Counterbalance: The Joy of Shared Sacredness

“The people were waiting expectantly and were all wondering…” -Luke 3:15

Last fall, several women from my church invited me to a women’s retreat. Four of us shared a hotel room to cut down on cost.  Being all in the nearly 50 something category we shared peri-menopause stories and laughed (and sometimes got a little teary) together about family life. The speaker that weekend was excellent, but memories of being community together are what my heart remembers.

Being in community isn’t necessarily easy. We don’t always agree. People sometimes cause great harm to one another.  However, community can also be a place of great connection and a reminder that we as individuals are not the center of everything.  At its best, church community calls us out of ourselves and into fellowship with other humans. Singing together, sharing our sorrows, and practicing acts of kindness for one another connect us in totally human and hopeful, healing ways.

Joel and a friend at church campout.

This week make time to be intentionally present in your church community. Participating in regular church attendance is one way to faithfully practice the spiritual discipline of being community together.

As you have time this week, reflect on these questions:

What does the church community offer or not offer at different ages and stages of life?

In what ways have you consciously chosen to be part of a church community? 

Is your connection different now compared to the past?

In what ways have you benefited from these connections?

When you attend church, does it help you to be more aware of the needs of others?  If so, how?  If not, why?

Counterbalance: The Comfort of Shared Sacredness

“The people were waiting expectantly and were all wondering…” -Luke 3:15

Mary set out with haste to a Judean town in the hill country to be with Elizabeth. Their shared blessing and joy is a significant part of the story of the nativity. A shared sacredness between women experiencing something miraculous. Blessed is she. 

Not much is written about Jesus in the years between his birth and the advent of his ministry,  we pick up the story as Jesus goes to the region of the Jordan to meet with John and to be baptized. A shared sacredness in repentance and forgiveness, baptism and proclamation. Prepare the way of the Lord. 

There is much about our faith experience that is unique, individual and personal. But we are part of a tradition that recognizes the both and. Holy and human. Knowing and mystery. Miracles and longing. Faith and works. Transformation and thorns. Already and not yet. 

Our faith is always a deeply personal experience, but it is never only individual. The life and ministry of Jesus reveal to us the communal nature of our beliefs. We are part of one another. We are called to live and work in community. Shalom comes as we notice the sacred ordinary of this world together. Our joy is multiplied and our griefs divided when we bear witness with one another. 

May your goodness and gifts be revealed to me this day, O God, in and with those with whom I share my life. Amen.   

Up Next…

We are in the days of midwinter. The excitement and energy of a new year– both church year (Advent) and calendar year (January)–is now settling into the routine and ordinary. Soon we will begin our journey through Lent, the season of repentance and fasting that carries us through the ministry of Jesus. 

Often, there’s not much time between Epiphany and Lent. We jump from the birth of Jesus and the arrival of the Magi to Jesus’ temptation and subsequent ministry. However, this year, in the month of February, we invite you to join us as we consider the grounding gifts of faith. 

In his book, The Anxious Generation, author Jonathan Haidt offers specific activities that he believes will help us heal from the unintended consequences of smartphones and social media. Interestingly, the suggested practices he offers to counterbalance the deficits and losses that have come with technological advance are the very same rituals and invitations that the church has offered for centuries. 

In these weeks between Christmas celebrations and the season of Lent, we invite you to join us in recovering the practices of faith and community that nurture and sustain us. Consider the simple, sacred rhythms that connect you with God and others. Receive the refreshment and provision these grounding practices offer in the midst of all that is unfolding.  

Thank you!

Thank you to our reading community!  We are so completely humbled  and thankful to have each of you reading along. We hope you had an opportunity to reflect and embrace some ordinary yet holy moments with us during this Advent and Christmas season.

We’ll have another series coming your way soon!

Don’t miss our new book Comfort and Joy: Readings & Practices for Advent, available now from your favorite book retailer.

Love

“Now in that same region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock at night. . .But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid, for see, I am bringing you good news of great joy. . .’” Luke 2: 8&10

From our new book Comfort and Joy: Readings & Practices for Advent, available now from your favorite book retailer.