Here's a thought-for-the-day, a quote of Dr. Howard Thurman, a civil rights leader and colleague of Dr. King:
"Don't ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you
come alive and then go do that. Because what the world needs is people
who have come alive."
I think I'm so taken by this thought because Thurman was a follower of Jesus who truly followed his Lord right into the muck of hate-filled confrontation over equal rights in our country. He was immersed in the battle for what the world needs and knew how important it was to be working tirelessly for change. But he also had the wisdom to see that our spirits yearn to be fed, that we need to seek out what makes us come alive. And in coming alive, our world will be changed as well.
I can imagine that Dr. Thurman could have been wieghed down with despair and disgust as he witnessed and experienced oppression all around him. And maybe some days that's exactly what happened. But I bet on his spirited days he came alive with hope, writing and speaking creatively of how God is moving hearts to open up to one another, despite our differences.
When I picture Jesus walking through the city streets and country paths of his world, I see one who is fully alive, so full of the life of God that it spilled out all over the place. In my times of prayer, I see Jesus inviting me to come along, to be part of this exciting movement of opening up to our world's vast needs. Though I can't begin to address them all, I can try to see where my world's needs and my own gifts for coming alive intersect. God's given me gifts for compassion and openness, for listening and serving. I can offer those gifts back to the world out of guilt and duty and end up with more shoulds and more despair than I started with. Or... I can begin by asking God to fill me up each day with life and joy that will overflow... for the life of my world.
What is it that makes you come alive? And how does that passionate life overflow into the world around you? Can you imagine God lifting your eyes to see beyond the muck of the world... to see new possibilities, new ways to connect with others who long to come alive together? What thoughts can you add to this conversation, begun by the assertion of one hope-filled Dr. Thurman? Please do share!
~ Kari Henkelmann Keyl
Friday, May 30, 2008
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Steve-o's Devos: Grace vs. Law--Putting Around
Monday, a group of us went over to a local miniature golf course to enjoy one another's company and the beautiful Spring day. Miniature golf is the perfect game for those of us who like just a little bit of that fair day exercise. But it also has a way of focusing your attention on rather small details and plenty of obstacles. We of course decided to go with the course less travelled, the hardest of the two choices. I'm not convinced it matters all that much when it comes to mini golf courses, but off we went.
Each person teed off and then we played from the person with the farthest ball out next. This was a kind of unwritten law for the game play that day. There was one exception which seemed rather random. If your ball landed near the hole, say an inch or two, you could go ahead and tap it in. This little graceful rule worked pretty well. But early on in the game I kind of screwed a little--and in order to get to how this happened, I have to back up to the crucial beginning of the mini golf game--the color of the ball you use.
Yes, from the very beginning of the game, you have to make a choice. And wanting to be a good host I deferred to my friends to choose first. Of course, I secretly wanted the blue-colored ball, the one that of course improves my game no matter what. But, one of my friends chose it instead and I was left with other possible options. I went with purple, figuring it was a little close. And we headed off to the course.
A few holes in our game, and playing with this rule of letting the person with the ball furthest from the hole play first, I ended up making a crucial error. For my friend with the blue ball was but an inch from the hole, while purple ball lagged some 2 feet away within sight of the hole, but in the rough. "You go," the group said. So, I meandered down the little fairway, and without really thinking, tapped the blue ball into the hole giving my friend a score of "2". "HEY!" The group yelled, laughing at my mistake. So much for that law, and my friend decided to play my ball for the score--"7" is I am honest. Though I guessed this was fair, it did not feel that way.
Later, on another hole, my ball went right to the lip of the hole and stayed there. My friend with the blue-colored ball was next and as he putted his ball came down the fairway, circled the hole, and then gently pushed both my ball and his into the cup. Wow, a late hole-in-one. Now that was pretty funny and though I was thinking I should get "2" points, the group thought it should be "1". Somehow the game ended with me being just a few strokes ahead of my friend, thus winning the game.
Now all of this was well and good, but turns out it was a great lesson in experiencing the difference between the strictness of the law and grace (something one of the early Christian writers talks about extensively in a letter to the Romans). Under the law, we spend so much time making sure things follow along whether they are serve a good purpose or not. The laws we live under are important for living in community with one another, but sometimes we must discern whether a simple mistake is worth a little forgiveness and when that happens we experience true grace.
Grace is something we usually don't deserve and something we all are in short supply of sometimes. We know it when we are on the receiving end most of the time. This is how it works with God too. God's grace in our lives is ever present. We don't deserve it, and mostly just muddle along hoping that the mistakes we make will just lie in the rough, undiscovered.
