Advent and Christmas are coming. Many of us have already turned our thoughts to how we will celebrate the season. Once again I will host a series for Advent and Christmas on this blog, this year with the title: Come to the Manger Who Will You Invite?
What on earth am I planning some of you may ask? I started Advent last year with a post: Stable, Inn or Welcoming Home – Where Was Jesus Born and Why Does it Matter which suggested that Jesus’ family was not abandoned in a stable but was surrounded by friends and family at his birth. To this birth celebration the shepherds, outcasts from their society, and the wise men, Gentile foreigners were also invited.
The question that stirs in my mind is: Who is welcome at the manger? Who else do we invite to this celebration that may otherwise be ignored or excluded – the prostitutes, the sex traffickers, those in prison, people of other racial backgrounds, other religions, other sexual persuasions, the poor and the homeless, even those we are estranged from. Do we think there is a place for everyone at the manger? If so how do we extend that invitation so that these people feel welcome?
Next week our new devotional A Journey Toward Home: Soul Travel for Advent To Lent will be available for order. One of the reflections in it is on the French custom of santons:
Santons are, literally, “little saints.” Part of a typical French Nöel crèche (Christmas Nativity scene), santons come in work clothes to visit the Holy Family. They bring the Christ Child presents they have made or grown, hunted or sold. They perform or offer simple gestures of thoughtfulness…..
The shepherds summon all Provençal villagers. They bring their unique gifts to honor the newborn child: the baker (or his son) with typical Provençal breads like la banette and le pain Calendal (a round country loaf marked with a cross and baked only at Christmastime), the vegetable merchant, the cheese vendor, the basket maker, the wine grower, the humble woman or man who brings only a bundle of sticks for a fire to keep the baby warm.
A poor old man, who thinks he has nothing to give the Baby, holds his lantern and offers to light the way for others. His gift of thoughtfulness and courtesy earns him a place in the scene.
I love this idea of all our neighbours, those we enjoy and those we don’t want to have anything to do with, clustered around the manger, invited into that place of intimate hospitality with God. So lets create our own “santons” this Advent and Christmas season, santons of words not figures of clay. Lets talk about some of the people we imagine gathering around the manger with us. Lets help others to see the embracing love of God for all of humankind in the birth of the child Jesus.
This is your invitation to participate in the Advent/Christmas series on Godspace. Would you like to contribute a blog post? Write a poem or even paint a picture of what the gathering around the manger could look like? If so please leave a comment on this post, or email me. And please invite your friends.
October 16th is World Food Day proclaimed in 1979 by the Conference of the Food and Agriculture Organization (F.A.O.) of the United Nations, to heighten public awareness of the world food problem and strengthen solidarity in the struggle against hunger, malnutrition and poverty.
Why does this matter? My colleague, Andy Wade, wrote an excellent post Just Us At the Table? that helps us put this in perspective – as he says – It is never just us at the table. So many contribute to the food we eat, and so many are badly treated in the process.
Thinking about that this morning and remembering the millions who will not have enough food for today I wrote this prayer and gathered the following resources.
Lord give us today our daily bread.
Let us remember those who do not have bread for today.
May we willingly share your generous provision,
With all who hunger and lack adequate nutrition.
In our own communities and across the globe.
Lord give us today our daily bread.
Let us stand in solidarity with those who risk their health to provide our food.
May we cry out for justice in the food industry,
For all workers exposed to toxic chemicals and pesticides.
For farmworkers not paid a living wage.
Lord give us today our daily bread.
Let us remember our bodies are God’s holy temple.
May we not eat too much or eat unwisely,
And destroy our health,
Or deplete our planet’s resources.
Lord give us today our daily bread.
Let us remember we are all part of God’s worldwide community.
May we work together to steward the world God has created,
Recognizing our responsibility as caretakers and neighbours,
And joining in the celebration of God’s good creation.
Amen.
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- Canadian Foodgrains bank has produced this excellent resource for prayer and worship for today.
- Great resources from World Food Day including ideas for kids and teachers.
- Theresa Cho produced these beautiful interactive prayer stations a couple of years ago that I highly recommend.
- And some great suggestions from the Presbyterian Hunger Programme on how to observe this day.
