November 29, 2009 - First Sunday of Advent (purple candle, theme is Hope)
• December 6, 2009 - Second Sunday of Advent (purple candle, theme is Love)
• December 13, 2009 - Third Sunday of Advent (purple or pink candle, theme is Joy)
• December 20, 2009 - Fourth Sunday of Advent (purple candle, theme is Peace)
First in Advent: HOPE
Call to Worship
Advent Guide:Lord Jesus Christ, You are the Hope Bringer of the Universe, whose gracious promises strengthen our faith and brighten the spirits of our people.
All:You bring justice and righteousness to the Earth. You save the world from sin and free us from our fears.
(Lighting of First Purple Advent Candle)
Advent Guide:Lord Jesus, Your Everlasting Light restores our eternal hopes. You are our Righteousness and Redeemer forever. Amen.
Second in Advent: LOVE
Advent Guide:Lord Jesus Christ, You are the Almighty Messenger, sent from heaven to proclaim God’s Gracious Love to the people of this planet.
All:You have freely come among us to lovingly challenge our beliefs and change our ways.
(Lighting of Two Purple Advent Candles)
Advent Guide:Lord Jesus, sanctify our people and make us acceptable to You. Reclaim and restore us to God’s Everlasting Love. Amen.
Third in Advent: JOY
Advent Guide: Lord Jesus Christ, You are the Everlasting Joy of God’s Heart and the Holy Savior of the nations.
All:You come among us to release us from our burdens and take great delight in our eternal happiness.
(Lighting of Two Purple candles and the Pink Joy Candle)
Advent Guide:Lord Jesus, quieten us with Your Precious Love and fill our spirits with heavenly joy. Amen.
Fourth in Advent: PEACE
Advent Guide: Lord Jesus Christ, You are the Strength of God and the Sacred Shepherd of our souls.
All:Your greatness is amongst us and Your power reaches out to the ends of the Earth.
(Lighting of Three Purple Candles & Pink Candle)
Advent Guide:Lord Jesus, let us live securely in Your peace and be blessed forever by Your Holy Name. Amen.
Bruce Reyes-Chow, the moderator of the last PC(USA) General Assembly asks on his blog: “Why are you Presbyterian?” He’s just written a church wide letter on the topic, and is asking members far and near to chime in as well.
I love Adam's response because I feel like I could have written the same thing about myself, with the exception of the ordination stuff. And the addition of the fact that I feel at home in worship with the rituals and services that have been a part of my faith journey since I was a child. There are times to stretch outside of one's comfort zone, and times to rejoice and feel at home within it.
If you had asked me fifteen years ago if I was going to be a minster I would have laughed. I was in no way the kind of guy that became a minister, let alone a fellow that loved or worshipped God. I was not the worst kid either. With years of insight that breed wisdom processed by therapy I can see now the seeds being planted in my youth for the call on my life these days. I was baptized a Presbyterian on November 02, 1975 and dabbled in the church as much as an infant could. My folks divorced in 1981 and I split the Presbyterian Church soon after. I did not find my way back until the spring of 2002. After a long journey filled with questions about questions framed in heartache and sorrow I arrived at the doors of First Presbyterian Church, Granada Hills. I arrived with a suitcase full of hurt and mistrust. I wanted to call bullshite on any and all that would dare talk to me. I was soon brought in to the fold and became very active in the community. I was loved when I could not love myself. The healing process began there for me. This is when I was able to really hear my call. I first thought God was full of shite. Why would I be called to ministry? I am a cast off, heathen not fit for consumption by the dredges of society. God said, “Yes you are.” You are also one of my beloved and I love you. I also have a purpose for you.” I became a young adult volunteer [YAV] and went to Kenya to serve with Church World Service. In Africa my faith grew. I was destroyed and mourned many nights for yesterday. I mourned for those days when I understood. The days that made sense and did not challenge the notions I held and the world I lived in was docile and bland. God shaped my heart and the Presbyterian Church was there for me. She loved me and gave me a chance to be refined. God put us together. It was a match made in heaven. I returned from Kenya to attend Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary. Again the church was there for me. I was refined some more by the likes of Cindy Rigby, David. F. White, Stan Hall, Michael Jinkins, Kristine Saldine, Arun Jones, and many others. I served Presbyterian churches as a pastoral intern in rural Oklahoma. I attended Presbyterian churches with my friends. I love the Presbyterian Church. I became a member of Presbymergent so that the church I loved could have a voice in the postmodern conversation happening all around her. I sought ways to be church in a new way that speaks to the hurting places of the generations emerging from the ashes of debt, war, and technology of the post denominational/post colonial age. I fought with folks when they said denominationalism and Presbyterianism is no longer a viable path to the divine. I spent countless hours reading and digesting information on the how and what of church today as I ought to couple the past of our rich reformed history as Presbyterians. I hungered to be part of the church. I fought through the process and distance of being under care. I made connections and formed relationships in the denomination with many amazing people. I dreamed of being part of a transforming denomination that is an essential part of communities everywhere. I got excited by the idea of a church for people not wanting to be a part of yesterdays church…I see strength in the denomination as we are steeped in a rich reformed history and carry with us creeds [BOC] and order [BOO] that allow us to bend to the culture and not break.
