Grace to you and peace.
This is how Paul opens his letter to a a faith community he started in Thessalonica (click the title to read the text). Somehow, those words feel important and necessary lately. As I drive around Nashua, you can begin to see the effects of some of the anxiety that has been unleashed lately in our country. Many restaurants are vacant at dinner, the evening rush seems very manageable with often more staff on hand than there are customers. Something is happening in our city.
What intrigues me most about this passage is that it reminds me that we must come to you not only in word, in places like this blog and facebook, but also in amazing daily encounters in our city. So often, when I have been out at Panera or Unos, it amazes me how often I catch a sign of God's grace and presence in the people around me.
One need only be silent and pay attention to those around you in any coffee shop to discover the many interesting lives and ways that things are happening. One night, a couple of people dreamed about how they could encourage people to give to their ministry. A young woman took a solitary break from her every day work serving others. Another person works diligently at their computer. Further away, someone is being challenged by the Hippo paper's sudoku or crossword puzzle. Counter clerks chat to themselves somewhat nervous that a slow night might mean they have to leave early and earn less money, impacting their own personal budget.
In the midst of these various lines of life, God moves, is moving. If you wait long enough you can begin to sense it and in the more personal conversations we have together we realize why By the Way is here to help you discover a different way of life. It is a way that can break the bondage we have from things that are out of our control but which still feel like they are in charge of our lives. It is a way that opens us up to the abundance that we actually have and can share with others. It is a way that reveals a heart for one another in a world that tends to focus on selfishness.
The question remains, are you ready to be truly inspired by God's spirit? Are you ready to walk a different road that takes you by the way?
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Monday, October 6, 2008
Get a Glimpse
Does it ever seem like you’re swimming in a swamp, feeling like the water is maliciously trying to suck you under? It’s all you can do to keep your nose where the oxygen is not in liquid form. But you think: I’m strong. I can keep pushing myself. I can do this. I think…
And then you see the alligator.
It’s not a pleasant way to live, as if the circumstances of your life are all conspiring against you. Like it’s all just too much. With no way out. And there’s no one who could possibly help.
Or is there?
Ok, I know there are times when there truly is no help available; no one but you can dig yourself out. But often what you really need is a caring and smart listener who can re-frame all that’s going on. Someone who can help you see that the safe shore you’re swimming toward is really not unreachable. Someone you trust to swim alongside you. And maybe the two of you can even take on that alligator.
If you can remember such a time when a friend battled alligators with you, just take a moment to soak in that sense of being defended and cared for. And then, with those memories floating around, read the poetic words from Isaiah that you’ll find when you click on the title of this post. Just read the first section, verses 1 – 5.
You’ve read it already? Read it again while the rest of us are catching up, ok?
The poet is seeing God walk beside needy people, fighting the superpower bullies and caring for those who’ve been beaten up. Whenever I read these words, I can truly feel the safety-giving presence of God wash over me. It makes me think of how God has reached out to me through amazing friends or the perfect piece of music or the sight of glorious autumn colors. But that’s just the beginning.
I also feel a strong pull to be looking out for people around me who are in desperate struggles. I sense that God wants to work through me to swim alongside those who are swamped and see no hope.
I think about all those who are going to have a hard time with rent and heating bills this winter, people who are afraid they’ll lose their homes. We’ve really got to be watching out for one another, maybe now more than ever. Maybe that will even help nudge us out of our own hopeless prisons, to be empowered by God’s Spirit to care for others, even as we’re looking for help ourselves.
Ok, if you haven’t already read ahead the rest of the passage (that’s for the high-achieving geeks among us), then read verses 6 – 10.
Now the poet/visionary Isaiah sees an incredibly elaborate meal in the great outdoors, with awesome mountain views. And everyone has a place at this huge picnic table: the desperate ones, the helpful ones, and even the bullies. Everyone’s together, being served up royally by God.
Maybe this isn’t going to be happening today. But one day it will happen. Oppressors and oppressed alike will be at one table, hanging out with God and each other. The biggest bully of them all, Death, will be no more. And if people are crying, it’ll be tears of relief and joy washing over their once-anxious faces.
That’s the kind of hopeful picture that will keep me swimming strong in my swamps, holding up the heads of others so they can see the mountain, too.
~ Kari Henkelmann Keyl
And then you see the alligator.
It’s not a pleasant way to live, as if the circumstances of your life are all conspiring against you. Like it’s all just too much. With no way out. And there’s no one who could possibly help.
Or is there?
Ok, I know there are times when there truly is no help available; no one but you can dig yourself out. But often what you really need is a caring and smart listener who can re-frame all that’s going on. Someone who can help you see that the safe shore you’re swimming toward is really not unreachable. Someone you trust to swim alongside you. And maybe the two of you can even take on that alligator.