- And you might like to watch this powerful video from Hungry Planet that highlights the inequity of food consumption in our world:
Today’s post is contributed by Evelyn Bence. It is a late addition to the series Hospitality: Opening Doorways to the Kingdom. I received a copy of Evelyn’s new book Room at My Table, a couple of days ago and read through the delightful reflections (52 of them) in one sitting. It is not the way they should be read as it would be better to read each one slowly over a cup of tea. It would also make a great read for a book club or small group, preferably getting together over one of the meals for which recipes are provided.
When my parents died, midsummer in two consecutive years, I silently waited for several “good old friends” to call ahead or simply knock on the door and offer me a plate of cookies if not a “covered dish.” I should have forgotten my disappointment by now.
One of those friends recently posted one sentence on Facebook: She had lost a dear one to death. By the time I stopped by to express condolences and drink tea, she had received sixty-five Facebook comments; most of them fewer than fifteen words, summarized as “I’m so sorry” or “I’m praying for you.” Were the short sentiments helpful? I asked.
“Absolutely! Why would you even wonder?”
“It’s so easy to press send. Done. It’s not exactly the same as delivering a casserole.” Oops. I suddenly realized that I had knocked on her door empty-handed, on this particular busy weekend sensing that my presence and conversation would speak comfort aplenty.
“But they”—those sixty-five well-wishers—“aren’t ‘casserole friends,’” she said, clearly including me in the category. “A lot of them live out of town. They’re college friends or former work colleagues. Or they’re casual church acquaintances . . .”
“Casserole friends.” The phrase makes me smile. How many of us wish we had a few more of them, people who show up with nourishment on tough days? For the grieving, maybe a quart of soup several weeks after the burial. For the caregiver, maybe some pick-up snacks. For the geriatric set, maybe a delivery conversation more prolonged and personal than the stereotypical hello-good-bye of Meals-on-Wheels. In his last widowed year, my dad valued a parishioner who occasionally brought dinner and then stayed to eat with him.
Long ago, a few years out of college, I learned the power of a casserole. It was general knowledge that the wife of an older workplace mentor—the editor of a major religious magazine—was out of town for ten days. Assuming a married man of my father’s generation wouldn’t know his way around a household kitchen, I went home and concocted a humble casserole. This experience would be long forgotten if he hadn’t seemed startled as I handed him the dish. “Why . . . this is the nicest thing anyone’s ever done for me.”
Maybe I was young and gullible, but his response seemed genuine. At the time, and sometimes since, I’ve thought, Poor Dr. Ken, if a tuna-noodle casserole was the penultimate kindness . . .
On the other hand, maybe the excessive gratitude was all about the unexpected gesture on the day I became his casserole friend.
Evelyn Bence is author of Room at My Table: Preparing Heart and Home for Christian Ministry, published by Upper Room Books. She lives in Arlington Virginia and has served as religion editor for Doubleday, managing editor for Today’s Christian Woman and senior editor at Prison Fellowship Ministries.
Tuna Noodle Casserole
3 cups wide egg noodles
1/4 cup chopped onion, sautéed
1 can cream of celery soup
1 5-ounce can tuna in water, drained
1-1/2 cups frozen green peas, thawed
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons fine dry bread crumbs
While cooking the noodles according to the package instructions, heat the sauce—the onions, soup, tuna, peas, and pepper. Drain the noodles and place in a 1-1/2 quart casserole. Stir the sauce into the hot noodles. If it seems dry, add a few tablespoons of milk or tuna water. Top with the bread crumbs. Serve immediately. Four servings.
Back in the day, my friend Dr. Ken probably got a casserole that featured canned peas, reminiscent of my mother’s pantry essentials. Without the tuna, the dish works well for vegetarians.
Today’s post is part of the series Seeking Help Through the Faith Shifting Process. It is contributed by Lynne Baab who has written many books and articles on Christian spiritual practices. Her latest book is The Power of Listening. Visit Lynne’s website and blog for numerous articles she’s written on spiritual practices.
The words “spiritual direction” can mean quite a few different things, and numerous recent posts on this blog have illustrated the variety of possible meanings. When I use those two words, I almost always mean an intentional spiritual practice of meeting monthly with someone who gives me guidance in my walk with Jesus Christ.
