All Things Become New

Have you ever had clothes that you threw away to update your wardrobe just to have them come back into style? Have you ever thought of clothes you wore back in "the day" that you wish would come back into style? All kinds of styles come to my mind - Nehru collars, saddle oxfords, and so on...  

Traditions in the church are practiced in the same way. Traditions comes and go. I recently read on FaceBook that traditions are peer pressure from dead people, which may well be. I am particularly interested in the history of traditions of the church. For example, the dead sea scrolls were discovered around 1947 which is not very long ago considering it was the year of my birth. The scrolls are Jewish manuscripts found in the Judaean Desert caves. These scrolls were dated from the last three centuries before Christ and the first century after Christ's life on earth. There were also some manuscripts from Egypt found a little later. These writings gave new insight to the way that the early followers, mothers and father of the faith, emerged themselves in fasting, self-examination, and prayer in the community of the desert. They chose the desert to escape the negative influences of the culture of the time.

Recently the prayers of convents and monasteries as well as the scholarly interpretations of these early writings have created a revival of Christian mindfulness and contemplative prayer and brought this to conventional Christ followers.  I have found it a blessing to be able to receive training and knowledge in this way of prayer. I am excited to lead the Meditation and Prayer service on Sunday evenings, the second Sunday of March, April, and May. We will be sharing contemplative prayer in this service.

Contemplative prayer is only slightly different than a time of naturally occurring contemplation on the things of God. We spend a little time relaxing into the prayer time and then praying together with a unified focus or a prayerful activity. Our intention is to be quiet, calm, receptive, and healing in worshipful prayer to clear away the garble that agitates our lives. You are certainly invited to enjoy our quiet evening of prayer at any or all of the times indicated.

He has made everything beautiful in its time.  

He has also set eternity in the hearts of men;

yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end.

Ecclesiastes 3 : 11.

The Meditation and Prayer service takes place this evening at 6:30 pm.