Dishwasher Forgiveness

On Sunday, Darren preached on James 3 and the power of the tongue.  

• What you say has the power to direct
• What you say has the power to destroy
• What you say shows what you are really like on the inside

The thing that stood out for me was his illustration of taking a sip of water from his little girl's water bottle and finding out that there was some leftover milk or something nasty in there, souring the water and making it taste terrible.  What is on the inside flavors what comes out - it's a great picture of that.  What was powerful, though, was that he said he put it in the dishwasher.  He didn't know what was inside, but knew that it would come out clean and usable again.  He likened that to forgiveness; asking God to clean up the sin we know is inside us.  Another powerful picture.  And what jumped out at me was just like the source that was souring the water was unknown, I don't have to be able to identify exactly what it is that needs forgiveness to put my soul in that dishwasher of forgiveness - I just need to have a repentant heart and ask God to give me a clean start again.  And he does.

For the record, I'm sure that identifying that which soils you makes you better able to stay away from that particular thing in the future; it's just nice to have the reassurance that a clean slate does not depend on specifically naming every blemish.

What were your thoughts on Sunday's message?

Being Grateful

We stopped at the library before our holidays last week, and one of the books I picked up was on living a thankful life.  It's written from a very open spiritual perspective, so I'm reading 'lightly' but there are some true principles and some good ideas in it to build practices of gratitude into your life.  I can't separate that in my mind from the one we must be thankful to, so these become spiritual practices more than simply being thankful.

• When you're feeling down, you will feel better if you decide to dwell on what is good in your life and give thanks for those things. 
• Develop 'triggers' in your life - decide that your first thought when your feet hit the floor will be "I am thankful for this day and all that it will bring," or decide that every time you close the house door behind you, you will think, "I am thankful for this home and for my family, and am glad I get to return here to them every day."
• When someone helps us, like the server or cashier, say a genuine thank you - they will have a better day, and you can let that remind you that God made and cares for that person.  You can in that small way be a part of God's caring for them.
• Start a gratitude journal and write in it every day what you are thankful for.  I started one and today will be day four that I write in it.  You can ask me how that's going in a couple of weeks!

What practices do you have that remind you to be thankful?

Challenges from Sunday

We had a fun wrap up to our adult classes yesterday, and Pastor Darren left us with a bit of a challenge.  One part of it was to identify how we grow spiritually, and to look at the ways we want to focus on over the summer.  One of the ways it got broken down was in the areas of Loving God, Loving Others, and Serving, which together are our church's theme this year.  We also looked at how the ways we grow spiritually are broken down into experiences, routines and serving.  It provided a good chance to look at these open months ahead of us where a lot of our routines are put on hold, and to think about how we will be purposeful in growing spiritually over the summer.

Then in the service, the challenge that came from Pastor David's sermon as he wrapped up the series in Ecclesiastes was to enjoy the moments of our lives.  I don't find that happiness is always my default emotion; there is frustration, anxiety, anger sometimes, weariness... and the challenge I took out of that was to really face those other emotions when they rise up and do what I can to address the issues behind them and move to a more constant reality of enjoying each moment.  I think that addressing this will be the answer to the first challenge, too, and will be a way to strengthen my spiritual health.

What are you planning this summer to stay spiritually healthy and to grow?
What are the ways you help yourself remember to live in the moment and enjoy life? 

I would love to know your answers to those.

Stories

Stories are important.  We learn from stories.  When I teach, I start each class with a chance to share stories - how we had seen God move, when we understood that he was close or involved in what was going on around us.  I believe stories give us far more than simple entertainment; they bring us hope and the knowledge that beyond a shadow of a doubt, God is bigger than we are and moves in ways that we can't imagine.  Hearing stories gives us a glimpse into that reality and awakens our ability to see him moving.

I heard a story on Friday, and I wanted to share it with you.  Here's Adam's own words:

"I was at a mentorship group/bible study a while ago, and we were closing in prayer, and my request was that I'd get the money in for this missions trip. I'd recently found out that I was $1500 short of what I needed to have already had in. So, we prayed over that and just committed it to God. That Sunday, I was at church, and this friend ended up sitting behind me, and he asked me how my week went and how getting the money in went and what not. I told him that I didn't get paid till the upcoming Tuesday, and then he asked me how much short I'd be after I got paid. I was going to be $600 dollars short of what I needed after I got paid and had tithed and such. He texted me later that afternoon and asked if he could drop by my house because he had something for me.

