Summer for me is always a season of radical hospitality. It is also one of the cornerstones of the life of Christ and his legacy to us his followers. So after the isolation of the last couple of years, it seems like a tidal wave of events, shared meals and afternoon teas are in front of us. What fun!
In preparation for the season, I have been reading back through some of the posts contributed by many of our authors over the last few years. I started with our quite impressive hospitality reading list but soon found myself immersed in the rich array of information shared, including some wonderful recipes. As I do so I find myself saying – Oh I forgot that, and Wow that is inspiring, or I want to share that again. And guess what? That is exactly what I plan to do. Over the next few weeks we will be reposting a number of posts, some of which have not seen the light of day for seven or eight years, and that I think is a feat in itself. To get us started, I have adapted one of my favourite hospitality posts from 2014. I hope you enjoy this reposted version as much as I did.
Several years ago, I spoke at a seminary class about spirituality and gardening. It was a fun class, but one question asked by a student kept intruding in my mind. Didn’t God curse the creation after the fall? he asked, implying that it no longer reflected the glory of God and that we no longer needed to respect and look after it.
As I read through Genesis 3 which is the basis for this belief, I am struck by God’s amazing care for the humans who disobeyed him. Yes the ground was cursed (Gen 3:17-19), but it was not God who cursed it, it was the consequence of Adam’s sin. The natural created world was somehow affected by the human fall into sin and is therefore no longer paradise. Brambles and weeds grew. Human toil to produce food and care for creation increased. Nowhere however is there any implication that we are absolved from our responsibility to care for creation.
That summer I contemplated the thorns, the thistles, and the weeds that we all think of as part of the consequences of the human fall. Some of them produce the most delicious and nutritious food we can eat, as we can see in this video
Take the humble dandelion for instance. Its leaves are often used in salads. Its root for medicinal tea and its flowers in jams and jelly. It helps break up the soil and draws nutrients up from deep within the soil. It is an amazing and valuable plant. Read more about dandelions and links to recipes here
Then there is the blackberry which grows wild prolifically throughout the Pacific NW. It may be a pest, and I know it chokes out many smaller native plants, including the native blackberry, but its fruit blesses us with delicious pies and jams, and the birds butterflies and bees love them too. Every year in August Tom and I used to travel to Mayne Island, Canada with our Canadian friends Tom and Kim Balke, for a few days holiday. One of the delights of our trip was picking blackberries and wild apples to make blackberry apple crumble.
Snails are another pest that can be a delicacy for many. Ironically some people love escargot and spend big bucks to buy them and then complain about the snails that destroy their gardens.
And in many Asian countries, tarantulas, crickets and ants are all considered delicacies.
Native peoples are all very well aware of the wild hospitality of God and many other foragers have joined them in enjoying the rich harvest that the earth provides. Here in the Pacific NW salmonberries, native blackberries, huckleberries and elderberries are but a few of these delights. Then there are the mushrooms – chanterelles are our favorites but I love it when friends bring us morels, lion’s mane and other delectable edible fungi straight from the forest.
It seems to me that part of the curse we suffer from is our inability to recognize the abundance and hospitality of God in the garden that is our earth. God is a generous God who invites us to a banquet feast, not just in the eternal world to come but here in this world too. Often all we need to do is reach out and recognize the gift and accept God’s amazing hospitality.
So take a walk around your garden or the closest nature reserve to your home. What “pests” do you see that really are part of the abundance of God?
It’s almost time to choose a winner! Will it be you? If you haven’t entered yet, click here for details on how to enter and get bonus entries. It’s like getting extra raffle tickets – but for free! Christine Sine is giving away two copies of her newest book, Digging Deeper: The Art of Contemplative Gardening. Winner will be announced at the Digging Deeper Webinar on June 25th!
A contemplative service with music in the spirit of Taize. Carrie Grace Littauer, prayer leader, with music by Kester Limner and Andy Myers.
Permission to podcast/stream the music in this service obtained from One License with license #A-710-756.
I still remember the weather that spring day, the merest hint of blossom in the air, as I planned next year’s crops in the fields. And I remember the way my heart caught as I saw him come towards me, as it always did. But he could not meet my eyes. Because, as I later found, he hadn’t come just to be with me in the fields as I’d hoped, but to ask for 1/3 of everything. His inheritance.
I didn’t feel the rejection or the insult though I knew they were there. I just felt the pain, as though my heart had been ripped out. He thought he could live better independently of me. And I knew it was a catastrophic misuse of freedom. but I had to let him go, to give him the choice. So I gave him his share.
