness to it. The shame that makes me cry, makes all the guilt I have carried come pouring out, flooding from my eyes. At times, yes, I know that a majority of my shame is self induced, but it doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. He talked of the song Amazing Grace, and the lyrics to the song. Being lost then found, blind but now I see. He shared a story about his friend, a friend that was lost and was at his end. Ken talked to him until he was safe; he acted as a true friend would. Loneliness and shame has hit every one of us at some point. Making us feel so utterly alone, so totally lost. Though sometimes I think we take for granted that which is in our life. We feel it will always be there, and that if a friend or family member was this way we feel that they should come to us. We try to help each other, and those we love. Sometimes though, no matter how much love and support you give to someone, in the end this person may succeed in taking their own life. Listening to Ken about his eventual loss of his friend to suicide, makes me recall my uncle. My uncle was like my big brother. Whenever I had a problem, I could talk to him, share anything with him. You could say that I could dump all my shame on him, and not feel ashamed of myself. My uncle was never a model citizen, but nonetheless he was my uncle and one of the closest men in my life. He spent many years in prison, and when he was released somehow he always found his way back to imprisonment. He would call me, with loaded gun in hand and tell me he just couldn’t take it anymore. That he wanted to be with his mother, and that this life was not for him. I spent many hours talking with him, reiterating the fact that no matter who he thought he was, I loved him. One February though, he never called… and in listening to Ken talk, as much as it still hurts that he is gone; I know it is what he wanted. There was nothing I could have done, and there was no reason to carry the guilt of his death around with me.
Ken reminds us that none of us are superman; we can only truly control ourselves. He then shared a quote by Ram Dass, “we’re all just walking each other home.”
In the end, WellSprings is where I go to be embraced, encouraged and supported by friends. It is a place where I can show a little bit of my shame and not be judged by it. We ended with Mick Jagger’s “Shine a Light.” This pretty much sums it up for this week.
Things to Reflect On:
WellSprings Congregation
WellSprings Podcast of this service
Help-The Beatles
Bridge Over Troubled Water-Simon and Garfunkel
Energy
Swimming to the Other Side
Jeremy Lin and Arne Duncan
Amazing Grace
Superman
Ram Dass
Shine a Light
Brené Brown on TED Talks
http://www.ted.com/talks/brene_brown_on_vulnerability.html
Sunday, February 12, 2012
A Multi Faith Gathering at Temenos Farmhouse 2-12-12
New Year of the Trees-Celebrating Tu Beshvat Seder 2/12/12
I was suggested to go here by a very good friend. I had read the premises of the service on the retreat center’s website. I have always had infinity with trees, you can see my love for them by the numerous amounts of pictures I have taken of them. So why not go to a multi faith service based on trees? And if you think about it, I am as Multi faith as you’re going to get. I really can’t define myself as anything but a mutt when it comes to my religious beliefs. I like sharing and learning and praying with those around me. My thoughts are if you believe in something, someone, and/or yourself that you know true faith. If you can look around within this world and see others and look past the hate and violence that is in our daily lives and grab onto your soul and make yourself truly see the beauty of the gift of life, then you have faith. I feel more people should experience different things in life, not just religions. That you at least give yourself the ability to always try something new, and keep an open mind. A lot of people have lost their zest in their imagination, in the power of faith. The kind that brings people together just because they want to pray, they want to honor our journey together and our true selves. We are all born from someone. We each have a mother and a father. We should base each chance meeting on this. When you meet someone, you need not find something in common with them from the beginning, because we all have being alive in common. We enter this world, and in most cases our religious beliefs are pre-destined for us. A lot of us don’t have the freedom of religion as we are told, for when we are born it is chosen for us. It has been in some families for years, it is a tradition, and it is the way of the family. I have always been curious as to the “other” religions, and I enjoy practicing my freedom in this way.