When he arrived, he handed me an envelope, and he said that all week he'd been praying about it and that God had really put it on his heart to support me going on this trip. And God had kept telling him "$600, $600, $600, give him $600", and he'd been paid $600 cash up front to cover a lease on an apartment that he was leasing out to a couple. He said that when I told him I'd be $600 short of what I needed, it was like God said "I told you so..." and it was just a really reassuring thing in his spirit that he was supposed to bless me with $600 towards my ministry trip. That was really cool, and it has been a huge blessing. :)"

How have you seen God move lately?  Leave a comment with your story.

What are you eating?

At the end of Hebrews 5, the writer talks about milk vs. solid food; milk is the food of infants, the elementary truths of God's Word.  Solid food is for the mature; it is the teaching about righteousness.

How concerned are you with your diet physically? Do you eat your vegetables and take your vitamins, aware of what is needed to be healthy?  What about your spiritual diet?  Do you pay as much attention to what you need daily to stay spiritually healthy and growing?

You eat every day - make one of those meals a trigger to ask yourself what you are feeding on spiritually. 

May you grow strong and healthy and mature in your faith.

Kenyan Speed

I remembered something this week.  Something that's going to help me.

The weather warmed up, and I started wearing sandals again.  I haven't found any sandals that I like in the last few years that have a back-strap, so most of the ones I own now are slip-ons.  They never seem to stay on as well, but wearing them again made me remember being in Kenya.  While I was there, I wore a simple pair of flip-flops that I've had for ages (I bought them for Byron & Lori's wedding, actually) and found that I had no problem keeping them on.  The reason, I figured, was that we walked slower there.  Here, it seems I rush wherever I'm going - I have too much to get done to saunter along; don't want to waste my time.

But I also get headaches because I get tense in my shoulders and neck; I'm too focused on what I need to get done.  My rushing and busy-ness cause me stress and pain.  I need to slow down.  I need to recognize that my life is more important than the items on my to-do list.  They will wait for me.  They will get done.  And they will get done better, even if not sooner, if I am feeling better.  << sigh >>  This shouldn't be a hard lesson to learn, and yet, it's the one I'm facing again this week.  This season.  Patience.  Patience with others and with myself.  My God will be served much better when I slow down.

Every time I slip on my sandals, it will remind me.  Walk slower.  Be patient.

Communications

My official title here at Westhill is Coordinator of Worship Arts and Communications.

The first part of that, "Coordinator of Worship Arts" is to focus on our Sunday mornings.  How can we do things better?  More creatively?  In a way that makes sense to visitors?  From the planning of each hour to the visuals with each series, to the communicating between the different individuals and teams, I see my role as being to help clear the way for our church's message of God's love and truth come through in this 'main event' of our programming.  Which is actually what the communications part is all about, too.  It may help to simplify the job title one of these days to simply "Communications."  This has been a year of understanding what communications is all about, and what that looks like in a church. 

What are we trying to say?  Who are we trying to be?  Sometimes, honestly, finding those answers is as confusing as all the questions that come after: Is our message getting through?  Are there things that we are doing and saying that are confusing the issue?  That are sending a different message than the one we want to be sending?  God is so amazing.  Is that message getting through?  What can we do so people hear that?

This is where I'm at today, 8 months into this role.  It is a whole lot clearer than it was in September, but now I see a whole lot of things I wish I already knew!

I'll leave you today with this post by Kem Meyer, on her Communications Director Job Description.

Little Soul's Daycare

Soul's Harbour Rescue Mission does a great work in Regina, and we at Westhill are looking forward to partnering with them this year.  I just saw this blog post by Director Michelle Porter about their new daycare opening this Friday and thought I'd pass it along to you to have a look.  A number of us were out late last spring  to help with some of the initial clean up of the building, so to see it now looking so good and ready to go is a real thrill.

Go check it out: The Dream of Little Soul's Daycare

Giving at Christmas

True to form, it's the first mail day after Halloween, and my mail box is full of gift catalogues. There are all kinds of ways I can give to help the needy and tell my family "I did it for you!" ...instead of buying you a present. Who does that and doesn't buy a gift, too?