I think sometimes God is a lot like those friends of mine on the mini golf course, finding humor in the times we make mistakes, and taking joy in our acknowledgment of our mistake and request for forgiveness. We just need to remember, God's grace was already there to begin with, made present in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus.
May you also discover God's grace in your life this week as you putter around.
Each person teed off and then we played from the person with the farthest ball out next. This was a kind of unwritten law for the game play that day. There was one exception which seemed rather random. If your ball landed near the hole, say an inch or two, you could go ahead and tap it in. This little graceful rule worked pretty well. But early on in the game I kind of screwed a little--and in order to get to how this happened, I have to back up to the crucial beginning of the mini golf game--the color of the ball you use.
Yes, from the very beginning of the game, you have to make a choice. And wanting to be a good host I deferred to my friends to choose first. Of course, I secretly wanted the blue-colored ball, the one that of course improves my game no matter what. But, one of my friends chose it instead and I was left with other possible options. I went with purple, figuring it was a little close. And we headed off to the course.
A few holes in our game, and playing with this rule of letting the person with the ball furthest from the hole play first, I ended up making a crucial error. For my friend with the blue ball was but an inch from the hole, while purple ball lagged some 2 feet away within sight of the hole, but in the rough. "You go," the group said. So, I meandered down the little fairway, and without really thinking, tapped the blue ball into the hole giving my friend a score of "2". "HEY!" The group yelled, laughing at my mistake. So much for that law, and my friend decided to play my ball for the score--"7" is I am honest. Though I guessed this was fair, it did not feel that way.
Later, on another hole, my ball went right to the lip of the hole and stayed there. My friend with the blue-colored ball was next and as he putted his ball came down the fairway, circled the hole, and then gently pushed both my ball and his into the cup. Wow, a late hole-in-one. Now that was pretty funny and though I was thinking I should get "2" points, the group thought it should be "1". Somehow the game ended with me being just a few strokes ahead of my friend, thus winning the game.
Now all of this was well and good, but turns out it was a great lesson in experiencing the difference between the strictness of the law and grace (something one of the early Christian writers talks about extensively in a letter to the Romans). Under the law, we spend so much time making sure things follow along whether they are serve a good purpose or not. The laws we live under are important for living in community with one another, but sometimes we must discern whether a simple mistake is worth a little forgiveness and when that happens we experience true grace.
Grace is something we usually don't deserve and something we all are in short supply of sometimes. We know it when we are on the receiving end most of the time. This is how it works with God too. God's grace in our lives is ever present. We don't deserve it, and mostly just muddle along hoping that the mistakes we make will just lie in the rough, undiscovered.
I think sometimes God is a lot like those friends of mine on the mini golf course, finding humor in the times we make mistakes, and taking joy in our acknowledgment of our mistake and request for forgiveness. We just need to remember, God's grace was already there to begin with, made present in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus.
May you also discover God's grace in your life this week as you putter around.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Dialogo: How do you remember?
Today marks the opening of the summer blockbuster season, officially, and the return of Indiana Jones to the big screen. As happened somewhat with the "return" of the Star Wars movies, some folks beging waxing eloquently about the good old days, or share stories of how the very first Indiana Jones film impacted them as kids, teens, or even college students. All of this sharing is a good thing when we have a collective memory to share information from. As you watch Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull there are references to each of the three preceding IJ films, films which the youngest star, Shia LaBeouf would never have been able to see as a child (he was 4 when the last Indiana Jones movie was released).
Throughout the new Indy film, there are pictures of older characters, musical inferences of past adventures, and even occasional story arcs that link up with previous stories in the series. All this led me to wonder how we remember stories from our past.
When teaching smaller children, or reading to them stories, it is always interesting to see how many of them remember these stories later. Maybe you remember The Grinch, or Bilbo Baggins, Heloise, or Flicka, Black Beauty? All these are characters in literature that most people come into contact with at some point in their lives. For many of us today, we see these characters in elaborate films, or in exciting, beautifully drawn anime or mangas.
But all of this reflection on stories, makes me wonder...how do you remember a good story? What stories do you remember from when you were just a child? What images stand out to you that keep returning years later from a book you read, or a movie you saw as a child?
The grand story we are all in, God's story, has an amazing narrative, one that has been told for thousands of years. Yet, sometimes those images and people have been forgotten. For most of us, a stained glass window may hold little meaning if we never heard the story. So what part's of God's story are important for you? Are you willing to share some?