I stood and watched him step by step leave across the fields, stepping away from me, and my heart was torn in two again.
There were, of course, rumours from where he had gone, told to me with either relish or regret. Rumours that he was living contrary to everything we had taught him, a way not for his best, resulting in humiliation for him, and a depth of pain he would not have had – and I would not have had – if he had stayed in my house. He thought he was finding freedom but he was finding only slavery.
Daily, hoping against hope, I watched, searched the road, imagining I could see him coming.
Daily I looked at the place at the table that was his, keeping it laid each day because it was still his.
Daily I wept tears for him.
And then one day, worlds away, he realised he had run out of his own resources.
Away in that far place he fell to his knees.
And he turned for home. He had run out of everything. Better a servant than an exile.
And so, as I scanned the horizon, as I did every day, at last I saw him. A sad, forlorn figure in the distance. I knew he must have been desperate to come back but I did not care.
My heart caught as I saw him come towards me, as it always did.
What else could I do? I ran to him.
I didn’t care about the shock on the face of the servants as I grabbed up my robe to run…
And I knew I could have added to his pain with careless or accusing words, but I saw the terrible brokenness behind his eyes, pleading for some servant role.
Servant! Not my son.
Instead, I lavished my love on him…
The best robe, a sign of dignity and honour, proof of his acceptance back into the family. I’d had it made while he was away, ready for his return.
A ring for his hand, a sign of authority and sonship despite his failure.
Sandals for his feet, and feasting with the fatted calf I had been saving in hope
Such joy, such joy in my heart. I could not wait to celebrate.
But, even as the party continued, I knew someone was missing. My other son would not come to the party, and so I went to him.
My heart caught as I saw him, as it always did.
It was his duty to host the party, as the oldest son, to seek reconciliation between my son and me. But anger and resentment was in every pore, exuding his rage at his brother, and at me.
But I saw too the terrible brokenness behind his eyes, pleading to be the best, for the approval he’s always had without needing to do anything.
But I was also sad. Sad that instead of going to find his brother and bring him home he had stayed in safety and become so hardened. Looking at him the terrible realisation dawned … if my younger son had met his older brother first, not me, he would never have come home.
I cried for both my sons that night.
My hurting sons, neither of whom had caught my heart.
The younger, who missed all those years of my love for him; for all the regret he would carry despite my full and free forgiveness.
The older, feeling he had to earn his place in my family; to work and work rather than rest in my love for him; too busy protecting his own interests, his seat at the table, to go and look for his lost brother – too self-interested to even want to see him as his brother.
Too afraid of the muck of the pig sty.
His heart too small to reach out.
I cried for both my sons that night: for the path of self-discovery and moral conformity which had trapped them both.
I cried for both my sons that night.
Photo via Pixabay
Join Christine Sine for a FREE Webinar on Saturday, June 25th at 9:30 am PT as she discusses her brand-new book and invites you for some fun activities and discussion. If you sign up before June 24th at 9 pm PT, you will be automatically entered into a *giveaway* for Digging Deeper – for giveaway details, visit tinyurl.com/diggingdeepergiveaway or click here. For webinar details and to sign up, visit tinyurl.com/diggingdeeperwebinar or click here.
This week’s Old Testament Reading from the Lectionary is one of my favorites! It’s about Elijah!
Ahab reported to Jezebel everything that Elijah had done, including the massacre of the prophets. Jezebel immediately sent a messenger to Elijah with her threat: “The gods will get you for this and I’ll get even with you! By this time tomorrow you’ll be as dead as any one of those prophets.”
3-5 When Elijah saw how things were, he ran for dear life to Beersheba, far in the south of Judah. He left his young servant there and then went on into the desert another day’s journey. He came to a lone broom bush and collapsed in its shade, wanting in the worst way to be done with it all—to just die: “Enough of this, God! Take my life—I’m ready to join my ancestors in the grave!” Exhausted, he fell asleep under the lone broom bush.
Suddenly an angel shook him awake and said, “Get up and eat!”
6 He looked around and, to his surprise, right by his head were a loaf of bread baked on some coals and a jug of water. He ate the meal and went back to sleep.
7 The angel of God came back, shook him awake again, and said, “Get up and eat some more—you’ve got a long journey ahead of you.”
8-9 He got up, ate and drank his fill, and set out. Nourished by that meal, he walked forty days and nights, all the way to the mountain of God, to Horeb. When he got there, he crawled into a cave and went to sleep.