Don't get me wrong, I know that people are more generous this time of year and the charities need to capitalize on that. I also believe helping the less fortunate is something we should be doing all throughout the year.

My thinking about Christmas gifts is what can I make that is meaningful and wonderful without spending any money? If you have thoughts on that, let me know!

Reviving Ophelia... thoughts before the Adopt A Youth launch

I've just started reading Reviving Ophelia by Dr. Mary Pipher, and it's making me realize how important this Adopt A Youth program we're launching next week is. She quotes the African proverb that states "It takes a village to raise a child." Do you see the Godly truth in that? I know I want my daughter surrounded by adults other than myself who are also teaching her that it's ok to be herself, and not to conform to peer pressure. I see many adults, myself included, who don't take the initiative to take children, adolescents, teens under our wings. We are concerned, sure, but what do we do about it? I hope that we can present this program as something that will capture the imagination of the adults; one that gives them the opportunity to do something where they've felt unsure about what their part could be. I hope that it inspires our church to live as the church, concerned for one another. I know that does happen in lots of ways already; I hope this is the catalyst for many more good relationships and for the strengthening of many of our adolescents.

A New Role

I am happy to announce that I have transitioned over the summer to a new role at the church. I'm still half time, but I will be the "Coordinator of Worship Arts and Communications". I'll write you the long version someday soon, but for now, here's a brief on the new job description: "Creative Arts" - I'll be doing work on the Sunday morning services - there are lots of people who have a part in that, and some of the key people are not at our weekly staff meetings, so besides the creative brainstorming, I'm going to try to streamline the process of how that all comes into being. It works fine the way it is now, but maybe it can work better this way... Here's hoping! "External Communication" - I'll be the content person for the website - we've got a great IT guy who can make pretty much anything happen with that, so I'll be trying to keep it up to date and keep it changing and make it more user friendly. "Internal Communication" - I'll be helping out with the different communication pieces that are needed, and hopefully cover in some areas that are not being done yet. These things, along with the different projects like the Core youth leader training, Adopt A Youth, and the Kickoff@KBK will keep me busy. I hope I stay on top of all the work and am still able to be a creative force for good around here! So that's the scoop on what I'll be doing. I'm excited to have some new challenges in front of me, and the kind of things I like to do, too. How amazing to have a job tailored to your gifts and strengths. And combine that with the hours that leave me free to be home with M? Must be working for a God who cares. Amazing.

$3 Worth of God

I read this in my textbook last night - it was about 2 pages before I started nodding off. I flipped down the corner of the page so I'd remember to share it with you. "I would like to buy $3 worth of God - not enough to explode my soul or disturb my sleep, but just enough to equal a cup or warm milk or a snooze in the sunshine. I don't want enough of God to make me love a black man or pick beets with a migrant. I want ecstasy, not transformation. I want the warmth of the womb, not a new birth. I want about a pound of the eternal in a paper sack. I would like to buy $3 worth of God, please." (Wilbur Reece) Wow. How many of us think that way without realizing how wrong it is?

Thank you Souls...

Thank you Soul's Harbour Rescue Mission for allowing us to serve you. May the work we did hauling garbage, painting over graffiti, and prepping for paint be an encouragement to you and help you as you prepare the building to be a place of ministry. Thank you BS, DK, CS & CS, RS, KJ, MB, JC and whoever else came from Westhill to participate with the larger chruch body. Your sacrifice was noticed and appreciated. God is good and is doing wonderful things in our city!

I can't help you!

Someone said something to me this week that really stood out. Across the Lewvan from my house is a Bible School that very generously allows me to borrow books to use when I need to work on papers for my own schooling. I had been there the other day and picked out a few books for this next monster of a paper, and the librarian had stepped out for a moment; another teacher tried to help me out, but I was just a community member - I'm not surprised she couldn't figure out the system. That was no big deal, I would just go back later. A few days later I went to rescue my books from cluttering the shelf behind their desk, and waited a few minutes for the librarian, who was nowhere to be seen. The library was full of students, and then their teacher showed up, walked over to me with a shake of her head and before she even got to the desk said, "I can't help you!" I immediately felt guilty for putting her in a position of such anxiety! I didn't expect her to know how to use the system; maybe she might have known the answer to a simple "Do you know when the librarian might get back?" which, yes, would have been helpful. I felt sorry for this lady who maybe I just caught at a bad time, but who apparently didn't know that TRYING to be helpful even if you couldn't actually help makes life quite a bit nicer for the people in your path. Moral of the story: A smile and a "Can I help you?" goes a long way. Even if you don't work there.

