Happy New Year!

Before leaping into a new year perhaps we should do a little remembering. The church is big on remembering. The act of remembering can be paralyzing if we choose to live in the past or it can empower us to live boldly in the future. Remembering can be an opportunity to learn from the good and the bad gone by. Our faith ancestors used the act of remembering to inspire them and give them courage in the days ahead. They remembered the many times God moved in their lives, passing on those stories of hope to the next generation. But their remembering didn't keep them from moving forward into new adventures. The Israelites didn't stay in the desert. Oh, they wandered around for a while, but eventually they moved on to the promised land where God blessed them with new stories and experiences. May our remembering of the past year be a time of giving thanks and sharing stories; a time of laughter and tears, a time of preparing for the future. Perhaps you and your family would like to come up with your own TOP 10 LIST for 2009 before moving bravely into the hope filled future.

DEB'S TOP 10 for 2009

1. Letting go so my daughter could move into a life of healing and growth.

2. A Spirit and joy filled vacation to Puerto Rico

3. Bittersweet good-bye gatherings with Missouri Friends

4. The New Beginning in Jefferson Iowa

5. Camron's Winning Football Season and awesome adjustment to Jefferson

6. Thanksgiving with Family in our new home.

7. Making New Friends

8. Good Health

9. The Raccoon River Valley Bike Trail (it is awesome!)

10. My Dad's Retirement Celebration in Missouri

I give thanks for all these things and for those that did not make the list, for it is from our past that we grow into the future.

Happy New Year!

When the Alleluias Fade (for my beautiful daughter)

When the Alleluias fade, when the naked lilies stand unashamed without a bloom,

You are there.

When the dark empty tomb of despair calls "come back come back, find comfort here",

You, the Holy One, are there.

When the soft white linen cloth of self pity lures me to lie and rest in its cool cover,

You are there.

When the sound of the stone, once rolled away, rings in my ears as it looms behind me

threatening to trap me in that cold cave again,

You, Voice of Wisdom, are there.

When I need to cry the Friday cry, "Why, why my God have you forsaken me?"

You are there.

When time seems to travel backwards carrying the same old story,

the same worn out weary story of pain and suffering;

when progress is only temporary and relapse begins to feel like a long lost friend

You are there.

When the thorny crown of shame cuts deep into the mind

You are there.

When the wounds, barely healed, burst open by the burning pain of dashed hopes,

disappointment, doubt, lies, lies, and more lies

You are there.

When the disease of addiction, the evil one, the name that I dare not speak for fear of empowering it, rears its ugly head, teasing, taunting with the question "Who are you really?"

You are there.

When my tongue bleeds from biting back the words that would change nothing anyway,

when I stand in silence with my accusers, the ones who will never understand,

(How could they? They haven't seen what we've seen, been where we've been, walked our walk, nor tasted our tears)...still You are there.

When those once close feel far away, when they hide in fear, deny what they know to be true of me and true of You,

still You are there.

When I taste your Bread and know that my body is about to be broken again,

You are there with your nourishing words, "taste, eat, I am here for you."

When I drink the fruit of forgiveness, when the sweet wine of grace moistens my parched lips,

I give thanks that You are there.

I offer her the cup, filled not with the drink of temptation, but with the bittersweet sip of the promise. "Drink this cup, this cup of the covenant, the new promise of forgiveness.

It is, you are, the blood of my blood and flesh of my flesh."

Will she take it?

Whether she drinks of this cup or the other...You will be there.

You are there, no, no, You are HERE!

You are here.

You are here.

by Debbie Griffin, a mother who continues to hope for her daughter's wholeness.

The "Afterlife"

Easter is over. The chocolate bunnies are gone, or mostly gone. The colored eggs are either devoured or beginning to smell bad. The green and pink plastic grass has mysteriously scattered itself in the strangest places and our pleasantly full sanctuaries are likely to be sparsely populated again soon. Easter Sunday is over and now we live in the "after-Easter-life". How do we live in this "afterlife"? Has anything changed because of our Easter experience? Do we just return to life as usual? If so, then is it any wonder that our sanctuaries return to their pre-Easter state, with the same faithful few sitting in their same pews?
It is true that Easter Sunday has past, but the church calendar for Easter has only begun. The church celebrates 50 days of Easter, leading up to Pentecost. For 50 days we are to experience the joy of Easter and the surprise of resurrection. We are called to transform our lives, to burst forth from our winter cocoons into our butterfly days of spring. Sounds beautiful doesn't it? So why do we find ourselves like those early disciples, locked up in the same old routine, hiding behind the comfort of our church doors, afraid to wander out into unchartered territory, into new ministry opportunities? Why hasn't anything changed? I have my hypotheses, but before I share them, I would like to hear your thoughts. Has Easter changed you, your life, your church in any small way? If not, why?

