Father, what is it that you desire for and from this particular community? What is your will for us as a body? What is your heartbeat? Where are you leading us, and will we be discerning enough to follow the leading and guidance of the Holy Spirit in our midst? Will you continue to place your hand of mercy upon us? Will you not only grant us w/ favor, but will you display in our midst how we - as the beloved bride of Christ - are to live out of a posture of being highly favored by the good Lord?
From the bottom of my heart, I long for us to love you and one another more deeply with a passionate and zealous fire burning deep within our bones. I ask you to be the Good Shepherd not only during our gathering times, but most importantly during our day to day, breath to breath walk as we worship you in spirit and in truth in our homes, studies, meals and walks along the "roads" in Dominica. We desire to be a people who abide in you, remain true to you and live in such a way where the rest of the community will recognize that we are not living for ourselves. May we have the posture of John the Baptist to become less so that you may increase in our midst. May the church of Jesus Christ grow in fruit, abounding in acts of love, faith and hope. Grant us the faith to walk w/ our heads held high, not in our own boasting and arrogance, but in the confidence that we are truly sons and daughters of the King of Kings.
Often, we say things and live very differently than we'd like. We are all in the same boat when it comes to failing in our attempts of being a "good" Christian servant. So, we recognize our limitations, our failings and our weaknesses. We recognize that we have all sinned and fallen short of your glory. We are not ignorant b/c we know our sins are always before us. But we don't want to be consumed w/ guilt b/c that's just not how you roll... You are a forgiving Father who yearns for us to repent, turn toward you and be healed. Thanks be to Jesus for loving us just as we are, and for believing in us when we don't believe in ourselves very well. Thanks be to Jesus for not only giving us a way to live, but for giving us the promise of the Holy Spirit so that we can do justice, love mercy and walk humbly w/ our Lord.
We want to be a people who DO LOVE MERCY. The writings of your servant, Paul, have pieced my heart. Who are we to judge? Who are we to pick up "stones?" Who are we just b/c we know some religious talk, have been confirmed through a certain denomination, been baptized or done some kind of good deed, etc.? We are no better and no worse than anyone else on the globe. You desire our hearts to be circumcised, cut w/ you, pierced and open, willing to do your will rather than focus on our own accomplishments. You desire mercy, not sacrifices. You look for hearts that are contrite and broken, willing to be poured out for the healing of this world. How dare we place ourselves above you in any way. Lord, I'm sorry for thinking and feeling certain ways about specific people. I'm sorry for not giving mercy a chance when it needed to be released the most. I'm sorry for judging others while not looking at the plank in full view of others, elevating myself rather than bringing myself down in humility.
Father, as we receive your forgiveness, show us the way to peace, the path of deliverance and move us in such a way that we walk down that road together as a family. Within this family, we pray for vulnerability, acceptance, truth spoken and lived in great love. We pray for a stretching not only of our minds, but of our emotions, our bodies and our living conditions.
May you be our Lord and not just our mascot. May you be our King with the plans for the kingdom as we give up our own views of our own kingdom and take ourselves down from the king/queen pedestal. May their truly be no other gods before you, and may we be open enough to see the fact that we daily struggle with the worship of idols. Break down our idols, Lord. Break down the need for acceptance, the need to feel productive, the idol of self entitlement, the idol of perfection, the idol of greed and the love of money, the idol of family, the idol of sports, the idol of loving our idea of community more than community, in and of itself, the idol of vanity, the idol of power, influence and being the "man"/"woman." G-d, anything that does not bless your name, we ask that you will shake us to the core and make our lives unbearable until we get rid of that "thing." And, as hard as that is to pray, I pray for the journey of pruning that I know will hurt, but in the end, is worthwhile b/c you are simply all about making us whole again. Thanks and praise to a good G-d who cares enough to be patient, and a good Father who lavishes us with love a new with each new day.
These people you have placed within our family, and these people YOU love deeply: Lauren, Dana, Nicole, Jonathan, Scott, Robb, Stef, Jake, Crystal, Joy, Joe, Briana, John, Sherrie, Billy, Kelsey, Justin, Grace, Justin and myself. Thanks for these sons and daughters of the King. Thanks for these brothers and sisters. Thank you for their hearts, their minds and their bodies. You look down upon them and say, "It is good!" FATHER, WE ARE THE BEST OF YOUR CREATION, and we lack nothing in you. You have given us life and you have given us your son, Jesus. You will do anything for us, and you are fighting for us with zealous pride. May we partner with you in your redemptive work in our homes, starting w/ our own lives, and then move outward to be a part of the larger picture of TIKKUN OLAM, helping repair the world with gospel of love. Sharpen us as we sharpen one another. Be gracious to us as we are gracious one to another. Bind us. Grant us a vision, your vision for the days living in Dominica. Open up our eyes so we might see. Give us the hands and the feet of sweet Jesus. Jesus, BE OUR VISION.
shalom
Ryan
Sunday, March 8, 2009
Monday, March 2, 2009
Kriah
The following words are from the local church, Mars Hill, Grand Rapids, MI. I thought this was a pretty cool practice that they are incorporating into their Lenten season.