If you can remember such a time when a friend battled alligators with you, just take a moment to soak in that sense of being defended and cared for. And then, with those memories floating around, read the poetic words from Isaiah that you’ll find when you click on the title of this post. Just read the first section, verses 1 – 5.
You’ve read it already? Read it again while the rest of us are catching up, ok?
The poet is seeing God walk beside needy people, fighting the superpower bullies and caring for those who’ve been beaten up. Whenever I read these words, I can truly feel the safety-giving presence of God wash over me. It makes me think of how God has reached out to me through amazing friends or the perfect piece of music or the sight of glorious autumn colors. But that’s just the beginning.
I also feel a strong pull to be looking out for people around me who are in desperate struggles. I sense that God wants to work through me to swim alongside those who are swamped and see no hope.
I think about all those who are going to have a hard time with rent and heating bills this winter, people who are afraid they’ll lose their homes. We’ve really got to be watching out for one another, maybe now more than ever. Maybe that will even help nudge us out of our own hopeless prisons, to be empowered by God’s Spirit to care for others, even as we’re looking for help ourselves.
Ok, if you haven’t already read ahead the rest of the passage (that’s for the high-achieving geeks among us), then read verses 6 – 10.
Now the poet/visionary Isaiah sees an incredibly elaborate meal in the great outdoors, with awesome mountain views. And everyone has a place at this huge picnic table: the desperate ones, the helpful ones, and even the bullies. Everyone’s together, being served up royally by God.
Maybe this isn’t going to be happening today. But one day it will happen. Oppressors and oppressed alike will be at one table, hanging out with God and each other. The biggest bully of them all, Death, will be no more. And if people are crying, it’ll be tears of relief and joy washing over their once-anxious faces.
That’s the kind of hopeful picture that will keep me swimming strong in my swamps, holding up the heads of others so they can see the mountain, too.
~ Kari Henkelmann Keyl
Monday, September 29, 2008
Steve-os Devos: Celebrating the Presence
For those of us who pay attention to the rhythm of the "Church," a rhythm which moves differently from the daily calendar we generally follow, this coming week marks a couple of important things.
First, this coming Sunday marks World Communion Sunday. This is a day that followers of Jesus can be called to remember that though we may all think about the presence of God in many different ways, we all celebrate at the same table. The idea that Christians can have differences of opinion about scriptural interpretation or specific religious practices is a stumbling block that those who desire a closer relationship with Christ have to overcome. The confusion that can happen if you are still seeking a faith community can be pretty intense from one church to another. When you talk to people who have become a part of a faith community, they often say that they decided one day to show up and that this just turned out to "feel right." This happens time and again to those new to the Christian walk, as well as those who may have left the Church and returned later in life.
But coming together to remember the unity we share in Jesus is what makes World Communion Sunday a vital part of the year. The more all the different adjectives of faith come together, the closer we are to understanding and celebrating the richness of Christ's message and God's grace.
And this leads me to the second thing you might see happening around town this week under the guise of "Blessings of the Animals." This celebration marks the ministry of St. Francis who discovered the importance of God's presence in the natural world and who was himself ministered to by animals. So we give thanks on these days for these creatures who occupy our homes, yards, and wild lands. Leading me to share a story that I think brings these two special foci's together in my own odd way.
I have two cats. One of them is 7 years older than the other. When I first brought the youngest one, Tigrah, home, my older cat, Mittens, was not happy. My thought that they could play together and keep each other company was obviously something that either of them had in mind as my older cat, set in her schedule and ritual life, was not willing to allow.
In my bedroom, I had placed one of those cardboard cat scratchers, the kind that is filled with catnip. Now, Mittens had discovered the overwhelming power and fascination of catnip and the need to partake of a good claw sharpening and roll around over this little box on a regular basis. Tigrah, on the other hand, being a kitten, had never really seen such a thing. She had been content to play with the fake little mice, often flinging them onto the bed in the middle of the night and expecting me to interact with her as she pounced about the bed.
So it was with some curiosity as she watched Mittens each day go over to this box and perform her ritual. The two had worked out the proper distance of toleration after a few days and weeks. Yet they each had there separate spaces and places somehow silently agreed to between them. One day, Tigrah, noticing that she was alone in the bedroom, decided to check out this curious box. She crept up slowly to it, her nose sniffing carefully to see if it was dangerous. As was to be expected, the catnip soon took on its effect and she began to rub her neck against the box and soon was perched on it not sure how to use it for scratching.
Out of nowhere pounced Mittens. Hissing along her path, she ran over to the scratching box and stopped abruptly. Tigrah, unsure just where this fit was leading waited patiently. Mittens, seeing her posturing had failed to impress, struck out with her paw, not using her claws, but just enough to encourage Tigrah to leave, which she did. Of course, soon neither cat really used the scratching box at all.