Dog Days of Lent

Our golden retriever, Lassie, gets herself in the strangest predicaments. ("Lassie?", you say, "Shouldn't she be a collie?" It's a long story, but trust me, she is the most adorable golden retriever you have ever seen.) Lassie has big back yard to run and play. She is grounded to a stake with a very long runner, and one would think she would be happy to run and play with her toys, chase the squirrels, and lay in the shade under the big trees. She has a nice igloo shaped dog house and covered deck for shelter, yet Lassie is not content to be in the yard. She is a people person, and longs to live in the house with her people. Lassie constantly gets herself tangled up around a bush by the door because she insists on staying close to the house instead of running around in the yard. When we are away from home, we return to find her strapped to the bush, with less than a foot of wandering space. We have tried moving her many places around the yard, but she still manages to get herself tangled to the object closest to the house. Lassie cries out for help and we rescue her, time and time again. When the rains come, instead of taking shelter in her nice warm home that we purchased for her, Lassie hides under the deck. Repeatedly, she finds herself stuck under the deck because her leash gets tangled around something. Sometimes, that something is our cat, Simba. Once I found Simba and Lassie tangled up together under the deck. It was quite a sight and sound with both of them whining for my attention, crying out to be rescued. One time Lassie chewed on the deck and made herself so sick that she almost died. I can't figure out why she would chew on the deck when she has many toys, rawhide, and food to fill her stomach. Why does Lassie get herself in these messes?
Lassie's situation reminds me of Psalm 107. The psalm is a "thanksgiving for deliverance from many troubles" according to the Discipleship Study Bible. In the psalm, the people give thanks for the many times God rescued them. They recall the times they wandered in the desert, complaining about the stale bread from heaven. They confess that in their complaining, they forgot the wonderful ways God saved them. God led their people out of slavery into freedom, yet they complained about the bad food! Still, God forgives them, saves them, and restores them time and time again.
Sometimes, I am like Lassie and the Israelites. Sometimes I get so "wrapped up" in a situation that I forget to rely on the One who has rescued me time and time again. Sometimes, I, like Lassie, find myself mentally or emotionally "stuck" in a bad situation because I failed to see the shelter provided for me. More than occasionally I practice unhealthy eating habits, giving my stomach reason to scream at me later in the evening. Turning to comfort foods can turn out to be quite uncomfortable, as Lassie learned. Some days the healthy foods have as much appeal as the stale manna in the desert. Perhaps if I turned to the One who has comforted me time and time again, instead of the ice cream, I might not find myself moaning like Lassie and the Israelites.
Often we think of lent as a time of sacrificing, but perhaps we might also think of Lent as a time to give thanks for the many times our God has rescued us? You know, the times God comforted us in the arms of a friend, or a card in the mail, a phone call or a knock at the door. Perhaps lent is a time to remember the days that our spirits were lifted from the beautiful song of a bird or the glory of a sunset. Maybe, Lent is a time to open our eyes and see the blessings in our own back yard! As the Psalmist says, "O give thanks to God who is good, for God's steadfast love endures forever!" I don't know about you, but like Lassie, I've been rescued time and time again. May I give thanks with the same enthusiasm of our golden retriever. Every time we save her from herself, she is overjoyed! She jumps, dances, and gives great lavish loving to the ones who rescue her. Lent, a time to give thanks!
rev, deb

The Guiding Force

I have returned from a glorious vacation in Puerto Rico, rested and ready to enter the season of Lent. On vacation I was blessed with time to look, listen, smell, touch, and even taste the ocean (the tasting part was quite by accident, I assure you, but it's a funny story for another time). While sitting by the ocean I could not help but notice the power, beauty, and mystery of the universe. The wind and waters were influenced by a power, a guiding force beyond this earth. Empowered by our moon, the ocean whirled, waved, and crashed with awe-inspiring beauty.

As I sat on sandy beaches I began to reflect upon the guiding force in our lives. We are entering the season of Lent; a time to journey in spiritual growth, with God as the guiding force in that journey. Christian Scriptures say that Jesus was guided by the Spirit after his baptism, into a wilderness time of soul searching, prayer, spiritual wrestling, and nourishment. Perhaps this time was necessary for Jesus to determine the guiding force in his life and ministry? Who would lead him, empower him, inspire, challenge, strengthen and even comfort Jesus? The gospel writers tell us that Jesus was guided by the God of Israel, the God of love and grace. We too might enter a Lenten journey of connecting with our guiding force so that our daily lives and our ministries are guided, inspired, and empowered by this God of love and grace. What new relationships and ministries might the Spirit resurrect and birth in the season of Easter after we journey with Christ in Lenten study, daily spiritual practices, thick listening, meditation, worship, and new forms of prayer? Exploring new and old spiritual practices can bring peacefulness, wisdom, and acts of social justice. I enjoy spiritual walks, meditation, lectio, reading diverse spiritual guides, spiritual exercise, and insightful conversation with progressive thinkers. What spiritual practices open you to deep thought, acts of mercy, and new life? May we be moved by the Spirit to share our Lenten practices with one another in this Holy season of spiritual growth.

rev. deb