Pastor’s Ponderings
August 2024
"Building a Life, Part Three"
We’ve been exploring Spiritual Disciplines this Summer, and I’m thrilled to be doing this sermon series with our friend the Rev. Dr. Libby Boatwright.
The last couple of weeks I’ve been thinking of another reason why spiritual practices are needed these days.
Spiritual practices can unite a diverse group of people around common practices. For instance, at Covenant we have people with differing theological views and different ways of interpreting scripture, yet we can engage in a common practice by asking such questions as: which stories in scripture closely match Covenant’s story? what is God saying to our congregation in this particular story? From my perusal of past newsletters and worship bulletins, I know that Covenant has done this kind of reflection before, and I’m eager for us to keep doing this kind of reflection.
Rallying around common practices can unite us in another way. In a topsy turvy political season spiritual practices can slow us down so that we take time to listen first, or as Francis of Assisi once put it, to seek first to understand before seeking to be understood (especially for people who’ve enjoyed a lot of privilege). Some centering prayer and prayerful Bible reading could also put us in a more reflective frame of mind, so that we would take time to fact check before forwarding certain social media posts.
Finally, spiritual practices help us take a longer view and rely on God’s timing. In a chaotic election season in which one side is likely to feel heartbroken and gutted by the end, learning to rely on God’s timing can be soul saving. This doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t engage in causes close to our hearts, but it helps remind us that the great work did not begin with us and won’t end with us either.
I realize I may be “preaching to the choir,” but even if we feel grounded and not particularly anxious, perhaps we are in a position to help others close to us to be less anxious.
I’m looking forward to our continuing study of spiritual practices during the month of August and a final sermon on “putting it all together” on September 1st.
Looking forward to seeing you in worship.
Grace and Peace,
Pastor Jack
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