Then the word of God came to him: “So Elijah, what are you doing here?”
10 “I’ve been working my heart out for the God-of-the-Angel-Armies,” said Elijah. “The people of Israel have abandoned your covenant, destroyed the places of worship, and murdered your prophets. I’m the only one left, and now they’re trying to kill me.”
11-12 Then he was told, “Go, stand on the mountain at attention before God. God will pass by.”
A hurricane wind ripped through the mountains and shattered the rocks before God, but God wasn’t to be found in the wind; after the wind an earthquake, but God wasn’t in the earthquake; and after the earthquake fire, but God wasn’t in the fire; and after the fire a gentle and quiet whisper.
13-14 When Elijah heard the quiet voice, he muffled his face with his great cloak, went to the mouth of the cave, and stood there. A quiet voice asked, “So Elijah, now tell me, what are you doing here?” Elijah said it again, “I’ve been working my heart out for God, the God-of-the-Angel-Armies, because the people of Israel have abandoned your covenant, destroyed your places of worship, and murdered your prophets. I’m the only one left, and now they’re trying to kill me.”
15-18 God said, “Go back the way you came through the desert to Damascus. When you get there anoint Hazael; make him king over Aram. Then anoint Jehu son of Nimshi; make him king over Israel. Finally, anoint Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel Meholah to succeed you as prophet. Anyone who escapes death by Hazael will be killed by Jehu; and anyone who escapes death by Jehu will be killed by Elisha. Meanwhile, I’m preserving for myself seven thousand souls: the knees that haven’t bowed to the god Baal, the mouths that haven’t kissed his image.” I KINGS 19: 1-18 THE MESSAGE
In what ways are you feeling like Elijah today?
What “enemy” has you ready to run out of town and abandon ship?
We really are all exhausted by the last two years and all the trauma and drama of covid, politics, gun violence, war, work and other losses we have experienced ….
What do you see you need? A nap, some quiet, a chance to get into the wilderness, a long break, an angel to make food? More like minded people? Clarity, Awareness? What? Talk to Jesus about this!
How would you answer the question from God ““What are you doing here,?”
What helps you to hear from God?
Elijah is not only exhausted and afraid, he is also feeling angry at the people who’d abandoned God …anyone you’re angry at that you need to talk to Jesus about ?
God tells Elijah he is not the only one who still follows God. Take time to consider the people in your life who are following Jesus and helping you follow Jesus…Who do you need to spend more time with or listen to or read about?
Like Elijah, sometimes we forget how God provides for us. Take time to thank Jesus for how he’s provided for you lately
“Everyone is nicer after a nap and a snack”
Why do we run from rest?
What keeps you running and busy rather than taking time to fill your cup, or take time to listen for and to Jesus?
ELIJAH Daniele da Volterra
ELIJAH was exhausted! Burned out! Discouraged!
ELIJAH needed a nap & a snack!
God provided what he needed!
How can you let God provide for you?
What will it take for you to STOP, have a snack and take a REST?
Are you willing to allow others to help you & see you are NOT ALONE?
When can you start? What about this weekend?
YOU Have PERMISSION to REST!
TAKE SOME TIME AND JOURNAL from the questions above and consider how you view rest and why you avoid it.
PRINT out a permission slip or create one for yourself! JESUS gives you permission to REST!
elijah by dieric bouts
CHECK OUT the altar piece called ” HEAVENLY MEAL ” where this painting of Elijah is found.
USE YOUR BROOM as a reminder! Elijah took a nap under the broom tree. Find a small broom or use your regular broom a visual reminder to REST. Put it out somewhere so you will be reminded daily.
BROOM reminding me to rest
So this weekend, fix yourself a snack and plan time to take a nap and actually REST! Elijah actually needed TWO DAYS! Maybe you do too! Allow Jesus to provide for you. Allow others to help you in your work. Don’t hesitate to ask for what you need! Remember that REST IS HOLY! and it’s one of the BIG TEN! Why not make REST your spiritual practice for this summer?
If you need help…The Gift of a Sacred Summer is a devotional kit of spiritual practices I created to help us PRACTICE! The first GIFT is REST! You can purchase the Gift of a Sacred Summer for yourself or someone you love at freerangeworship.com
We have a version for individuals as well as for churches that includes graphics for instagram!