"Kriah is the practice in traditional Jewish mourning where immediate family members of the deceased tear their clothing. Also known as the "rending of garments", it is a physical and visible demonstration of grief.
Immediately preceding a burial, those practicing kriah have their outer clothing torn—this tearing happens while the mourner is standing, to symbolize their facing grief head-on. The mourner continues wearing the torn clothing for days, weeks, or even a year afterward; among other purposes, this serves as a sign to the mourner's community that a loss is still recent and fresh.
So "torn" is the idea: when tragedy and sadness and grief intersect a life, there is a rip made that cannot be undone or fully mended. At the same time, however, kriah has its limits. Contained to the outer garment only, it signifies that despite pain and torn-ness the inner person, the spirit can still be whole.
This year during Lent, as part of our community's observance of the season we're adopting the meaning and metaphor of kriah. Because Lent is a time for remembering our own mortality and for identifying with the suffering of Christ, we're using torn fabric to remind ourselves of the scope of death and grief. Join us this season in kriah, remembering both that we carry always the marks of our pain and that we are loved by a God who, through Christ, was torn too."
Our heavenly Father is into Tikkun Olam (restoring the broken pieces and repairing creation back to harmony). As the Lighthouse continues to share its brokenness one to another (inside AND outside our gathering times), let's be reminded that Jesus is the way, truth and life, the one who has made it possible for us to be broken, but healed, express our enslaved thinking while giving us the way to freedom. The Lord desires for us to be in this continual process of healing within our minds, bodies and souls every second of every day. And, I simply want to reiterate that we are ALL in the same boat. We are ALL fragile. We are all one step away from walking away. We are all one choice closer to depravity. YET, WE ARE ALL RIGHTEOUS, HOLY AND BELOVED BY OUR LORD WHO WRAPS US IN LIGHT WITH HIS UNFAILING LOVE.
This Lighthouse family is a part of the ripping and the repairing b/c we are rooted in the Great Physician, the one who bore our sins, and the one who abides within us this very day to grant us wholeness. Thank you guys for allowing me the chance to be vulnerable, raw, torn and a bit messy w/ you all last night. That's not easy for me as the western church-culture has somewhat made it difficult for pastors to break... I appreciate your prayers, and thank you for your sweet mercy. As Jesus was declared the WOUNDED HEALER, let us all be that one to another...
shalom
Ryan
"Kriah is the practice in traditional Jewish mourning where immediate family members of the deceased tear their clothing. Also known as the "rending of garments", it is a physical and visible demonstration of grief.
Immediately preceding a burial, those practicing kriah have their outer clothing torn—this tearing happens while the mourner is standing, to symbolize their facing grief head-on. The mourner continues wearing the torn clothing for days, weeks, or even a year afterward; among other purposes, this serves as a sign to the mourner's community that a loss is still recent and fresh.
So "torn" is the idea: when tragedy and sadness and grief intersect a life, there is a rip made that cannot be undone or fully mended. At the same time, however, kriah has its limits. Contained to the outer garment only, it signifies that despite pain and torn-ness the inner person, the spirit can still be whole.
This year during Lent, as part of our community's observance of the season we're adopting the meaning and metaphor of kriah. Because Lent is a time for remembering our own mortality and for identifying with the suffering of Christ, we're using torn fabric to remind ourselves of the scope of death and grief. Join us this season in kriah, remembering both that we carry always the marks of our pain and that we are loved by a God who, through Christ, was torn too."
Our heavenly Father is into Tikkun Olam (restoring the broken pieces and repairing creation back to harmony). As the Lighthouse continues to share its brokenness one to another (inside AND outside our gathering times), let's be reminded that Jesus is the way, truth and life, the one who has made it possible for us to be broken, but healed, express our enslaved thinking while giving us the way to freedom. The Lord desires for us to be in this continual process of healing within our minds, bodies and souls every second of every day. And, I simply want to reiterate that we are ALL in the same boat. We are ALL fragile. We are all one step away from walking away. We are all one choice closer to depravity. YET, WE ARE ALL RIGHTEOUS, HOLY AND BELOVED BY OUR LORD WHO WRAPS US IN LIGHT WITH HIS UNFAILING LOVE.
This Lighthouse family is a part of the ripping and the repairing b/c we are rooted in the Great Physician, the one who bore our sins, and the one who abides within us this very day to grant us wholeness. Thank you guys for allowing me the chance to be vulnerable, raw, torn and a bit messy w/ you all last night. That's not easy for me as the western church-culture has somewhat made it difficult for pastors to break... I appreciate your prayers, and thank you for your sweet mercy. As Jesus was declared the WOUNDED HEALER, let us all be that one to another...
shalom
Ryan
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