JUNE

Here's the mass email I just sent out to everyone on our young adult list. If you are not on it and would like to be, email us at westhillcc@hotmail.com. 7 PM, Saturday, June 6 & Sunday June 7 Comedy Night!!! The youth mintrip fundraiser is always great - lots of laughs are guaranteed. We're going Saturday; tickets are still available for both nights. Let me know if you want me to save a ticket for you. Tickets are $10 and that includes dessert. Friday Evening, June 12 & all day Saturday, June 13 LADIES - GIFTED & CALLED It's a ladies retreat / seminar that will be well worth taking in. The course is designed to help you understand your giftedness and calling from God; to give you tools and confidence and competence. See new possibilities, be alert for new ministry needs, creatively come up with new ways of doing traditional ministries... $40 - let me know asap if you want to come so they don't cancel for lack of #'s. Saturday, June 20 (9:30 start) City Wide - come and SERVE - hang out with friends and new friends. Make a difference in North Central by helping get Soul's Harbour Rescue Mission's new building ready for ministering in the core. Dewdney & Athol; lunch will be provided. Wednesdays WWF - Westhill Wednesday Frisbee Ultimate Frisbee at the Legislative Buildings. Bring a friend. Run around. Meet at 7 PM in front of the Leg (east side). Carolyn PS - I have a lead on a full time summer job as an office assistant in a ministry setting. Call me if you're interested in the details. 775-1616

WWF - Westhill Wednesday Frisbee

WWF - Westhill Wednesday Frisbee WHAT: young adults and sr. high are invited to come on out and play some Ultimate Frisbee. WHEN: Wednesdays at 7PM (Weather permitting) Any time the weather seems sketchy check here (on FB) to see if the night is cancelled, cancellations will be posted by 5PM WHERE: Meet in front of the Legislative Building in Wascana Park WHAT TO BRING: Perhaps clothes that you don't mind getting grass stains on. Perhaps money if you feel like going to some sort of ice cream selling establishment after. PS - If you would like to be added to our email list and get all the info as it breaks, send an email to westhillcc@hotmail.com and we'll set you up!

Mentoring

Question for you: Have you ever been mentored? Have you ever been a mentor? How was that experience for you? Let me start: I have been more often on the mentor end, and in one experience had a helpful guideline of what to cover. We had a clear start and end date, and met regularly. It was a really good experience for us both. The other ones were not so clearly defined and while we had some good meetings, they usually did not go quite so regularly nor did I feel content that we completed anything.

Where do you go for inspiration?

We spend a lot of time online... ok I do. What I'm wondering is where do you go online for inspiration? Do you have a daily devotional email you subscribe to? Blogs you follow? Sites that consistently have good stuff? Share that with us. Leave a comment.

Jesus' - Wife Beaters. What???

Here's a link to the blog of my friend Tyson. Jesus'-Wife Beaters. He's reacting to people that say they love Jesus but hate the church. Go have a read and join in the conversation!

The Passions That Should Define a Christ Follower

I copied this list out of the book Unchristian and just found it in some notes: - Worshiping God intimately & passionately. - Engaging in spiritual friendships with other believers. - Pursuing faith in the context of family. - Embracing intentional forms of spiritual growth. - Serving others. - Investing time & resources in spiritual pursuits. - Having faith based conversations with outsiders. How does reading that make you feel? I did a yep, uh huh, okay, oh oh, shoot... Some yes, and some are a little lacking. Unchristian was a great book; if you think Christians are a bunch of hypocrites, I'm sorry. The list above? That's what we're supposed to be like. I doubt many people would be able to say that all seven of those characterize them, but the thing is, a lot of us are working on it. *note - I just posted the above on my own blog, but thought I'd add it here for you, too.