Sacred Summer KIT
©lillylewin and freerangeworship.com
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Editor’s Note: This is a repost from the original God the Father Reimagined post, and is part of a larger series on God the Father. We are reposting this in honor of the upcoming Father’s Day.
Since writing yesterday’s post I have thought a lot about my reaction to the idea of God as father. Where does my struggle with God as Father come from? It occurred to me yesterday as I basked in the images of the loving, caring, generous father I wrote about that my struggle begins not with the patriarchal images that we often get hung up on, but with the expulsion from the garden of Eden. How could this possibly be the action of a loving, caring God I have often thought? More like the angry, violent parent I grew up with.
So today I want to do something that you might think a little strange. I am going to reimagine this narrative from the perspective of what I think a loving parent would do and why.
God the mother gave birth to humankind and God the father went out and built a home for his children to live – a beautiful garden dwelling that we call the Garden of Eden. In this wonderful protective environment men and women grew up, walking and playing with God the father and mother in the evenings. All their needs for shelter and food were met by God who hovered around them like a good protective parent. They had a few chores to perform but no responsibility to work for their own provision.
Then they grew up and into the rebellious teenage years when they started to look around and realize that there was a great big world outside the garden that they wanted to explore. In this world, their protective father warned them, there was both good and evil. It is a world, he told them, in which they would now have to toil for their own food and work hard to provide for themselves and their own children. But humankind did not listen. They no longer wanted to be protected from the big bad world, they wanted to find their own way.
So God let them go. God the father sent them away from home out into the world where they would have to fend for themselves. He had given them a good education in how to till the soil and make it flourish but only he knew how much work this involved. Mother God sewed clothes, gave them food and sent them on their way, knowing that life would not be easy for them and that hardship and anguish lay ahead.
God knew his kids would mess up – fighting and killing each other, oppressing and enslaving each other, show greed, prejudice, hatred. He knew he would have to continue watching over them rescuing them as a good father would when they got into trouble, healing them as a loving mother when they got hurt and providing for them when they used up all their resources. But God loved them and knew that for them to come to full maturity they needed to take responsibility for their own actions. To find wholeness and be able to embrace eternal life as God wanted them too he needed to let them go and allow them to make mistakes. He knew that only in this way would they really become mature adults.
I think that it is this kind of narrative that is hidden in the parables and miracles of Jesus:
Good Shepherd Jesus Mafa
God the father is the shepherd who leaves 99 sheep to find the one who has gone astray is God our father tirelessly following the most wayward of his sheep.
God the father is Jesus reaching out to heal the only son of a widow who has been ostracized by her society and has no means of provision or protection without him.
God the father is Jesus sitting on the mountain distributing 2 fish and 5 loaves to feed 5,000 because he wants to remind us of the generosity of good parents.
Rembrandt van Rijn, The Return of the Prodigal Son, c. 1661–1669. 262 cm × 205 cm. Hermitage Museum, Saint Petersburg public domain
God the Father, is the father who welcomes home all prodigal sons and daughters who have strayed, used up their money, become homeless, turned to drugs, or committed criminal acts and finally recognize that father together with God the mother, really does know best and will still provide a safe haven.
God our Father longs for us to come back home, and at great cost to himself, He has even set up a a well lit pathway – Jesus Christ the way, the truth and the life – to guide us.
For me personally, thinking about this imagery of a loving father protecting, providing for and guiding his children together with images of God the mother working together, is both renewing and healing. What do you think?
This is part of my series on God as Father. You may like to check out the full series:
Meditation Monday: The Father heart of God
Let’s Get Creative for Father’s Day
And for those who want to balance this with maternal images of God check out my posts from the week before Mother’s day:
Meditation Monday – Connecting to the Mother heart of God
Biblical Maternal Images of God by Shiao Chong
Maternal Images of God – a video and a prayer
Let’s Get Creative – Honouring Our Mothers
Anselm’s Prayer to St Paul: Our Greatest Mother
It’s almost time to choose a winner! Will it be you? If you haven’t entered yet, click here for details on how to enter and get bonus entries. It’s like getting extra raffle tickets – but for free! Christine Sine is giving away two copies of her newest book, Digging Deeper: The Art of Contemplative Gardening. Winner will be announced at the Digging Deeper Webinar on June 25th!
