Family Camp 2009 - This weekend (May 1-3) will be the Deep River Friends Family Camp at Quaker Lake. (www.quakerlakecamp.org) It's a time for us to gather as a church family and enjoy the fellowship as well as grow spiritually. It all starts on Friday evening. There is nothing scheduled for Friday evening but you can come and enjoy hanging out as folks arrive. On Saturday, there will be a couple times in the morning in which we gather as a group to worship and study the Scriptures together in keeping with our theme on "grace". Saturday afternoon is free time with a BBQ chicken dinner on Saturday evening and a Talent Show after dinner. Sunday morning we will have our Sunday School time with our Meeting for Worship at 11AM. We are encouraging everyone to come to the worship at Quaker Lake. You can dress extremely casual as we gather to worship together in the beautiful surroundings.
Our theme for the weekend is "grace" and we seek to understand how we can "grow in grace" so that we can better live in God's grace as well as be grace-full towards each other. One of the themes Ministry and Counsel has been promoting in our meeting is that of "hospitality". This term, "hospitality", is one of the five spiritual practices we are seeking to root ourselves in as a congregation so that we can become an increasingly fruitful congregation. Here is what one writer has to say about "hospitality":
"The hospitality of the church is not simply a matter of being nice or being really friendly. Not is hospitality accomplished by better signs, name tags, or a really great coffee hour. Hospitality is about grace. It is about welcoming others, whoever they are, wherever they are on life's journey, because that's the way God welcomed us. It is about loving others because God has loved us."
As we gather for Family Camp, I pray that we can better understand how God has welcomed each of us and how God has created a hospitable place for each of us to live and exist. In that way, we can be people who gladly welcome each other regardless of where we are on our spiritual journey.
Thoughts on Current Events - It seems as if we can't pick up the paper or watch the news without another "crisis" looming on the horizon. If it's not an economic crisis it's a climate crisis or a health crisis -as in the present warnings about Swine Flu. No doubt, we certainly need to be aware of what is going on around use but we need not be consumed by the events. As we do what we need to do to take precautions and be prudent, we also live with the awareness that our God is a much bigger God then any crisis that exists today. God is not thrown off by events of our world and neither shall we.
Blessings,
Scott
Monday, April 27, 2009
Monday, April 20, 2009
Christian Earth Care
Coming up this Wednesday, April 22, is Earth Day. It is a day designed to create appreciation and awareness for creation and the world in which we live. It is also a day designed to cause us to stop and reflect on our behavior towards the earth's resources and how our lifestyles may be doing damage to the environment. For years, Christians have often shied away from this kind of stuff. They leave to to the "tree huggers" and those of a more liberal and progressive persuasion to deal with the "earth care" stuff. But, thankfully, we are beginning to make some progress in seeing earth care as the responsibility of all Christians - and all people's - and giving careful thought to our actions and lifestyles and how they affect the environment. In recognition of Earth Day, I share this excerpt from entitled Serve God Save the Planet: A Christian's Call to Action, by Matthew Sleeth.
"What is your behavior toward God's creation? Most of us are not able to walk down pathways we have planted with trees. We do not know how many pounds of trash we have plucked out of streams. We have not composted our yard waste, much less eradicated an invasive species of algae from a pond. For the majority of us, our relationship to the created world is not one of caretaker or steward. Our typical reaction to nature is to not see it, or to see it only when a vacation or a sporting activity takes us into contact with it. It is sobering for me to admit that I can identify more species of automobiles than trees.
Are you kinder than average in your treatment of the earth and your neighbors? In order to move from thought to action, you will have to recognize that some action is needed. For actions in which there is no universal right or wrong, it can be helpful at least to be aware of what others are doing. We may think of ourselves philanthropic and generous until we see a widow giving away her last two pennies.
When we ar truly grateful, we give God thanks for our blessings. When we are ungrateful or feel a sense of entitlement toward material blessings, we tend to ignore or mnot give thanks. Many of us give thanks for our food. We know that farmers have worked hard to produce it, and that God has provided the sun and rain and wind vital to the harvest. We bow our heads in prayer and thank God for our food. Few of us recognize however, that people work, fight, and die to bring us energy.
