Advent 4 - Love All

To play the audio, just click the play button above at left.  To download, click the "Advent 4" title in yellow in the box above, which will take you to a site where you can down load it as an mp3 file.  If you see no image above or the audio will not play, click here for audio.

So - love all.  This last theme of the Advent conspiracy seems pretty simple on the surface, doesn't it?  But let's be honest.  It's probably the hardest to really live out.  Love itself is a big enough topic - but then when the invitation and challenge is to love all - we've got a tall order on our hands.

Who is the hardest person for you to love today?  Is it someone you know or not?

Is it harder for you to love when you don't feel loved?

The radical, groundbreaking nature of Christ is that in his ministry, teachings, and life, we know that all is truly the intent.  Jesus sought to love and reach out to those at the margins.  The coming of God in Jesus means John 3:16 but also John 3:17 - "for Christ did not come to condemn the world, but that the whole world (kosmos) might have eternal life."  As Christians, reflecting Christ's love, then, the invitation is not to let any barrier stop us - of social status, race, age, class, gender, conflict, disagreement, politics, past, but simply to love ALL.  The challenge is to live it out.
In Galatians 5 we read about the hope and waiting we live out in Advent, and the fact that in Christ no label or division can keep us, but only love:

⁵ For through the Spirit, by faith, we eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness.  ⁶ For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything; the only thing that counts is faith working through love.

At the end of today's podcast, we're giving you a brief preview of where we're headed.  This podcast/blog will go on hiatus for a couple weeks and pick up mid-January, for the Epiphany season.  Listen to today's podcast and stay tuned for what's ahead!

Advent 3 - Give More

To play the audio, just click the play button above at left.  To download, click the "Advent 2" title in yellow in the box above, which will take you to a site where you can download it as an mp3 file.  If you see no image above or the audio will not play, click here for audio.

Last week was "Spend Less" - now you want me to "Give More?"  How does that make sense? 
We are talking about giving this week - about the best gifts we've ever given and been given.  And usually it isn't the most exciting or highest price items.
Sometimes giving is really appealing, exciting, glamorous even . . . we like to give to need, to meaningful causes . . .  But what about giving that is pretty ordinary? 
Giving as in. . .  
. . . giving your attention to your child's question;
. . . giving your time to doing your work well;
. . . giving to your church each week;
. . . giving your taxes;
. . . sometime these are pretty ordinary - but they are still giving that can free us - and create positive change for those around us. 
Giving More isn't about guilt.  It's about giving relationally, and it may not even cost a penny.  Maybe it's giving some quality time with your family.  Maybe it's giving forgiveness to someone who needs it in your life. 
In reclaiming Advent as a time of peace and preparation, it will mean giving more - to things that really matter - even the ordinary, beautiful, important stuff of life.
Giving and receiving is not about obligation and expectation, but about freedom and relationship, about joy that's given and shared. 
Think about the best gift you've received.  Think about how powerful that gift is in your life.   Join us for worship this Sunday (8, 9:30, and 11) or Wednesday at 6:45pm and we'll be given great gifts - of forgiveness, peace, nourishment... and because we are freed in Christ, challenged to give more. 

Advent 2 - Spend Less

To play the audio, just click the play button above at left.  To download, click the "Advent 2" title in yellow in the box above, which will take you to a site where you can download it as an mp3 file.  If you see no image above or the audio will not play, click here for audio.

With this second week's theme, we reflect on God freeing us and inviting us to SPEND LESS!  It's not about guilt, but it's about of freeing ourselves from stressing about the things that don't matter and spending less of our money, time, and energy on them.  Click above to listen to our discussion on this, using the scripture for this Sunday, and reflect -

What does it spark in you?   

What could you spend less on?   

How are you feeling "spent?"  Hear that you are freed - and use this week as a time to reflect on how you could spend less...

From adventconspiracy.org:
Quick question for you: What was the one gift you remember getting for Christmas last year? Next question: What about the fourth gift? Do you remember that one? Truth is many of us don't because it wasn't something we necessarily wanted or needed. Spending Less isn't a call to stop giving gifts; it's a call to stop spending money on gifts we won't remember in less than a year. America spends around $450 billion dollars during the Christmas season, and much of that goes right onto a credit card. By spending wisely on gifts we free ourselves from the anxiety associated with debt so we can take in the season with a full heart.

Here's another video to inspire this week's reflection . . .

Advent 1 - Worship Fully

To play the audio, just click the play button above at left.  To download, click the "Advent 1" title in yellow in the box above, which will take you to a site where you can download it as an mp3 file.  If you see no image above or the audio will not play, click here for audio.

We're looking ahead to this Sunday, the first Sunday of the new church year and of the Advent season.  This season is full of expectation, hope, but also anticipation and themes of wonder as we encounter scripture that foretold Christ's coming and also anticipates God coming again to bring in the kingdom and reconcile the whole world.

But what is this season really like for you?
Is it more about the to-do list, or the expectations of all the things we are "supposed" to do and be at this time of year?
Whose message is that?