--sak--
Throughout the new Indy film, there are pictures of older characters, musical inferences of past adventures, and even occasional story arcs that link up with previous stories in the series. All this led me to wonder how we remember stories from our past.
When teaching smaller children, or reading to them stories, it is always interesting to see how many of them remember these stories later. Maybe you remember The Grinch, or Bilbo Baggins, Heloise, or Flicka, Black Beauty? All these are characters in literature that most people come into contact with at some point in their lives. For many of us today, we see these characters in elaborate films, or in exciting, beautifully drawn anime or mangas.
But all of this reflection on stories, makes me wonder...how do you remember a good story? What stories do you remember from when you were just a child? What images stand out to you that keep returning years later from a book you read, or a movie you saw as a child?
The grand story we are all in, God's story, has an amazing narrative, one that has been told for thousands of years. Yet, sometimes those images and people have been forgotten. For most of us, a stained glass window may hold little meaning if we never heard the story. So what part's of God's story are important for you? Are you willing to share some?
--sak--
Monday, May 19, 2008
Ready to Play
Check out this take on how creation got started:
First off, nothing... but God. No light, no time, no substance, no matter. Second off, God says the word and WHAP! Stuff everywhere! The cosmos in chaos: no shape, no form, no function -- just darkness... total. And floating above it all, God's Holy Spirit, ready to play.
So the Creator has a playful spirit, according to Rob Lacey and his "Word on the Street" version of the Bible. And don't forget, "holy", too... a holy spirit of creative play.
I love that. I need to hear that, now and then... that play is a vital part of life. Vital as in full of energy. And absolutely essential! When we take ourselves too seriously as accomplishers, workers, succeeders, strivers... then these are the gracewords we need to hear: And floating above it all is God's Holy Spirit, ready to play.
Last week I had the privilege of going on a retreat with 20 or so other ministry-types, people who needed a break, a chance to hang with friends and be with God. And what did we do? We played! We played with all kinds of creative arts and craftsy thingies and we played with words and images, embellished with laughter and aha(!) insights. We let the Creator and the creation story guide us in letting loose, in switching from "doing" mode to "being" mode. Needless to say: it was great. Just what I was hungering for.
What kind of creative play do you crave? What are you doing or being when you feel so at one with the Creator that you could just burst with joy? Or has it been so long since you felt that way that you wonder if joy will ever come around again? Feel free to let loose your story of how creativity oozes from you or completely eludes you, how your spirit is fed when you play or how you wish you could find a way to be a creative play-er.
Jesus played plenty with words and images that have given us lasting views of how we can be floating with God's spirit. From Matthew's story (chapter 6) we hear Jesus asking us to stop everything, lay flat on our backs, watch the birds soar, smell the wildflowers... let all the striving go, long enough to loosen your worried souls and learn from creation, from all the creative play-ers around you. And when it's time to start striving again, strive not for piling up accomplishments but for lining up with God and God's creating ways.
It's a breath of fresh air, this creative play. Slurp in a deep one now and then, in between all those working hours. And be ready to play when the spirit floats you.
~ Kari Henkelmann Keyl
First off, nothing... but God. No light, no time, no substance, no matter. Second off, God says the word and WHAP! Stuff everywhere! The cosmos in chaos: no shape, no form, no function -- just darkness... total. And floating above it all, God's Holy Spirit, ready to play.
So the Creator has a playful spirit, according to Rob Lacey and his "Word on the Street" version of the Bible. And don't forget, "holy", too... a holy spirit of creative play.
I love that. I need to hear that, now and then... that play is a vital part of life. Vital as in full of energy. And absolutely essential! When we take ourselves too seriously as accomplishers, workers, succeeders, strivers... then these are the gracewords we need to hear: And floating above it all is God's Holy Spirit, ready to play.
Last week I had the privilege of going on a retreat with 20 or so other ministry-types, people who needed a break, a chance to hang with friends and be with God. And what did we do? We played! We played with all kinds of creative arts and craftsy thingies and we played with words and images, embellished with laughter and aha(!) insights. We let the Creator and the creation story guide us in letting loose, in switching from "doing" mode to "being" mode. Needless to say: it was great. Just what I was hungering for.
What kind of creative play do you crave? What are you doing or being when you feel so at one with the Creator that you could just burst with joy? Or has it been so long since you felt that way that you wonder if joy will ever come around again? Feel free to let loose your story of how creativity oozes from you or completely eludes you, how your spirit is fed when you play or how you wish you could find a way to be a creative play-er.