by Melissa Taft
In Case You Missed It:
New Theme
Godspace is sporting a new theme! Living as Christ Live: Towards Justice, Love, and Peace for All Creation hopes to inspire you to love, to uphold justice, to act with peace for all creation. Christine Sine kicked off our new theme with a Meditation Monday on The Value of Naming. How can we live towards justice, love, and peace for all creation with our labels? From the article:
“This example inspired me not just to rename the animals, birds, and people around me, but also to learn the hope-filled names of places and plants given as the results of destructive actions, replacing violence with language and symbols of the peace that surrounds us. My mind always goes to the peace rose that has an incredible history of survival and naming as a result of WWII. Then there are the trees that survived the horrors of the Hiroshima nuclear explosion. There are 170, known as peace trees. Seeds from them are now being sent around the world. There is also a pear tree that survived the 9/11 terrorist attacks. It is known as the survivor tree. I find hope and inspiration in the resilience and survival of these trees. They encourage me to believe that by renaming important structures around us, we could one day see an end to war, gun violence, and the destruction of creation.”
Be on the lookout for different ways we hope to explore what it means to live as Christ lived with an emphasis on justice, love, and peace for all creation. Summer and winter are seasons of hospitality, for different reasons, and as it is about to be summer in the Northern Hemisphere and winter in the Southern Hemisphere, we will be posting some of our Hospitality resources. We also will explore our theme through creativity and art such as poetry, which are such important expressions of intent.
Upcoming Webinar
We are offering a FREE WEBINAR on Christine Sine’s new book! On Saturday June 25th at 9:30 AM PT, Christine will be discussing her new book and inviting participation and discussions for those who are interested in learning about the art of contemplative gardening. There will even be an opportunity for show-and-tell! Bring along one item you would like to incorporate in a contemplative garden or a photo of your already created contemplative garden and join the fun discussion.
For all the details and to sign up, visit tinyurl.com/DiggingDeeperWebinar or click here. If you sign up before 9 pm PT Friday June 24th, you will automatically be entered into the giveaway to WIN a copy of Digging Deeper: The Art of Contemplative Gardening. Which brings us to the next #ICYMI:
Digging Deeper Giveaway
Christine Sine is giving away two copies of her new book. There are multiple ways to enter, meaning more chances for your name to get picked – much like a raffle! The winners will be announced during the webinar. For more information or to enter visit tinyurl.com/DiggingDeeperGiveaway or click here.
Of course, you don’t need to wait for the giveaway – you can get a copy of Digging Deeper on our website or directly via Amazon. We have been encouraged by those of you who already own a copy and have entered the giveaway regardless – some of you intending to gift the copy if you win to a loved one. We are enjoying the feedback and reviews that have come for the book – such as this comment by Anya Almgren on the Godspace Light Community Group on Facebook:
I’ve been reading it to my mom as we’ve been sitting on our porch, enjoying the gorgeous day today. We were almost half-way through it and had to stop to jot down ideas for our own contemplative gardens. My mom hasn’t been able to garden and struggles with focusing, doing, and completing creative projects since her stroke last summer; and, yet, this seems doable to her and something she’s inspired to try. She appreciates that these gardens can change over time and that she can work on them in stages, at her own pace, while contemplating how the Holy Spirit is leading her. Thank you, Christine!
Isn’t that lovely? If you, too, would like to learn about the creative and flexible art of contemplative gardens, don’t miss your chance to enter!
#ICYMI Post Round-Up
Our FreeRange Friday favorite Lilly Lewin had some guest contributors write for her column while she was out of town – and came back with this powerful entreaty on pilgrimage. Be sure not to miss it – or the Facebook Live inspired by her pilgrimage to sacred places!
Keren Dibbens-Wyatt closed out our previous theme Restoring Rhythms and Seasons with this beautiful and personal contemplation on Seasons of Hope. From the post: “I want to speak hope into the lives of the desperate, tell what I know of hanging on to the truth that God is love, even in dark, dank corners. I want to give that six-year-old me the magical stories that kept her going, and the thirty-year-old me spiritual guidance. I want to reach out with my imagination and paint my roses and push on the backs of wardrobes, and let myself bloom in the garden.”
Our new resource page for holidays and observances has struck a chord with many of you. Godspace continues to proudly be a resource for seasons of the church and other celebrations – our most popular post of the past 30 days was unsurprisingly our Pentecost Resource post. We are so delighted to be a source of inspiration for your personal and liturgical walks.
Explore the wonderful ways that God and God’s story are revealed through the rhythms of planting, growing, and harvesting. Spiritual insights, practical advice for organic backyard gardeners, and time for reflection will enrich and deepen faith–sign up for 180 days of access to work at your own pace and get ready for your gardening season.
