Sacred Threshold ::

Faces of Forgiveness :.

Faces of Forgiveness: A Psychological and Theological Dialogue with Dr. Steve Sandage will be hosted at the Minnesota Renewal Center in St. Paul on May 4-5. Primarily for those serving in ministry, both professional and lay, as well as mental health workers, this conference "provides an opportunity to challenge the dichotomy between psychological and theological models of forgiveness while recognizing the integrity of both."

Steve is an associate professor at Bethel Seminary in the Marriage and Family Studies program and long time acquaintance of mine. If you are interested in the practice of forgiveness in your life and in the lives of others you work and minister with, this conference would be a great resource for you.

Call 651-486-4828 for more information.

Wide and Narrow Road :.

To have a life of vocation is to be aware that there are two ways to go--the wide road and the narrow road. The wide road might be called the way of unconsciousness and the narrow road the way of consciousness. The wide road is the road of the crowd. Jesus describes the people on it as not seeing and not hearing. They have an invitation to a banquet, but are too busy to attend. They always have something more important that needs to be done, and their reasons are always logical and convincing. They can explain well to others because they have explained well to themselves, silencing any murmurs of dissent that come from within. They have lost awareness that there are two ways. They respond to the externals only, since their answer is outward. They have many answers. When they do ask questions they ask them of others but never themselves. There is a sameness about those in the crowd. By contrast with "round characters" that develop and change, they are what fiction writing is known as "flat characters," which means they do not change. They are the same at the end of the story as at the beginning. They do not receive anything into themselves; things happen to them, but never in them. Their lives are rich in outer events, and poor in inner ones. They are the impoverished who are not included in any poverty program. They are the dead who do not know they sleep.

~~Elizabeth O'Connor in Journey Inward, Journey Outward

I have rediscovered an old friend these days in one of the books I am reading. Her voice rings as true to me as it did almost twenty years ago when I first was introduced to her. Elizabeth O'Connor was one of the founding members of Church of the Saviour in Washington D.C. Both in Call to Commitment and in Journey Inward, Journey Outward, she describes the core tenets and experiences of that faith community. Not one to mix her words, she tells it as it is and how it was for them as they endeavored to live out the Gospel together. It is surprising to me how much Church of the Saviour is like what we are trying to form in Abbey Way. I am learning much and feel graced to have such an ennobled companion with me on this part of the journey.

May we all be found "round" with Kingdom life!

Order of the Day :.

I awoke this morning a little more tired than usual. The last four days have been filled with new experiences and new faces. My hours were spent in engaging conversation, ever opening to new possibilities of what might be. As I look back, I am glad for the gifts of these days but recognize the need for some respite and reflection to put this time into perspective of God's action in and through it all.

I recognize the importance of creating and sustaining rhythms of engagement and disengagement in my life. Time for active learning, growing and relating balanced with times of silence, solitude and reflection. Without the normal moorings of "going to work," this season of creation and birth highlights the need to frame my day with an intentional rhythm.

An essential tenet of Abbey Way will be a commitment to pray the Divine Hours--an ancient liturgical prayer form--trellising each day with an attentive turning towards God in Scripture and prayer. When reflecting on the myriad of options available to support this shared spiritual practice, the Divine Hours by Phyllis Tickle was chosen as the prayer book of choice. Available both on-line and in book form, Tickle's adaptation of the Liturgy of the Hours, is user friendly and accessible to all. The physicality of holding a book and befriending it as one's companion is preferable to me in this age of technology but for those at work or sitting at their computer the opportunity to join with others in prayer is only a click away.

You are invited to join in praying the office, creating an order and rhythm to your day in this Spring season of birthing new life. Start by reading Tickle's introduction, giving history and understanding to the spiritual practice of praying the "hours." Then simply begin adding Morning and Evening (Vespers) Prayer to your day, sinking into the Scripture and words of prayer. You may want to enlarge your time by opening your Bible to one of the scriptures indicated, choosing a passage for meditation (Lectio Divina). Be gentle yet firm with yourself, letting the rhythm set itself into your day.

Creating space for God in our busy lives takes intentionality and practice. We need times to stop and listen, stilling our hearts to our deepest desire to live fully in God's presence throughout our day. Rhythms of engagement and disengagement create space for us to hear God's voice, opening ourselves to responsive living.