I brought along a vegetarian crock pot dish to share with the others that were to be there. I did not know if we needed to RSVP, I just knew that I had to bring something. Due to the snowstorm I didn’t want to go out to the supermarket, knowing that everyone else would have the same idea. For some reasons when it snows, grocery stores are abundant with walks of life. I didn’t care to experience that today. I wanted a day where I took care of my spiritual self; let my religious locks of hair down so to speak. I had a few ingredients to choose from. I had a Trader Joe’s carrot and ginger soup. I stuck this in my crock pot, with a whole bag of frozen broccoli. I chopped up some onion and garlic and thru that into the crock as well. All the while, thinking of those that were going to eat of it. Hoping it came out at least edible. I made some brown rice with some fennel seeds and caraway, threw this into the crock too. I didn’t taste it, just blessed it and hoped it was satisfactory.
When I got there I parked under an old tree. I just admire them and how they stand so tall. How they bend in the stormy winds and how they seem so relaxed on summer days. I am always looking at trees, and their occupants. Sometimes just being able to notice something that many pass by every day unnoticed is a blessing. For example, the hawk that I pass by each day on the way to work perched upon his tree. He sits there, in what my son and I call the “Hawk Tree.” On some occasions he is not there, but then the little birds are sitting in the big hawk tree. This makes us chuckle at the thought of the little birds imagining they are bigger than they seem. Maybe like we do, how we want more out of life. Who else sees this hawk though? Is he like the homeless man sitting on the street? No one notices him because he is not part of their plan, their life? After I walked in, I felt that I was the outsider. I knew where to place my items, and knew the runabout of the Temenos Farmhouse, but there were individuals there I didn’t know. I continued to remind myself to clear all thoughts from my head, and concentrate only on the moment. I relaxed my shoulders and just went with the flow.
I heard some singing coming from where they held the church services. I sat in the back and listened to some ladies rehearse their singing from the song sheet. As they sung I learned the songs too. In this moment I was learning how to say Earth, Heavens, Fire and Water in Hebrew. Watching the women, of all generations, harmonize and smile. I was listening to stories about the Jewish culture, and of other faiths. There was a sign hanging near the ceiling behind where the leader was. It said, “The Lord in his holy temple. Let all the earth keep silent before him.” The quote look like it had been wood burned into the plaque. I stared at this for a long time. I was centering myself, all the while listening to the voices of those amongst me tuning their voices in unison. I focused on my breath, and tuned my ears to listen intently on the pronunciations of some of the Hebrew words we would be using in today’s service.
This is truly a service to write about. One that somehow connects to who I am, and my beliefs. Multi faith for me is the way to go. Within this one celebration, so many faiths were present. Just like in the everyday world, we come into contact with many different people. There are those who walk different paths than us, and those that are walking the same way as ourselves. Each of us finding solace and grace within the company of seekers, believers and keepers of a flame they pass from one to another. Multi faith can have many meanings, but what it truly means is unity. This was a celebration of the time between Winter and Spring. It is a time when the Seeds of Winter bring a New Year of the Trees.
We began our celebration with songs. The first two were called Sanctuary and Alive. These truly were blessings to my ears. In Sanctuary the words reflected a Christian song, but at the end we sang in Hebrew, “And I Will Dwell Inside of You.” It was a nice intermingling of two songs into one. Just being surrounded by those singing I immersed myself into the moment. I find myself learning not to worry what I sound like when I sing. Thinking others would judge me and above all else I would judge myself. I realize more and more the unnecessary strain I put upon myself on a daily basis. Learning about people, I see that I am not alone. Why are we so hard on ourselves? Here I am, just standing in this room filled with people I don’t know and having the most uplifting experience. If I can believe, if I can have faith, then I can share it openly with those that stand beside me. Rather, I am offering my songs up to the universe, to Spirit, to anyone who will listen. If my voice cracks or I sing off key, this was all meant to be in the big scheme of things. I allow myself just to be, within the moment, surrounded by those lifting their prayers up. I sing out loud, and my heart likes it. Alive was a very good song too. The song had a way of transporting me back to the time of sitting around the fire and singing with the Native Americans at an event I had the privilege to partake in years ago. Songs like Alive awaken something very spiritual within me. I am wishing at this moment that I had brought my drum with me, but there is someone there playing along with our voices. He is beating on the drum like a heartbeat. Thump thump thump. I want to shake a little and move my head around to release the tense muscles and allow deep breaths to flow through. There were about five rows of people sitting amongst me. After the songs we introduced ourselves to one another. We went around and said our names, plus our favorite fruit and our favorite tree. I have a hard time choosing both. Like I said before, I love me my trees, and fruit is a staple in my daily life now. I couldn’t choose, I said I loved them all. The leader, Elyse, welcomed us all there, and then we had a chance to welcome one another with a nod and a shake, and hugs were also given. I like hugs…