Energy - electricity, wood, coal, gasoline, propane, and oil - is like food. It is a blessing, and it sustains us. Our relationship to God's gifts can be one of entitlement, ignorance, and gluttony or one of praise, thanks, and temperance.
When was the last time yo bowed your head in thanks when filling your car with gasoline? If you haven't done so, is it because you don't think it is a blessing? Do you feel entitled to fill up? Is home heating oil something God or the world owses you? Do you feel you should have all you want, and at the price you want?"
I think one thing this author does is cause me to see how often I view life as an entitlement rather then a gift. When we see the earth and creation as an entitlement, we feel free to use it any way we want without any regard for the damage we may be doing or for what we are handing on to the next generation. When we see creation as an entitlement, we lose a sense of wonder about it and we only see it in utilitarian ways - how can it meet my needs? how can it supply what I want? To acknowledge God as the Creator is to acknowledge that God is the giver of all we have and possess. And, God has given us a magnificent creation to enjoy, steward, nurture, and care for so we can pass it on to the next generation.
Happy Earth Day!
Scott
"What is your behavior toward God's creation? Most of us are not able to walk down pathways we have planted with trees. We do not know how many pounds of trash we have plucked out of streams. We have not composted our yard waste, much less eradicated an invasive species of algae from a pond. For the majority of us, our relationship to the created world is not one of caretaker or steward. Our typical reaction to nature is to not see it, or to see it only when a vacation or a sporting activity takes us into contact with it. It is sobering for me to admit that I can identify more species of automobiles than trees.
Are you kinder than average in your treatment of the earth and your neighbors? In order to move from thought to action, you will have to recognize that some action is needed. For actions in which there is no universal right or wrong, it can be helpful at least to be aware of what others are doing. We may think of ourselves philanthropic and generous until we see a widow giving away her last two pennies.
When we ar truly grateful, we give God thanks for our blessings. When we are ungrateful or feel a sense of entitlement toward material blessings, we tend to ignore or mnot give thanks. Many of us give thanks for our food. We know that farmers have worked hard to produce it, and that God has provided the sun and rain and wind vital to the harvest. We bow our heads in prayer and thank God for our food. Few of us recognize however, that people work, fight, and die to bring us energy.
Energy - electricity, wood, coal, gasoline, propane, and oil - is like food. It is a blessing, and it sustains us. Our relationship to God's gifts can be one of entitlement, ignorance, and gluttony or one of praise, thanks, and temperance.
When was the last time yo bowed your head in thanks when filling your car with gasoline? If you haven't done so, is it because you don't think it is a blessing? Do you feel entitled to fill up? Is home heating oil something God or the world owses you? Do you feel you should have all you want, and at the price you want?"
I think one thing this author does is cause me to see how often I view life as an entitlement rather then a gift. When we see the earth and creation as an entitlement, we feel free to use it any way we want without any regard for the damage we may be doing or for what we are handing on to the next generation. When we see creation as an entitlement, we lose a sense of wonder about it and we only see it in utilitarian ways - how can it meet my needs? how can it supply what I want? To acknowledge God as the Creator is to acknowledge that God is the giver of all we have and possess. And, God has given us a magnificent creation to enjoy, steward, nurture, and care for so we can pass it on to the next generation.
Happy Earth Day!