My favorite book on spiritual direction was written by a dear friend, Susan S. Phillips, and the title is Candlelight: Illuminating the Art of Spiritual Direction (Morehouse, 2008). Here’s how Susan describes what she does as a spiritual director:
I spend many quiet hours listening to people – to what they say and don’t say, to inflections, silences, laughter, weeping, aspirations, sorrows, joy and longing. I listen for prayer. Some of prayer’s manifestations in us were expressed by seventeenth-century poet George Herbert as “God’s breath” in us, “the soul in paraphrase,” the “heart in pilgrimage,” “a kind of tune,” and “Heaven in ordinary.” I have witnessed such prayers in my office. My listening is different from that of many professional listeners, in that I listen for how the holy penetrates lives. I am there to help people discover the ways their lives are imbued with spirituality. This is spiritual direction.
I’ve been in spiritual direction for 17 years, and I’ve been a spiritual director (on a small scale) for four years. Why is this particular spiritual practice significant to me, and how have I benefitted from it?
Paul says to the people on Mars Hill in Acts 17:28 that in God “we live and move and have our being.” Yet so many aspects of our lives, including the consumer culture and the pace of daily living, conspire to push us in the direction of living as autonomous beings. Spiritual direction is one of many spiritual practices that can help us remember that God is present, working, caring and bestowing grace in our lives. With my spiritual directors I have talked about where God is in the midst of my family, my work, my friends, my service to God, and my call to be a Christian. I love the way Susan Phillips describes this process: “I listen for how the holy penetrates lives. I am there to help people discover the ways their lives are imbued with spirituality.”
In her book, Susan begins and ends with general comments on this practice, but the bulk of the book traces nine individuals as they journey through several years of spiritual direction. These participants vary widely in their faith commitments, and her descriptions illustrate how a spiritual director helps people on a variety of paths. She divides the stories into three stages: beginning, journeying and fruition. Her categories make me think various stages with the three spiritual directors I have had.
I lost my first spiritual director when she retired, and I lost my second when we moved. With all three, there was an exciting beginning period when I had the joy of discovering the uniqueness of the director’s priorities and style. Then, to be frank, there was a bit of a ho-hum stage where I felt like maybe I’d gotten everything I was going to get from this person. In all three cases, the ho-hum stage was followed by deepening and richness. So, in parallel with Susan’s book, I have experienced at least three stages with each of my spiritual directors.
One of the FAQs that people often ask me is whether I pay for spiritual direction, and the answer is a resounding YES. Many spiritual directors offer a sliding scale based on ability to pay, and I think paying something is important. A sad reality about human life is that we value what we pay for. If I really believe that my love and obedience for God will be enhanced by identifying God’s breath in me or by trying to see heaven in the ordinary, then devoting myself to spiritual direction, and being willing to pay for it, is a very good idea.
I love the changing of the light at this time of the year. In the summer the sun rises too early for me to appreciate it and in winter I am already into the day’s work before it appears, and I hardly notice it. But in this in between season I watch in awe and delight as its first rays tinge the mountains with pink and the skyline with gold. I sit and relish its beauty. It is as though God’s glory is born afresh into each new day yet it is only at this time of the year that I am fully aware of it.
The light of God comes into the world each day too and often we hardly notice it. We are distracted by the busyness of the day, or deluged by its anxieties and its burdens. Sometimes the day is already fully formed before we wake up and we feel the glory of new birth has passed before we were aware of it. Then the season changes and the breathtaking beauty of God bursts upon us. We savour it, delight in it and allow it to take residence in our souls, at least for a short season.
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Time to Reflect:
Make yourself comfortable. Read through the prayer and look at the sunrise image for a couple of minutes. Now sit with your eyes closed allowing your inner eye to visualize a beautiful sunrise that illuminated your world with the glory of God. Savour it for a few minutes breathing in and out slowly. Relax, sit quietly and allow God to speak to you.
What is your response: What season are you in at the present time? Are you waking each morning to the glory of God shining in the world around you? If not is there something you think you could do that would enable you to become more aware of God’s glory and beauty?