Then some Native American Earth readings were read by Anne. During the readings I was closing my eyes at parts and truly allowing myself to listen to the words that were being spoken. Focusing on the fact that while growing up I hardly paid attention to the words that came within a church. I was so immersed with myself and by those around me. I was always making sure that I was doing the right thing, acting the right way that I only truly saw a fraction of the beauty of faith. Now, whilst listening in these moments to the poems of trees, and then to Nina read Job 12:7-10 I allowed myself to just listen. Not to think about my take on it, not to over analyze it, but to listen to just the words. Lisa read a wonderful Celtic Tree poem and Rebecca shared a reading on Trees for Findhorn. We then did an interactive song called the “Tree Song.” Again, this is right up my alley. I like faiths in which there is full participation. Some people may not want this, but I want to celebrate. I want to be happy that I am praying. I want to rejoice, and dance and sing out loud. Though, usually I find I am quiet waiting to see what others do. I notice this about myself in these moments. I realize I no longer want to be afraid to act out of joy. I allow myself to sing the song and move my body with thankfulness. Elyse then speaks about the Jewish tradition and shares a reading from this faith. Again, I am listening, all focusing on being mindful of being in the moment. I feel very euphoric with all that I am experiencing, maybe it is just the unity in the little farmhouse, or maybe it was so many different faiths being celebrated all at once that made my body feel so balanced. Elyse spoke of the trees, and how it symbolizes the trees that are ready to be chosen to gather fruit from. That all of us must nourish the fruits of the new year that is coming. She discussed how we should really look at the way a tree lives and try to mimic it in our own lives. She mentioned the book, “The Giving Tree” and talked about what trees really need to survive. What do we need to survive? What sustains us? The tree grows from photosynthesis, and water. Trees leave what they don’t need. Do I do this? Have I been treating my body very well, have I been good to my body. Elyse said we need to become like trees and deeply root ourselves into the ground. I need to grow deeper roots with more vitality. Trees have many levels of life and this can be seen by the “root ball.” Just like trees we need pruning, we need dead branches removed, we need debris taken away from our branches so that we can grow. She talked of the Torah and how trees survive on water. Could I survive only on water? What does my body really need to survive? She talked on living our authentic life. Am I living my authentic life? Psalm 92 and the Seder were also touched upon. Be a tree and do like the trees do. Stand tall, firmly rooted within the ground. Allow your branches to reach out to others.
We then did this song called Adamal Ve Shamayim. I learned how to sing earth and heavens, fire and water in Hebrew. It’s a beautiful song that for some reason nudged its elbow right into the core of me. The Hebrew part especially. It is a different sound of song than I have ever experienced, and it makes me want to learn more.
We then send out our prayers to ourselves, to those in attendance, to those we know that are not with us, for those out in the world. We pray for peace, for hope and for health. Then there is a closing prayer in which Elyse said so many beautiful things, though with being in the moment you sometimes forget to jot down notes. These sayings will either come about another time, or they were just for me to be blessed to hear at the time.
After the service was over we gathered and ate together in the vegetarian potluck. All the food was quite delicious. After the potluck we gathered and I was privileged enough to experience my first Seder. The Tu Beshvat Seder. I have included below an outline of the Seder in my reflection part. I cannot even articulate how this experience touched me. It was very much like mindful eating. Being mindful about what is nourishing your body, and how you put it into your body as well. I felt very thankful to be a part of this ceremony. At the end we were all asked if we had anything to say. It had been welling up inside of me all day, I could feel myself wanting to say thank you to all of those who had made my heart well up. I asked them all if I could sing a song. It was actually out of my comfort zone. It’s so hard to just let go of your fears, and do something different then you usually do. I had learned the Thank You song from one of the first churches I had visited, and I decided I wanted to share it with those today. I opened up my mouth and just sang for them. It was my prayer for the day, my prayer for them and for all those that have touched my heart. I was so very thankful for being given this experience, and my voice allowed me to thank those for opening up their hearts and their voices in their faith.