Jesus Life :.

Jesus Way + Jesus Truth = Jesus Life

Eugene Peterson, a wise man of God, speaks eloquently about living the Jesus life at Radio Allelon. I am amazed how his words describe the heart of Abbey Way.

Get a cup of tea and take a deep listen to Peterson's exhortation to today's church.

Thirty Years :.

It's been thirty years since the Evangelical Covenant Church began ordaining women in pastoral ministry. As I sat at my first Covenant Ministerial District Conference, through the witness of four women, the denomination celebrated the anniversary of the decision to ordain women as pastors.

I am newcomer to the Covenant, still an outsider in many ways. In the mid-nineties, while in Seminary, I had courted the Covenant as a possible place of ministry. I liked them then for the wideness of their understanding of gospel life and--of course--their openness to women in all levels of leadership. In the last months, I have a found a home in a denomination that recognizes their need to continue to be on the journey of becoming in the light of God's love and grace. It is a good place to be, a safe place for me as woman called to be a pastor.

Tears welled up in my eyes as an elderly pastor prayed from the pulpit for the church and its women. Through his words, he honored the women who came before, who through their faithful service made a way for others to be ordained into ministry. He honored those currently serving, admonishing them to continue with courage in their callings. He also instructed the male pastors to keep on making place for the women in all fields of service. Such sweetness and truth, like a healing balm on a weary soul.

Go Jeff :.

Jeff writes an insightful post about "God, too, uses boxcutters." Don't miss it.

The Wall :.

Hagberg and Guelich, in the book The Critical Journey, describe a place in the life of faith as "the wall." It is a disorientating place where what was once known about God and God's ways is shattered or dismantled. In class yesterday, we bantered about the question if everyone experienced "the wall" as a place of suffering and confusion in their spiritual life. Most people said "yes" it was normative to experience "the wall" and most of the time it manifested in suffering. I disagreed.

Here are my thoughts...

First, I don't think everyone hits the wall as named in the book. Maybe everyone hits mini walls from time to time, when a portion of one's idea of God and how God is in the world is challenged but the wall is small and in the end the change is needful but is an adjustment of one's thinking and affective response to God not a transformation. Second, if we understand John of the Cross' description of the dark night of senses and of the soul correctly, these experiences are normative for those who are proceeding in their relationship with God. Not everyone advances in their life with God nor wants to. And third, Teresa of Avila, John's dear friend, also does not talk about the dark night ("the wall') in her writings. Her sixth mansion in the Interior Castle describes mystical graces which transform the beloved into a experienced sense of union with the Triune God. Although Teresa did suffer during her life through illness, persecution and misunderstanding, she does not equate these in the same way as John does whose life story includes intense suffering and persecution at the hand of his companions.

As I sat in class, I wondered what most understand faith development to be to hold to the idea "the wall" as an everyday experience for all Christians. I know many people who have come close to a wall experience in their lives but I honestly know few who have traversed to the other side. Most people camp out in the shadows of "the wall" for a while and then get real busy doing many things to avoid the pain and confusion of what is happening. Even when suffering comes as an external visitor, an unwanted guest, pushing the God seeker's nose to the wall, hemming them in, there are a sore lack of guides to help them stay attentive to the experience however long they need to wait at the wall's edge. So, in the end, the opportunity to discover the other side is lost or given up on. And the tales of those who are gently lifted up and over "the wall" to a new land of experience with God are usually found in books and not in the person who is sipping their coffee with you at the local cafe who wouldn't dare utter a loud what is experienced in secret unless they really trusted you and your understanding of how God works in the soul.

If we only knew how much more was possible would we be willing to continue in trust with God throughout all of life's journey?

Longing :.

The soul must long for God in order to be set aflame by God's love; but if the soul cannot yet feel this longing, then it must long for the longing. To long for the longing is the also from God.
                                                                            --Meister Eckhart

A Beginner's Guide :.

"Honoring Your Spiritual Life: A Beginner's Guide" by Jen Lemen here. Good resource for anyone who is seeking spiritual wholeness in their life.

While it was still dark...