Jesus played plenty with words and images that have given us lasting views of how we can be floating with God's spirit. From Matthew's story (chapter 6) we hear Jesus asking us to stop everything, lay flat on our backs, watch the birds soar, smell the wildflowers... let all the striving go, long enough to loosen your worried souls and learn from creation, from all the creative play-ers around you. And when it's time to start striving again, strive not for piling up accomplishments but for lining up with God and God's creating ways.
It's a breath of fresh air, this creative play. Slurp in a deep one now and then, in between all those working hours. And be ready to play when the spirit floats you.
~ Kari Henkelmann Keyl
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Dialogo: What’s Love Got to Do with It?
This weekend brings Trinity Sunday, an ancient holiday to mark the three-fold nature of one God. Christians believe in a God of love and traditionally name God as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. So what does love have to do with how we see or experience God?
God as parent loves us enough to have created the whole universe, including you and me. God, who breathed life in us, loves creation enough to come in the human form of Jesus to save and redeem us from sin, sorrow and brokenness. God through Jesus dying on the cross and rising from death joins us to God’s love forever. God as Spirit guides us and works in us inspiring, strengthening, advocating, and making holy our daily lives.
The bottom line is that God loves us no matter what we do or don’t do. God loves this world; God loves everyone everywhere and welcomes us all into God’s loving embrace. We are wrapped in the amazing unconditional love of God throughout our lives. We then can draw on that love in times of joy and pain, success and failure anytime, anywhere.
God our loving Creator, Redeemer, and Spirit reminds us that our relationships are wrapped in that gracious and abundant love. This is because God participates in and cares deeply about us, our relationships, community and all of creation. So in light of this abundant love, how come we often forget about God’s love when we are blown off by friends, turned down, rejected and feel all alone?
I invite you to ponder the title/question: “what’s love got to do with it” in terms of the three-fold nature of God this week. In other words, what does the love of: 1.) God the Creator, who loves you and gives you life, 2.) God the Redeemer, who loves you and holds you in that love forever, and 3.) God the Spirit, who loves you and brings warmth and comfort to your heart and soul, mean for your life today… for you in the future… for this community, the world and all creation?
+ Bill Petersen
God as parent loves us enough to have created the whole universe, including you and me. God, who breathed life in us, loves creation enough to come in the human form of Jesus to save and redeem us from sin, sorrow and brokenness. God through Jesus dying on the cross and rising from death joins us to God’s love forever. God as Spirit guides us and works in us inspiring, strengthening, advocating, and making holy our daily lives.
The bottom line is that God loves us no matter what we do or don’t do. God loves this world; God loves everyone everywhere and welcomes us all into God’s loving embrace. We are wrapped in the amazing unconditional love of God throughout our lives. We then can draw on that love in times of joy and pain, success and failure anytime, anywhere.
God our loving Creator, Redeemer, and Spirit reminds us that our relationships are wrapped in that gracious and abundant love. This is because God participates in and cares deeply about us, our relationships, community and all of creation. So in light of this abundant love, how come we often forget about God’s love when we are blown off by friends, turned down, rejected and feel all alone?
I invite you to ponder the title/question: “what’s love got to do with it” in terms of the three-fold nature of God this week. In other words, what does the love of: 1.) God the Creator, who loves you and gives you life, 2.) God the Redeemer, who loves you and holds you in that love forever, and 3.) God the Spirit, who loves you and brings warmth and comfort to your heart and soul, mean for your life today… for you in the future… for this community, the world and all creation?
+ Bill Petersen
Monday, May 12, 2008
Steve-o's Devo: Listening to Live
The one thing we do a lot of at By The Way is listen. Even our primary phrase, "listening and exploring faith together" empashizes this very important piece of Christian community. We still are an early community. A community of people on the fringe who have perhaps had an encounter with the holy and desire deeply to discover what truth looks like after that encounter.
It is in our human nature to want to test everything to see just what it might be about, or if the people we meet are who they say they are. We see this played out in our daily lives at school, work, in our relationships. The hardest thing for many of us comes when we discover the truth that we are loved, just as we are, where we are at in our lives. That seems almost unbelievable. And yet, it is a core reality of God's grace.
In Paul's letter to another early church, one in Corinth, he reminds the people that it is less important to worry about the testing of our faith or of living in community. He reminds them it is not so much the fact that you are tested, but that you had the opportunity to pursue what was right. He hopes that the people followed the path laid out to them by Jesus--a path that can lead to the ability to listen to one another, come to an agreement and live in peace. This happens when we are able to accept God's love as always present and manifested in those around us called to live as followers of Jesus.