With this service I find myself yearning to learn more of the Jewish faith, to visit a Jewish Synagogue and a museum to learn more. I plan on attending an all woman’s Seder in the Spring, plus I may join them in their celebrations on the Sabbath as well. This experience with these churches has me carrying out a different spirituality on a weekly basis. Never did I realize how blessed this journey would make me feel. Thank you to all of those at the Multi Faith celebration at Temenos, and thank you to The Jewish Fellowship of Chester County.
Things to reflect on:
Temenos-Multi Faith Gathering
Santuary
And I Will Dwell Inside Of You
I Am Alive
Earth, Teach Me Stillness
Some Trees – John Ashbury
The Earth is Our Mother
Adamah-All of these = spectacular
Tu Beshvat Seder
Torah
Psalm 92
Trees
Sunday, February 5, 2012
Thorndale United Methodist Church 2-5-12
I am enjoying the excitement I am having going to a different church each week. Meeting different people, and celebrating with them their God. I get to share in their experience of their prayers, their values and their beliefs. I get to listen to the stories of their faith, of their way. I find it fascinating the similarities of every religion, and how much we are the same with one another yet we are so far apart in our daily going ons. This Sunday led me to Thorndale United Methodist Church. I cannot even tell you the countless amounts of times I had passed by this church. Heard the bells and the music, and yet never stopped to look and marvel at this establishment’s beauty. I had always passed it and thought of it as just a building. Now, it seems holier to me and filled with spirit. Funny how you may not even see something exists that is right in front of you, until allowing yourself to be open to the experience. I think the same could be said for our own relationships with people. Sometimes our thoughts blind us to the people that we are brought into contact with daily. We judge to quickly, and by passing judgment we miss out on a beautiful experience. One should always be open to that which is all around them. The possibilities are endless…
I like looking at the architecture structure of churches. From their sturdy stone foundation and the faith that resides within the walls. When we arrived we were greeted by a beautiful little woman who I immediately just wanted to hug. Barbara welcomed us as she would any friend walking into her home. She directed us to the Fellowship Café located upstairs where we could meet other parishioners and enjoy in a little fellowship. The coffee and fellowship prior to service was a welcoming experience. I have been to churches where the fellowship is after the service, and that works nicely as well. I liked the open space, for it was very welcoming. The space allowed me to breath, and the church had windows all around and it allowed me to see out, into the city to the hustle and bustle along the streets. It was funny though, because inside I felt calm. The wooden cross adorned in the front of church was breathtaking. Above me perched in front of an open window where I could see the blue sky and the clouds. It was so beautiful and so pure. It wasn’t lit up, or drew attention to any old way, rather than just perched up there in front of the window. It was very plain and simple, very modest. Yet this is the thing that is so prominent in my mind. This wooden cross that is perched above my head that lingers in my mind with all of its simplicity.
We began by saying a prayer for the day that we may be receptive of our spirit and of God. Thanking God for our blessings that we have in our life. We sang some very beautiful songs of faith. I am really enjoying the music I am learning from each of the churches I visit. It is different, yet it is the same and I can’t help but sing along with them. They played a song as they passed the offering basket around for parishioners to give of themselves. They announced a few things that were happening within the church. They talked about their mission that will be journeying to Malawi Africa to help provide them with solar lights and clean up their community center there. Malawi is one of the poorest cities in Africa. They were having a talent show to raise money for their mission to Malawi. I like the idea of churches coming together outside of the normal Sunday. It was going to be the following Saturday night, and it included the kids and the adults within the church. I thought this was so special, and gave me a very warm loving feeling towards all of them sharing their Saturday together. The children are then led back to Sunday school, where my son decided to join with the kids on this journey. They were making cookies, and putting their problems into them to share with God and ask for guidance. What kid doesn’t like freshly baked cookies?