Editor’s Note: Today is Flag Day in America, a day that celebrates identity for Americans. The imagery of an American Flag is powerful for many Americans, one that has been poignantly used in many crucial moments of history. Christine touches on how flags speak to our identity below, and how she used these identifying markers to transform her Easter Garden into a Pentecost one. We are now in Ordinary Time – or more aptly put, Pentecost Season, so reposting this felt relevant in our current theme and season. We hope this helps you live into Pentecost Season; Living as Christ Lived: Towards Justice, Love and Peace for All Creation.
You can find the original post here. And as a fun side note, this garden is included in Christine’s latest book Digging Deeper: The Art of Contemplative Gardening. She goes into more depth about it there – which you could read about if you are one of the lucky winners in next week’s book giveaway! That’s right, we are giving away two copies of her new book. To enter and for all the details, visit tinyurl.com/DiggingDeeperGiveaway or click here!
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My Easter garden has undergone its final transformation. Last week I splurged on a pack of 100 Different Country flags and over the weekend added as many flags as I could to my garden to form a Pentecost prayer garden. What resonates most with me about Pentecost is that the crowds that gathered in Jerusalem that day didn’t all speak the same language, they understood each other in their own languages across the barriers of culture and race. Pentecost speaks to me of global unity and understanding. As I planted my flags, I realized how few of them I could identify. Even when I prayed for India I had to do a Google search to identify its flag before I could make sure it was prominently displayed. It made me wonder if one important step in reaching for cultural understanding is to learn to identify the flags of our neighbours all around the world. So I went hunting and came up with some fascinating facts thanks to this helpful article. He explains:
Did you know that Denmark holds the Guinness world record for the oldest continuously used national flag? Mozambique is the only country in the world whose flag incorporates a modern weapon – an AK 47 – representing vigilance and defense and South Africa’s flag contains the greatest variety of colours. The UK flag consists of the crosses of St George, St Patrick and St Andrew. Interestingly St George who is the patron saint of England was probably born in Cappadocia to a Syrian mother. He is thought to have died in Lyydia in the Roman province of Palestine.
Flags speak of our identity both personal and national and our feelings towards them tell us a lot about our feelings towards our own country and those of our global neighbours. I realized this as I held my Australian and American flags in my hand this morning and placed them side by side in my garden. I have much stronger feelings towards the Australian flag and towards Australia, in spite of the fact that I have not lived there for almost 50 years. It is past time for me to seek for great understanding of the culture into which I have been transplanted and grown over the last 30 years.
One of the disciplines I have decided to institute as part of my Pentecost celebration this year is learning to identify as many national flags as possible and in the process I plan to learn a little about the countries they represent in the desire to do what little I can for global understanding, peace and unity.
Evolution of a Garden
Contemplative garden – Time for Love
You may remember that this garden began as my Time to Love garden, in which I planted seeds and arranged several heart shaped stones as a symbol of both hope and of the love of God most evident in Easter season. The garden evolved when I noticed that the plants were crowding each other out and so I transplanted most of them into small pots to nurture them until they were big enough to plant out in the garden. This weekend I planted most of them into their permanent places in the garden, hopefully ready to grow and produce blossom and fruit amongst the other already established plants. On that occasion, I commented:
For the seedlings that have sprouted to produce their full harvest, they must be uprooted, transplanted and eventually replanted all around the garden. Maybe they will even take the love stones with them or need some new and bigger “love stones” around them.
As I reread this today I feel as though I want to go out and create a whole garden of heart shaped stepping stones to arrange around my plants. I think that we all need new and bigger love stones around us in order to more effectively work towards the unity that God calls us to at Pentecost. Identifying national flags is only a small step in trying to bridge the gulfs that lie between us and I am wondering what else could I do in the next few weeks to help inspire global peace and unity?
What Is Your Response?
How many national flags can you identify? Or how many languages can you say good morning in? What could you do to improve your understanding of other cultures by simply learning to identify their flags or to say “Good Morning” in their languages.
What are the most powerful symbols of global unity that you are aware of this Pentecost? How could you use these to gain deeper understanding of the cultures around you at this season?
What is one practice you could institute over the next couple of weeks to help further this understanding?
TOMORROW! Join Christine Sine and June Friesen live in the Godspace Light Community Group for a Facebook Live discussion on what inspires June’s photography and daily reflections. Can’t join live? Keep your eye on Christine’s YouTube Channel for the recording to be uploaded later!
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