For this season of Advent, we're joining in on the Advent Conspiracy.  Started a few years ago by a small group of churches, it aims to offer a refreshing alternative to the culture's pressure and stress of the season.  So each week has a theme (see the picture at right) to help us slow down, focus, and open to God working among us. 

So this week our theme is Worship Fully.  What does this mean to you?  What holds you back from worshipping fully?  In this week's podcast, we're discussing what it means to us and how we might challenge each other to be freed from everything else that holds us back and be able to worship fully . . .

Join us for Sunday worship.  You'll notice a couple changes, as we allow some time to slow down, reflect, and also profess our faith and be inspired to use our faith actively in the real world. 

On Wednesdays, at noon we'll continue to offer a brief service of Holy Communion - take it as a gift to pause and relax in worship. 
Wednesdays at 6:45 will be a special worship service for the three Wednesdays in Advent (Dec. 4, 11, 18).  We'll gather in prayer, scripture, discussion, and interactive activities to challenge ourselves and continue to explore our weekly themes. 

Then, tune in here each Thursday as we look to the week ahead and begin exploring together the next theme!

We've got all the answers!

To play the audio, just click the play button above at left.  To download, click the "no pat answers" title in yellow in the box above, which will take you to a site where you can download it as an mp3 file.  If you see no image above or the audio will not play, click here for audio.

It's been an interesting series, of engaging, honest questions. So today we're wrapping it up with a little reflection and looking forward to what's ahead.  So listen in as we reflect together on questions the whole concept of pat answers for questions of faith, questions we've encountered, questions of faith in general, and where we're headed next. 

Which is - into Advent - and we'll be picking up the theme of Advent Conspiracy:

We all want our Christmas to be a lot of things.  Full of joy.  Memories.  Happiness.  Above all, we want it to be about Jesus.  What we don’t want is stress.   Or debt.   Or feeling like we “missed the moment”. Advent Conspiracy is a movement designed to help us all slow down and experience a Christmas worth remembering.  But doing this means doing things a little differently.   A little creatively.

So starting on Thanksgiving day, we'll publish a blog/podcast each Thursday which looks ahead to the following Sunday's theme.  Each week in Advent Conspiracy has a theme -
             Worship Fully (12/1),
             Spend Less (12/8),
             Give More (12/15), and
             Love All (12/22). 
Then Sunday join us for worship - it'll be a little creative - give space for reflection, interactive professions of faith and inspiration to take with you for the week...
Then end your week with a different worship service Wednesday evenings at 6:45 - we'll use some technology, discussion, singing, praying together - and again engaging our weekly theme in a fresh way.

Universal Salvation?

To play the audio, just click the play button above at left.  To download, click the "no pat answers" title in yellow in the box above, which will take you to a site where you can download it as an mp3 file.  If you see no image above or the audio will not play, click here for audio.


The question someone asked us to tackle this week is -

what about universal salvation?

  Is this something that worries you or makes you wonder?  Are you worried for someone specific?  Are you worried about whether in the end you are "right" or whether it matters at all?

How do we interpret verses like John 14:6 "Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."  and John 3:17:  "‘Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.'"
If you're still curious, there's a lot of overlap between this question and one we covered earlier - Is Jesus the only way?

Tune in and listen as we wrestle honestly with this one.

Join us Tuesday at Bowl of Good on Port Republic Rd at 7:00pm.  We can take this topic further or discuss this and other questions of faith...

Prophecy?

To play the audio, just click the play button above at left.  To download, click the "no pat answers" title in yellow in the box above, which will take you to a site where you can download it as an mp3 file.  If you see no image above or the audio will not play, click here for audio.

An icon of the prophet Micah.

People are hungry for answers, hungry to know about the future.  So this week we're tackling the topic of prophecy and prophets - in scripture and in our day.  In scripture God gives revelations and words to the prophets.  We are about to begin a series of readings through Advent which will use themes of prophecy and apocalyptic in speaking of God's coming kingdom and how we wait in anticipation of God's reign.  

But what about prophets today? 

Predictions of the future and apocalyptic themes are popular - we don't have to look too far in movies or books . . .  The Left Behind series has captured a lot of attention and conversation, for one.  Street preachers speak of doomsday - are they prophets? 




Are there modern-day prophets?  Are prophets just opportunists who either after the fact assert "see, I predicted that!" or who use interpretation so loosely (like fortune tellers) that we read into it what we want? 
One documentary, Kumare, tracked this phenomenon that people are so eager to follow someone who says they have the answers.  The filmmaker created a persona of a (guru) prophet out of thin air, as an experiment to see if people would follow him.  And oh, how they followed . . .  He discovered the depth of this basic hunger for answers and acceptance - and then had to tell them he was false.

In any case, we wrestle with these questions in our conversation this week...  Listen in.  Share with a friend.  Join us Tuesdays at 7pm at Bowl of Good on Port Republic Rd for some conversation on these and any other questions of faith.