It was all a bit humorous, but it struck me as the perfect example sometimes about how each of us reacts when something we find precious is discovered by a stranger. Sometimes we can find a place where our own naive curiosity is embraced, where our new way of exploring and discovering the world is encouraged, or where we can come share in the delight that others have found. But sometimes we find ourselves in the midst of, well, sour pusses. Places where the rituals have become stale, or so formulaic as to lose their power to those who come regularly.
This is why we we focus on World Communion Sunday, a time for us to remember the mystery and excitement, the anticipation of being part of a practice as old as the faith itself, and which transforms and is transformed for each new Christian. And it's also perhaps why we look at St. Francis, a person who discovered God's grace and presence in an unexpected place.
I hope you have a chance to experience God's grace this week in unexpected ways and places and I pray that By the Way can be the sort of community that allows you to scratch below the surface to a deeper understanding of God's love for you. Amen!
First, this coming Sunday marks World Communion Sunday. This is a day that followers of Jesus can be called to remember that though we may all think about the presence of God in many different ways, we all celebrate at the same table. The idea that Christians can have differences of opinion about scriptural interpretation or specific religious practices is a stumbling block that those who desire a closer relationship with Christ have to overcome. The confusion that can happen if you are still seeking a faith community can be pretty intense from one church to another. When you talk to people who have become a part of a faith community, they often say that they decided one day to show up and that this just turned out to "feel right." This happens time and again to those new to the Christian walk, as well as those who may have left the Church and returned later in life.
But coming together to remember the unity we share in Jesus is what makes World Communion Sunday a vital part of the year. The more all the different adjectives of faith come together, the closer we are to understanding and celebrating the richness of Christ's message and God's grace.
And this leads me to the second thing you might see happening around town this week under the guise of "Blessings of the Animals." This celebration marks the ministry of St. Francis who discovered the importance of God's presence in the natural world and who was himself ministered to by animals. So we give thanks on these days for these creatures who occupy our homes, yards, and wild lands. Leading me to share a story that I think brings these two special foci's together in my own odd way.
I have two cats. One of them is 7 years older than the other. When I first brought the youngest one, Tigrah, home, my older cat, Mittens, was not happy. My thought that they could play together and keep each other company was obviously something that either of them had in mind as my older cat, set in her schedule and ritual life, was not willing to allow.
In my bedroom, I had placed one of those cardboard cat scratchers, the kind that is filled with catnip. Now, Mittens had discovered the overwhelming power and fascination of catnip and the need to partake of a good claw sharpening and roll around over this little box on a regular basis. Tigrah, on the other hand, being a kitten, had never really seen such a thing. She had been content to play with the fake little mice, often flinging them onto the bed in the middle of the night and expecting me to interact with her as she pounced about the bed.
So it was with some curiosity as she watched Mittens each day go over to this box and perform her ritual. The two had worked out the proper distance of toleration after a few days and weeks. Yet they each had there separate spaces and places somehow silently agreed to between them. One day, Tigrah, noticing that she was alone in the bedroom, decided to check out this curious box. She crept up slowly to it, her nose sniffing carefully to see if it was dangerous. As was to be expected, the catnip soon took on its effect and she began to rub her neck against the box and soon was perched on it not sure how to use it for scratching.
Out of nowhere pounced Mittens. Hissing along her path, she ran over to the scratching box and stopped abruptly. Tigrah, unsure just where this fit was leading waited patiently. Mittens, seeing her posturing had failed to impress, struck out with her paw, not using her claws, but just enough to encourage Tigrah to leave, which she did. Of course, soon neither cat really used the scratching box at all.
It was all a bit humorous, but it struck me as the perfect example sometimes about how each of us reacts when something we find precious is discovered by a stranger. Sometimes we can find a place where our own naive curiosity is embraced, where our new way of exploring and discovering the world is encouraged, or where we can come share in the delight that others have found. But sometimes we find ourselves in the midst of, well, sour pusses. Places where the rituals have become stale, or so formulaic as to lose their power to those who come regularly.
This is why we we focus on World Communion Sunday, a time for us to remember the mystery and excitement, the anticipation of being part of a practice as old as the faith itself, and which transforms and is transformed for each new Christian. And it's also perhaps why we look at St. Francis, a person who discovered God's grace and presence in an unexpected place.
I hope you have a chance to experience God's grace this week in unexpected ways and places and I pray that By the Way can be the sort of community that allows you to scratch below the surface to a deeper understanding of God's love for you. Amen!
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Wednesday "Worship" Nights
Starting in October, we will host a little worship and prayer time at the Panera on 101A. This is pretty informal time for sharing and praying for one another.
Join us beginning Wednesday, Oct. 1 from 7:30-8:30 PM.
Join us beginning Wednesday, Oct. 1 from 7:30-8:30 PM.
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