They then introduced the guest speaker, Rev. Sue Worrell. The regular pastor was away this Sunday. Rev. Sue had mentioned keeping with the theme of reading the passage for this Sunday’s sermon. It was Matthew 5 21:24. We stood and read the words aloud in unison. I had never done this before in a church, and I like all these new experiences I am have having with different rituals that are done.
Rev. Sue is an ordained deacon who counsels those with addiction. She doesn’t reside in any church, but she is a ministry leader to United Methodist Church of the Open Door in West Chester and is a ministry director at the Hope Christian Counseling and Retreat Ministries, also in West Chester. She began by stating that we have to clean up our messes in our lives. Why do we have sermons? It’s not just because Jesus says so. Why do we bother? What’s the result? She touches upon Eugene Peterson’s interpretation of the Matthew 5 21:24. She states the old adage sticks and stones will break my bones, but adds that words can be even more hurtful and they can kill. They can reach into your soul and kill your spirit.
She begins talking about the popular Disney movie Wall-E. Wall-E was about a robot being the only inhabitant on the planet earth after humans had trashed it and it was in total decay. Nothing living found on the planet, just garbage and debris. The Humans had left the planet earth years ago for a life of self indulgence and pure full fledge gluttony. Wall-E is left to clean up the mess that the humans had left behind. Mounds and mounds of trash everywhere, with no signs of life. Eve comes to inspect the planet, to see if there is any visible life on Earth. Wall-E falls head over heels in love with Eve. Wall-E gives to Eve a plant, and the ship that had sent her comes to retrieve her and Wall-E wants to protect her and follows her to rescue her. She is taken to where the humans are. Wall-E witnesses the humans all in hover chairs. They are constantly given food to drink, and are plugged into technology not seeing what is all around them. The people are fat and lazy, and living a life of self indulgence. These individuals were not living there true authentic life.
The relationships in the film were messy. Rev. Worrell asked us to look at our lives, to look at those relationships that were broken, those relationships that held anger, frustration, judgment and shattered trust. She quoted the passage again, “I’m telling you anyone who is angry is a murderer. When we are angry the possibility of love is dead to us, that person is dead to us, are efforts to work things out are rebuffed. We walk around in our life with dead bodies in our wake. She again quoted the passage, “carelessly call your brother an idiot, and you have killed your brother, words kill.” Sticks and stones do kill, words do hurt, and they can leave everlasting scars of your heart, your soul. Words that kill are talking to someone or talking about someone like you are better. She discussed political discourse from the past and the present. How it used to be when the politicians would debate and how it is now. How those commit slander and say hurtful things just to get ahead in the polls. Respectfully if we are talking bad about someone to them or to someone else, we are wrong in doing so. She then discussed something that I had been struggling with for some time. Traffic and the good old road rage. She talked about how someone would cut you off, or drive faster than yourself. She said when you call this person names or when you are angry at that person you are murdering that person. You are creating a judgment. How are you to know that this person wasn’t talking on the phone due to an emergency, how are we to know if this person friend or family member had just passed. It made me think of all the nasty things I think about when someone doesn’t use their turn signal, doesn’t allow someone to merge, drives erratically. I know there is a basis to think they should slow down, but anger is generated within me and I can’t help but think bad things about these people that drive like they do. She said what gives us the right to act superior, like we are better than them. What gives us the right to say things about people we don’t know and for that matter if we would do it against people we don’t know what are we saying about the people we do know? How are we treating our relationships in our lives? We are so used to living in a life where if there is garbage we just pick up and move somewhere else, without ever taking care of the garbage that is around us. The garbage we have created for ourselves. She goes on to say that her counseling utilizes the 12 step program from Alcohol Anonymous. She said a lot of people within the programs will try to escape life and think they can go about it with the “Geographical Cure.” But she says wherever we go we will take ourselves with us. Until we deal with the mess, whether it be addictions, anger, gambling, porn etc etc we will continue to create a mess out of our life. We will be traveling down that road from the movie Wall-E, a life of self indulgence. We need to become more counter cultured, more like Christ. Live within the world not of the world. It is the