This contains entries to Take up Your Cross, Space Blog, Blog City PF and BC of Friends |
} I was preparing a Sunday school lesson today. It posed a question that I am going to ask you and then we'll probably return to Proverbs with the next prompt. Today's question is: What would it mean for us to be agents of God's transforming grace, going where Jesus would go, touching those Jesus would touch, and worrying less about who is clean and unclean? Note: I know that social distancing rules still apply. This is getting out of our comfort zones. I know that it is currently not kosher to touch anybody. This prompt though is referring to when we can. If we become willing to step outside of the boxes that we put ourselves in, we would not only find the kingdom of God growing but we would find ourselves richly blessed. All too often we are unwilling to associate with people we consider different from us. At times it is not safe to do so. However, if we take a chance we are more likely to find ourselves blessed than harmed. Instead of walking to the other side of the street to avoid the homeless person we bypass every morning how about we walk up to them and buy them a cup of coffee and a hot meal? We don't have to preach to them. All we would have to do is buy them the meal. When they ask why we are being kind to them tell them that we have been down and out and somebody helped us. Avoid religion and preaching. Just show love. The preaching will come in time. For now, we just prepare the soil. If it isn't the homeless person let's choose another population we typically don't associate with. Find a way to touch the untouchables and in so doing spread the gospel. "Prompt: I was cruising the galaxy and found this planet:
Let's focus on grief. What are your thoughts?" I deal with grief and grieving people all the time. Grief is an often misunderstood emotion. Many people think that grief is something one experiences only when a loved one dies. It is not. Grief can occur at the loss of anything. It can be the loss of a job, the loss of a relationship, the loss of anything we cherish. Grief is the most natural thing in the world. There is no improper way to grieve, no limit on how long we can grieve, or no particular way we should grieve. "Prompt: If you had a choice, what would you dream about tonight?" If I had a choice of what I was going to dream about, I would dream about heaven. Then when it became a reality for me I could realize just how far off base my concepts and preconceived notions really are. "Prompt: The very act of writing, what does it feel like to you? A wandering or wondering, walking away from immediate world like the internet, etc., a meditation in loneliness, protecting your heart or mind, the comforting happy feeling of following through the thing that inspires you at the moment, the hope of being published or republished down the line or what?" To me, writing is all of the above and more. It is working for a grade, doing the research, learning new things, and being my best. |