Snow Day!

Yesterday's snow day was a welcome blessing. Susan, Neeley, and I had a chance to go outside and sled down our "hill" in our backyard. Afterward, Susan spent some time getting caught up on school work and I had a chance to do some studying that I'd been putting off and spent the rest of the time playing with Neeley. It was one of those random, unscheduled "free days" that the Lord occasionally drops your way to remind you that your scheduled life isn't as important and necessary as you might be tempted to think it is.

While a snow day is unscheduled, our Sunday morning time at church is something we can actually look forward to. One writer on the subject worship has called Sunday morning worship a "holy waste of time." She's using the phrase tongue-in-cheek of course. But the idea is that from the world's perspective there are a lot better things one might be doing than singing, praying, fellowshiping, learning, and encountering God.

From my perspective, there is nothing I'd rather be doing on Sunday morning (or Monday morning, Tuesday morning, Wednesday morning...) than standing in the presence of the Lord. It's in His presence that anything and everything else I might set my mind to do receives its meaning and purpose. Without that time with God, nothing (for me, at least) can really have much direction or place. It's behind God's leading that our lives receive any hint of significance.

If that's true - and it certainly is for me - I want to be intentional about the way I approach my day of Sabbath rest. There's preparation I can make spiritually. There's prayer I can offer so that my heart is ready to receive God's gifts as I worship Him. I can begin working on my "worship-attitude" early in the week so that on Sunday I'm ready, I'm expectant, I'm hopeful. If being in the presence of God means anything to me at all, then what would my week look like if it were completely oriented - all week long - to that time that I would be able to stand with hands lifted high in the presence of God and with God's people? If you aren't receiving anything in worship is it because God isn't pouring out or is it because a place at the table of your heart hasn't been prepared for Him?

Something to ponder. Something to pray about.

Blessings!

Pastor Jay

Chrysalis Weekend!

A Chrysalis is the time in the early stage of a butterfly's development where they are cocooned as they form their wings for flight. It's a vulnerable time for the butterfly as it undergoes significant changes. It's a place that is completely nurturing and formative. Inside the cocoon, the butterfly has everything that it needs...but is NOT the final stage of the butterfly! The purpose of the nurturing, formative stage is so that the butterfly can fly!

This weekend, Dale and I will be at Camp Clark Williamson with close to fifty youth and adults for a weekend of re-connecting with God. The focus of the Chrysalis (and the Emmaus) weekend is developing a clear understanding of what it means to live in God's agape-style love. For many of the youth, it will be a time they will remember for the rest of their lives. Dale and I have seen young people visibly and tangibly moved by their encounter with God on the Chrysalis retreat.

Please pray with us over this weekend that the retreat be a powerful encounter with God! We covet your prayers and intercession for our leadership of the retreat, for the fertile soil of the heart into which good seed will be planted, and for the young men themselves to which we will be ministering - that they will receive EVERY good gift God has for them this weekend.

As I write this, it occurs to me how the process I've just described resembles so well what we've experienced at Promise Church! The Lord has given us an amazing season to get to know each other and create a safe and nurturing place for healing and community-formation to take place. He's cocooned us in some respects. But the sense that I and several of us are getting now is that the time has come for us to FLY!!!

That's exciting to me because it means that all that the Lord has been doing in the life of our church has been purposeful. It has been directed toward our RELEASE to minister in FREEDOM! As you pray for us this weekend at the retreat, include our church in your prayers, if you would. That we seize our divine opportunity to take flight and become the amazing church God has created us to be!

Blessings and favor in 2009!

Pastor Jay