Scott
Monday, April 13, 2009
Easter As A Way of Life
I recently came across a great website. It's www.explorefaith.org. On this website it provided a great way for folks to make Easter more then just a weekend experience. We Quakers don't often follow the Liturgical Calendar (or Christian calendar) very religiously. Being folks that don't get too much into ceremony or ritual, we often don't pay attention to it. But, sometimes the Christian calendar can be a great way to be mindful of our own spiritual journey in such a way that intersects with everyday living. What the Explore Faith website does is provide a great way for individuals to make Easter a way of life for the next 50 days. In fifty days, the church will celebrate what is typically known as Pentecost. This is a time in which the coming of the Holy Spirit is recognized and celebrated. But, until then, what would it look like if each day we made the resurrection miracle a daily event...and not just a weekend gig. Here is the link to the website: http://www.explorefaith.org/explore_faith/explore_christianity/holy_days/easter/calendar/easter_calendar.php
As part of explaining Easter as a way of life, here is a helpful thought provided by the folks at Explore Faith:
"But the Easter story is not only an experience, an event. It is a way of life. The resurrection of Jesus created the hope in Christians that death is never the end—resurrection is. We not only look forward to an eternal future with the Holy One, we have the opportunity to experience Easter moments in the midst of our everyday lives. We know that death and sorrow stand nearby — whether it be physical death, the loss of a job, the loss of a relationship, the loss of a dream —but resurrection also waits to be noticed at the edges of our life. We have all known the wonder of a healing, a new job, a new love, a new dream being born out of the agony of hopelessness. Making Easter a way of life means that we are unwilling to settle for death in any of its forms. We are unwilling to give up hope and belief that new life is always being offered to us by heaven. We are unwilling to be ground down by grief when God's goodness is extended to us. Making Easter a way of life means that we turn our eyes toward resurrection each and every day, searching for its signs, believing in its truth, living into its glory."
I especially like the way they remind us that "death is never the end" but that resurrection is. I also like how they remind us that resurrection "waits to be noticed at the edges of our life." I realize, then, that maybe the reason I don't often see Easter happening in my life is that I am not taking the time to notice. We have become a very distracted society and it's not as easy to "notice" or "pay attention" to what is going on around us. Maybe Easter is happening all around us but we simply are not able to notice. Maybe, also, the reason I don't notice is that I might spend too much time paying attention to the things in life that deadening...a deadening attitude, a deadening vision, a deadening disposition, deadening entertainment. In other words, it's easier to spend time with things that deaden the soul rather then wake up the soul.
Let's look for Easter at the edges of our lives and let's remind ourselves that death is never the end....whether it be physical death, the death of our dreams, the death of our hope, or the death of our joy. Death is never the end. Resurrection and life have had the final word and they call us to live!
As part of explaining Easter as a way of life, here is a helpful thought provided by the folks at Explore Faith:
"But the Easter story is not only an experience, an event. It is a way of life. The resurrection of Jesus created the hope in Christians that death is never the end—resurrection is. We not only look forward to an eternal future with the Holy One, we have the opportunity to experience Easter moments in the midst of our everyday lives. We know that death and sorrow stand nearby — whether it be physical death, the loss of a job, the loss of a relationship, the loss of a dream —but resurrection also waits to be noticed at the edges of our life. We have all known the wonder of a healing, a new job, a new love, a new dream being born out of the agony of hopelessness. Making Easter a way of life means that we are unwilling to settle for death in any of its forms. We are unwilling to give up hope and belief that new life is always being offered to us by heaven. We are unwilling to be ground down by grief when God's goodness is extended to us. Making Easter a way of life means that we turn our eyes toward resurrection each and every day, searching for its signs, believing in its truth, living into its glory."
I especially like the way they remind us that "death is never the end" but that resurrection is. I also like how they remind us that resurrection "waits to be noticed at the edges of our life." I realize, then, that maybe the reason I don't often see Easter happening in my life is that I am not taking the time to notice. We have become a very distracted society and it's not as easy to "notice" or "pay attention" to what is going on around us. Maybe Easter is happening all around us but we simply are not able to notice. Maybe, also, the reason I don't notice is that I might spend too much time paying attention to the things in life that deadening...a deadening attitude, a deadening vision, a deadening disposition, deadening entertainment. In other words, it's easier to spend time with things that deaden the soul rather then wake up the soul.
Let's look for Easter at the edges of our lives and let's remind ourselves that death is never the end....whether it be physical death, the death of our dreams, the death of our hope, or the death of our joy. Death is never the end. Resurrection and life have had the final word and they call us to live!
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