Alas, I walk away. I have not taken this lightly. I mourn the loss of my membership. I am almost angry. It is here that those lyrics of old sting my soul. “Fantastic the panic that showed in his eyes, he shrugged when I asked him about it, he said "young man pay heed, you listen well to what I say, now there comes a time for a man to walk away." It is surely my time to walk away. I mourn the loss as I watch the parade leave the big tents of the Presbyterian Kingdom. I wish that the denomination could loosen its grip on the power of ordination. I am not for an abolition of all standards. I wonder what the church would look like if it opened the path to creative and called people regardless of their sexuality, politics, and aversions and looked at their call to be leaders in their communities. Leaders that charge forth to be witness of Gods glory in the coming Kin-dom. Witness to the beauty of relationships rooted in Jesus the Christ and less on the right way to seek truths of Christ. “I’ll be determined that no one shall dissuade on my way, I’ll sure take some time to burn all the bridges that I’m leaving behind, he passed by again and he was shivering from the cold” I mourn and parts of me feel slighted and hurt as I depart. My initial feeling was to get even and take away the life I had invested in the church. I hold no remorse for loving the church as I have. I still love her. I believe I always will. As I leave to the Disciples of Christ I leave with hope. I hope that Christian everywhere will be in relationship together. In this I hope that Presbyterians everywhere will fight to be the church in dynamic ways that transcend traditional barriers. I leave with thanksgiving in my heart that I was formed in the belly of the beast called Presby. I am the better for it.
A current news article from the denomination’s own press service refers to Bruce Reyes-Chow, Gradye Parsons, and Linda Valentine as our top three leaders.
And all the while, I thought that our top three leaders in the Reformed tradition were the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
You may think that I’m nit-picking, but the Reformation mainly occurred because of a rejection of hierarchy in the church. As Presbyterians, we need to be constantly vigilant about this.
BR-C,GP & LV are our top three office-bearers, not leaders. That mantel belongs to the Trinity.
I know - this is not the kind of thing that you would expect to see on a Presbyterian Bloggers site. Whilst I may not agree with what some people use the old Confederate flag for, artistically it's a beautiful design. if I was making a stained glass window, this is probably how I would approach it.
Here in Knoxville, it's Decoration Day and some people will go down to the Old National Cemetery to commemorate the Civl War dead. They will be wearing Civil War uniforms and costumes, and the Confederate flag will be prominently displayed.
As a Scotsman, I do not have the Civil Rights controversial feeling surrounding this flag, but I would be deeply interested in your thoughts. Is this flag about heritage and history, or racism and revenge?
This took place at the Living Waters Retreat center in Maggie Valley, North Carolina. I went there for a couple of quiet days to be with God and ask Him for a vision of our church.
As I looked out of my window, I saw four tall elm trees. Everything was quiet and still. It was a prayerful moment of peace and tranquility, and yet I felt there was something mysterious in the air.
As I looked at the trees, I marveled at how the slender trunks had taken years to branch out into smaller limbs, twigs, and leaves. I thought about Christ’s Church being the largest tree and all the denominations becoming strong branches on the new limbs.
Where was Erin on this great tree? In 2000 years of Christianity and throughout the numerous denominations, and even amongst billions of Christians, what part did we represent of the great tree?
As I contemplated our size and history, I realized that we were just a mere leaf toward the top of the tree. Amongst myriads of leaves, we were just like any other – a tiny leaf, on a small twig, connected to a big branch, attached to a large limb, growing out of a giant trunk. We were the smallest of the small – insignificant, unimportant, and ineffectual.
In the stillness of the moment, I felt stung in realizing that we had only made such a tiny contribution to the Great tree of Faith. It was humiliating and hurtful, shocking and surprising. I came to the retreat center looking for an almighty vision, and all that I was given was a divine reality check.
And then God showed me something totally unexpected. Everything was quiet and somber. As I looked at the little leaf that I had chosen as Erin, it slowly began to flutter. Nothing else was happening to the whole tree. Somehow that little, unimportant and insignificant leaf was catching the wind. It seemed as though it was dancing.
Soon other little leaves around it began to flutter and dance. They were also catching the wind and, for a while, they all fluttered alone as a group. And then, all over the tree, other tiny leaves began to catch the wind, and they also fluttered and danced.
The twig that was Erin began to sway ever so slightly, and then it began to swing to the music of the wind. Very soon other twigs were swaying and then the bigger branches joined the dance. The wind was beginning to pick up and the tree was full of its energy. Leaves were fluttering swiftly, twigs and branches were swinging, boughs and limbs were swaying rhythmically in the breeze.
As the dance continued, the sound of the wind picked up and it choreographed the whole tree. I then wondered when the great trunk of the tree would move. I didn’t see it, but I heard it. Throughout this great orchestration of the wind and leaves, I suddenly heard the deep moaning sounds of the trunk creaking in the wind. The whole tree was alive to the movement of the air. I was watching a great symphony that began with the fluttering solo of a little leaf called Erin.
That’s when God struck me with the vision. Erin is just a little church, the tiniest of leaves on this great tree of the Christian faith. Our role is not to be great or grandiose, important or significant. Our purpose is simply to await the coming of the Holy Spirit, to catch its wind, to flutter and dance as the Spirit moves us, so that other little leaves around us may be encouraged and influenced to do the same.
We are here at Erin to catch the wind of the Holy Spirit. The earth may never know who we are or that we exist, but God knows and our role is to delightfully dance before Him. If we wait upon the Lord and catch the Spirit, then we will have fulfilled our purpose. When the Spirit comes, those little leaves that are ready will dance joyfully and flutter faithfully, pleasing God and delightfully serving Christ.
Erin, God is preparing us to catch the Wind? Are we ready to begin the dance?