The path is not an easy one and this weekend I was reminded of this when I saw a bumper sticker that said: No Jesus, No Peace....Know Jesus, Know Peace. I laughed at first because as a person who works with other Christian communities, often ones in conflict, it seemed that this "peace" had been forgotten. But then I realized something deeper that gave me pause for reflection throughout the weekend. When we forgot who we are, and whose we are, peace is a difficult thing to come by. When our communities get bogged down in what we think, instead of discerning together and listening to what God may have in store, peace cannot exist. Conflict will begin to arise and we enter paths that cause more problems for us and our relationships. Is it any wonder so many people have come to church to discover Jesus and the peace that passes all understanding, only to discover a surly bunch of frustrated and distracted people. As I thought about this, I realized, it is our responsibility as disciples of Jesus to remind these communities that they are forgetting whose they are as they descend into bickering. And it is our responsibility to encourage them to rediscover Jesus.
It's not easy living in community. There will always be frustrations and contentions and I do not expect even our community of By the Way to be without them. But I think if we practice listening to one another, trying to discern what God is loving us into, we have an amazing opportunity to re-discover a world overflowing with grace and abundance. My prayer is that we can be one of those glimmers of hope that calls others, even those already connected in Christian communities, to re-discover and revitalize their lives in Jesus.
If you are stuggling this week, finding it hard to focus, perhaps feeling unsettled or frustrated, I hope you will consider stopping by to regroup your spirit, and discover how you can truly know peace. Or perhaps, you may just have to turn off the noise...and listen.
It is in our human nature to want to test everything to see just what it might be about, or if the people we meet are who they say they are. We see this played out in our daily lives at school, work, in our relationships. The hardest thing for many of us comes when we discover the truth that we are loved, just as we are, where we are at in our lives. That seems almost unbelievable. And yet, it is a core reality of God's grace.
In Paul's letter to another early church, one in Corinth, he reminds the people that it is less important to worry about the testing of our faith or of living in community. He reminds them it is not so much the fact that you are tested, but that you had the opportunity to pursue what was right. He hopes that the people followed the path laid out to them by Jesus--a path that can lead to the ability to listen to one another, come to an agreement and live in peace. This happens when we are able to accept God's love as always present and manifested in those around us called to live as followers of Jesus.
The path is not an easy one and this weekend I was reminded of this when I saw a bumper sticker that said: No Jesus, No Peace....Know Jesus, Know Peace. I laughed at first because as a person who works with other Christian communities, often ones in conflict, it seemed that this "peace" had been forgotten. But then I realized something deeper that gave me pause for reflection throughout the weekend. When we forgot who we are, and whose we are, peace is a difficult thing to come by. When our communities get bogged down in what we think, instead of discerning together and listening to what God may have in store, peace cannot exist. Conflict will begin to arise and we enter paths that cause more problems for us and our relationships. Is it any wonder so many people have come to church to discover Jesus and the peace that passes all understanding, only to discover a surly bunch of frustrated and distracted people. As I thought about this, I realized, it is our responsibility as disciples of Jesus to remind these communities that they are forgetting whose they are as they descend into bickering. And it is our responsibility to encourage them to rediscover Jesus.
It's not easy living in community. There will always be frustrations and contentions and I do not expect even our community of By the Way to be without them. But I think if we practice listening to one another, trying to discern what God is loving us into, we have an amazing opportunity to re-discover a world overflowing with grace and abundance. My prayer is that we can be one of those glimmers of hope that calls others, even those already connected in Christian communities, to re-discover and revitalize their lives in Jesus.
If you are stuggling this week, finding it hard to focus, perhaps feeling unsettled or frustrated, I hope you will consider stopping by to regroup your spirit, and discover how you can truly know peace. Or perhaps, you may just have to turn off the noise...and listen.
Thursday, May 8, 2008
Dialogo: How much water does it take?
While traveling a couple of weeks ago, I caught comedian Lewis Black's stand-up routine on The Comedy Channel. Black has a kind of matter-of-fact, agitated style that reveals microscopically the weird and crazy things people do, both individually and as a society. When I read Bill's devo this week, it reminded me of Black's observation about water.
Black reflected that when he was a kid, if you were thirsty you just went and got a glass of water. No one was telling you you needed to drink it, you just knew that you needed it. He went on to say that now we have people telling us we need to drink water and that these people are often selling water as well. Water that is bottled, in many cases, by soda companies--"This is the water that they won't even put in Coke, people!" Well, that made me laugh, but it also made me think a little bit.