path of repentance. Those humans in the movies trashed the planet that sustained them. They could merely exist with artificial freedom. They were in an indulgent prison with no place to go. Until Eve shows up in Wall-E’s life, and this adds as a powerful metaphor. We are cutting ourselves off by life. Our materilistaic nature with food, alcohol, porn, gambling workaholic compulsive exercisers lead us to a life not worth living. We medicate ourselves from failed relationships and we continually sever our relationship with God. We need to find that connection to God’s presence in our lives. There is a God shaped vessel inside of us, which can only be filled with God. We walk around all the time searching for something to fill our void. We try to fill it with all things, and the only thing that it can be filled with is God. We need to acknowledge our garbage in our lives we need to recognize it and identify it and learn to release it and let it go. We need to become alive with God, hope that our lives are filled with vitality. She quotes the passage again, that we need to “abandon our offerings” that our vertical relationship with God depends on our horizontal relationships with one another, with all of those that walk beside us on this earth. We are all in control of our actions and our words and our emotions. Just like the prayer-“forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us”. We need to focus on dedication and humility; this is what it takes for a blessing of reconciliation. God’s grace needs to fall down on us so that we can have a spiritual amnesia an emotional punch where we can be released from our grudge, anger, sorrow and judgment. She asked us, “what kind of life do you want to live?’ A right relationship with God filled with generosity fruits of the spirit. An authentic love shared between God and your neighbors, a life worth living. She asked for us to make a list, a list of all of those that we have wronged. That God is there to guide us and to help us repair our messes, and that we can clear the garbage that surrounds us and begin living life anew. A list of all the people I have hurt, this list is always with me I feel. As by those around me, I can tell they too have a list also. This left me imagining all those people in my life that I have lost due to petty things, and at times much more serious things.
Tim, the band leader, began to speak. His voice so powerful, yet he looked like a very young man. You can see his faith so strong, and vibrant. When Tim spoke his voice seemed to resonate throughout the church, and not just because of the microphone. Each time he would sing, or he would say prayers it was like an angelic feeling was present. He is very inspirational. He said after Rev. Worrell was done speaking that before you can bring it to God make it right with your brother first. I’ve thought about that phrase a lot.
We silently prayed for those close to us, and for those we may have just met or we have not met yet. We did some closing songs and the service closed with a beautiful phrase. “Love and serve the lord by loving and serving your neighbor.” My son and I received a guest packet from United Methodist, and I just have to say there was so much information and kindness in this welcoming packet. We truly felt blessed.
My son joined me in the church after service with the most amazing tasting cookies. I commented to him, that we should always put our problems into baking, because it tastes so good and I am sure God would like that too. After this last journey with my son we decided to take our dog for a walk. On our walk we began to collect the trash we found lying about in the grass, along the streets, half buried within the roots of the trees. My son is on this journey with me, maybe not every week and each place of faith I visit, but he is with me. We share our thoughts about the services we have been to so far. We talk about their beliefs and their practices. We try to look at their similarities and their differences. My son proposed an idea to me after this last service. He said that the last one, the last service we attend this year should be one that we do ourselves. He said we would begin by prayers and blessings and a time we could share with one another, and then we would all go out and collect trash off of the grassy fields, and off the streets. Then we would all come back and join together in a big feast where each of us would bring something. I am a big fan of potlucks and sharing my food with others, so I am all for this idea. The big day that ends with a feast will be in honor of the earth, the sky and all the other elements. And so it is, and so it has begun…
Thank you Thorndale United Methodist for your hospitality. You are no longer that invisible building on my path; you are an inspirational vessel which has made a beautiful memory for me.
Things to reflect on:
Thorndale United Methodist Church
Methodism
Come is the time to worship
Amazed
Give us clean hands
Malawi
Matthew 5:21-24
Rev.Susan Worrell-Guest Speaker
Wall-E
How can I keep from Singing
Eugene Peterson
Rachel Held Evans on Eugene Peterson
I Will Follow You
How Can I Keep From Singing
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