My Thoughts Turn to YOU Today

I have spent some time today thinking and surfing the web. During that time, I came across the article below. Please take a moment to read it. Then spend a few minutes thinking about it and what message you can take away from it.

The message for me goes something like this: There is a place for each of us to worship God but how often are we doing that? I mean, do we really step outside of our busy, man-made lives and quietly be still and look for God? Sure, it is possible to see him in the faces of children on a crowded playground or in the voice of an older adult sharing stories from their past, or in a thousand other ways. But … it seems to me that people feel closer – I feel closer – to God when the surroundings are made as a sacred place.

Worship should be sacred and it should be meaningful and it should be set aside for the One. And I think that there are many ways to do worship. I also think it is extremely important to make a place for our souls to rest, find comfort, be renewed, and maybe feel the touch of Our Creator in the very depths.

For me that can be found in the ancient texts of the Bible and in the places where the saints before gathered to restore their souls and offer comfort to each other. Many others find their place in those quiet pews. Many others connect with their faith, their family history, their special remembrances in those places also. Many others are introduced to faith in community in those places. Many others meet God in those places each and every week.

That is what church should do. That is what church could do if we would simply be the church.

Wholly Bible: A View from the Pew
Malls and Amazement
By RAY WADDLE

Sitting in church the other day, I thought about the mall.

No, I was not fantasizing about Pottery Barn and Sbarro. I was thinking about all the big new churches now that aim to look and feel like the mall, and how glad I am that my little church does not.

My church is the old-fashioned kind – stone arches, long pews, wooden altar rails and tall stained glass panels that tell the stories of Jesus.

In the sweepstakes of religious competition, little neighborhood congregations like mine (with their cramped parking lots) struggle against the dazzling new normal – the large churches that forsake steeples and hymnals and dress codes and stained glass and silence. According to surveys, fewer and fewer young people and families now attend churches that were built before World War II.

I have visited some of the new churches. They are serious about ministry. They are reaching people in new ways.

But something ... (continued at: http://barefootpreachr.org/2011/01/11/my-thoughts-turn-to-you-today/)

Flat Jesus

Jesus loves the little children, all the children of the world … that’s the idea behind the Flat Jesus project.

The project was started several years ago at the church I served to help members of the congregation connect with the children who were attending the church. This was a congregation that wanted to welcome new people into their community, wanted to make a space for children, but were only able to connect with the way things had always been done. The facility had not been updated in many years, maybe 20?, and the furnishings had fallen into disrepair. But … the congregation wanted to make a difference in the lives of the children that were attending, and those who would come in the future.

So, a plan was born. The walls were given a fresh coat of paint. Murals were painted on the walls also. Cabinets were given a good cleaning and safety measures were taken. Old pieces of furniture that were broken or no longer safe were removed. New toys, games, crafts and age-appropriate activities were brought in, and the children were made to feel welcome. In 8 months the children’s ministry grew 260%!

This project was the next phase, if you will. It is geared to teach the children tolerance and acceptance of children from all walks of life and all cultural backgrounds. By involving the older adults in the project it is hoped that they will also accept people of all walks of life, all cultural backgrounds and all ages. It is sometimes difficult to welcome a crying baby in the sanctuary when you find it hard to hear. Or to make room for a family that doesn’t fit your model of what a family looks like. I am proud to have been a part of that small church with the big hearts. They showed me what it means when I remember the words …

Jesus loves me! This I know,
For the Bible tells me so;
Little ones to Him belong,
They are weak but He is strong.
Yes, Jesus loves me!
Yes, Jesus loves me!
Yes, Jesus loves me!
The Bible tells me so.

Thank you church for teaching me how much Jesus really loves even me!

*For more information, or to participate in the Flat Jesus project, please go to: http://barefootpreachr.org/flat-jesus-project/

Another rainy day ...

These past few weeks have had an abundance of rain to share with us and frankly, I’m tired of the gray! In south Florida there is a term for all this rain, it’s called “liquid sunshine”. But here in north Georgia, the sun is not sunshiny during the rain. It’s making me tired of the gray.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I am grateful for the rain. I am even grateful for the clouds and the cool temperatures. I’m just tired of all of the gray. Do you know what I mean? Have you ever felt the same way?

I have found that in life it is so much simpler when things are black or white, right or wrong, up or down … you get the idea. But when things start to blur, it is harder to make choices. Like when it rains. Do I really need to go out or can it wait until tomorrow? On one hand we need to balance the perceived need and on the other, our own wants. Sometimes it is easier than at other times.

While raising my young children if we ran out of milk or bread or diapers, that was an absolute need that far outweighed my wanting to stay at home where it was warm and dry. Now that I am older and my children do not live at home I can look in the fridge and think to myself, “Tomorrow is soon enough to pick up some milk.” My desire to stay warm and dry has won out against the need for milk. I’ll just change the menu for tonight.

Yet now I find that the choices aren’t as easy as they once were. Now I do not have the external guides that I once had and the choices, the decisions I must make are often more difficult. Now the choices and the issues I wrestle with are often blurred into matters that have the nuances of others lives besides my own. Now, I make decisions and choices on matters that have far-reaching implications. When I go out to the grocery store for my milk or bread I can not help but think – where did the food came from? who produced it? is the packaging recyclable? what of the child who is hungry tonight?

And it is still raining. But I see a touch of sun shining through!

“When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me. Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.” ~ 1 Corinthians 13: 11-12

On the Road Again ....

... just can't wait to get to get on the road again...

Did you know there are hundreds of songs that have been written about "the road"? How about the ever-popular: AC/DC – Highway to Hell? Or one from my late teen years: Bachman Turner Overdrive – Roll On Down the Highway? Most folks will remember the melancholy song by the Beatles – Long and Winding Road. The title of this post comes from a line in a song by Willie Nelson – On The Road Again. Do you remember swooning to the velvet voice of Ricky Nelson in "Travelin’ Man"?

And who can forget the ever popular ballad by Loudon Wainwright – Dead Skunk in the Middle of the Road?

Most people accept and embrace the belief that life is a journey, and we see journeys as best-lived on roads. In today's modern world most communities have roads that are paved and designed for cars - not for walking. In fact, our communities have been designed to suit a lifestyle that requires the "convenience" of a car and are not able to be easily navigated on foot. As one author commented - try walking around sometime. No, communities are set up to be convenient for CARS. We've got drive-thru restaurants, drive-thru pharmacies, drive-thru convenience stores, and drive-thru car washes.

In the Bible we have a road story. It is also a story about love and a story about TRUTH. What is your story? Where are you on the road with the risen Savior? This weekend I am "on the road again" with friends and strangers building community and watching for time spent with my Lord. Hope to see you at the cross-road!


"Now that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem." ~ Luke 24:13