Too often we are thirsty for something different in a landscape that wants us to quench are thirst with something not always good for us. We can mask our own desires and needs, or suppress our own insecurities for only a moment by staying constantly in motion, or by filling our lives and homes with stuff.
So, my question to ponder this week, is when did you realize you were thirsty for something more than the same old bottled up stuff available on any street corner? What helped you to see a deeper, more refreshing way to look at life?
If you are still seeking, join us one of these Mondays or Thursdays. Together we will explore the deeper refreshment available through the Spirit of God.
Black reflected that when he was a kid, if you were thirsty you just went and got a glass of water. No one was telling you you needed to drink it, you just knew that you needed it. He went on to say that now we have people telling us we need to drink water and that these people are often selling water as well. Water that is bottled, in many cases, by soda companies--"This is the water that they won't even put in Coke, people!" Well, that made me laugh, but it also made me think a little bit.
Too often we are thirsty for something different in a landscape that wants us to quench are thirst with something not always good for us. We can mask our own desires and needs, or suppress our own insecurities for only a moment by staying constantly in motion, or by filling our lives and homes with stuff.
So, my question to ponder this week, is when did you realize you were thirsty for something more than the same old bottled up stuff available on any street corner? What helped you to see a deeper, more refreshing way to look at life?
If you are still seeking, join us one of these Mondays or Thursdays. Together we will explore the deeper refreshment available through the Spirit of God.
Monday, May 5, 2008
Living Water
In John Chapter 7, Jesus describes the abundance of God’s Spirit as a river of living waters, a river that suddenly flows into the people of God as mighty water. John’s writing reminded me of the waters of the Merrimack. Waters rushing this week swelled by melted snow up north and the cleansing spring rains of the past week.
The Merrimack “riverscape” changes seasonally but today it churns and rages as it flows down toward the Atlantic. Today this living water is the source of fun for kayakers, habitat for fish and wildlife, and the key ingredient for Budweiser Beer. Generations ago it was the lifeblood that powered the American Industrial Revolution. The mills along its banks in Manchester, Nashua and Lowell stand in tribute to the blessing of a river whose depth varies with the season, but gives life even on the driest of summer days.
But water images can be overwhelming… Sometimes the demands of life drown out what matters most. Relationships and jobs seemingly dry up overnight. Our cups go from seeming half-full to half-empty. Our hearts and mouths get parched and we thirst for meaning. We yearn for living water to quench our thirst and sustain us.
Jesus says, come drink. Be drenched in this water which is the Spirit. You will drink in the abundance, and life-giving water will flow from deep inside you. Here at By The Way the waters of the Holy Spirit move, flow, sustain and enrich in many ways. From conversations over coffee, tea or a beer, connections through Facebook, blog, IM or cell, to prayer lifted and concern for one another. The Spirit moves in and through us all, often whether we sense it at the time or not.
Jesus came so we as individuals, and together in community, may have life and live it abundantly. Life lived here and now in the Merrimack River Valley, and life forever, where we will never thirst again. The creator moves upon the waters, breaths through the rush of wind and flame, and makes us living vessels filled with God’s Spirit with living water to share with others.
Come on in, splash around, the waters mighty fine!
+Bill Petersen
New for BTW
We are making some adjustements in May to our weekly schedule.
First we are starting some gathering times Monday nights downtown Nashua. On May 12 & 19 we will gather at Martha's Exchange downtown Main Street to check in and see how people are doing spiritually and otherwise, focus on a little Bible passage for reflection, and dream a bit about how we want "worship" to look.
Then coming in June we will move to a Tuesday night worshipping opportunity for the community. We will be talking about where that might be at our Monday night times.
At the end of the month we will gather Wednesday the 28th for a pizza party. For more info on this and other upcoming BTW activities, email us at bytheway.Nashua@gmail.com.
First we are starting some gathering times Monday nights downtown Nashua. On May 12 & 19 we will gather at Martha's Exchange downtown Main Street to check in and see how people are doing spiritually and otherwise, focus on a little Bible passage for reflection, and dream a bit about how we want "worship" to look.
Then coming in June we will move to a Tuesday night worshipping opportunity for the community. We will be talking about where that might be at our Monday night times.
At the end of the month we will gather Wednesday the 28th for a pizza party. For more info on this and other upcoming BTW activities, email us at bytheway.Nashua@gmail.com.
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