Now remind yourself of the last time you felt the glory of God engulf you like the early morning glow of a new day. Sit in silence in the glow of that memory until you hear the still small voice of God speak to you.
What is your response: What is God saying to you? How do you invite that glowing presence of God into the depths of your heart?
Read through the prayer again and and sit with your eyes closed again. This time think of your friends and neighbours. Is there someone who comes to mind who you feel really needs to see the glory of God revealed in a fresh new way?
What is your response. Allow the image of that person to flood your mind and sit in silence allowing God to speak to you. Is there something God is prompting you to do that could help that person experience the glow of God’s presence?
Now read through the prayer again, allowing the peace of God to wash over you and settle into the innermost recesses of your soul. Imagine the glow of God’s glory growing within you and within your neighbours until it shines brightly like the midday sun. Pray for God’s glory to be revealed in new ways in all your lives.
Suggested Music:
I am including two music clips today – one a classical rendition of “Arise, shine for you light has come” performed at Messiah College, and the other a catchy Caribbean melody – very different but both very appropriate for today’s meditation.
I thought that some of you would appreciate an update from Mustard Seed Associates We are racing toward Advent, Christmas and the New Year, leaning forward towards an exciting season with much happening but tight deadlines.
Leaning Into the New Advent/Christmas Resource
Kristin King Carroccino designing the cover art for Journey Toward Home: Soul Travel For Advent Through Epiphany.
After months of work, Kristin King Carroccino has drawn together our new book, A Journey Toward Home: Soul Travel For Advent Through Epiphany. The pre-publication copies have been sent and the endorsements are flowing in:
Michael Frost author of Incarnate: The Body of Christ in an Age of Disengagement and professor at Morling College in Sydney, Australia commented:
Wow! What a beautiful resource. I’d love to get our community to use it this summer. Congrats on a superb guide. He goes on to say: This guide is sustenance for the soul. For those wanting to redeem their experience of Christmas from the soulless rush of commercialism so much a part of our modern-day festivities, A Journey Toward Home is a rich and nourishing resource that will bring the seasons of Advent through Epiphany alive to you again. Simply beautiful.
A Journey Toward Home should be available for you to pre-order October 22nd. We hope that, like Michael, you will consider using it with your friends and community this Advent season.
Leaning Into the New with Our E-course
On Monday evening I met with creativity consultant Ryan Marsh to put together the final touches on the first few modules of our e-course Reimagining How We Pray. I am delighted at what is coming together. Videoing will start October 25th and we expect the first two modules to be available for viewing November 15th. Each module will consist of a 2-3 minute prayer presentation; an 8-10 minute presentation and a 5 minute creativity exercise. Handouts and an opportunity for interaction will be included.
Leaning Into New Seasons on the Web
Godspace, with its emphasis on sustainable faith, continues to flourish and is increasingly known as a go to place for resources and reflections. Meditation Monday is a new venture that is attracting much attention and the ongoing reflections on spiritual direction like this recent one by Kathy Escobar, are rich and varied.
The MSA blog, focusing more on sustainable life, is also flourishing. Recent articles include:
The Sharing Neighbourhood, by Andy Wade.- Colleges Got 12 Times More Expensive In One Generation, by Tom Sine.
Tom Sine is also leaning into new involvement with social media as he prepares to launch a new book, Join the Change Making Celebration, next year with Cascade Books. Encourage him by following him on twitter, and Facebook. And while you are at it you might also like to follow Mustard Seed Associates and Christine Sine as well, or like our Facebook pages: Light for the Journey for daily prayers, or Mustard Seed Associates for MSA updates, interesting articles and blog posts.
Leaning Into Our Upcoming Events
There is still time to join us for these upcoming events at the Mustard Seed House:
October 18th Andy Wade will facilitate a Justice At the Table seminar.- November 15th I will facilitate a contemplative retreat day: Stop the Madness – Return to Our Senses for Advent. We once again invite you to prepare for Advent and Christmas by refocusing your life on what really matters.
- Save the Date: Our 2015 Celtic Retreat will be held August 8-10th on Camano Island. Plan ahead, and if you don’t like the idea of camping, check out Cama Beach cabins, which must be booked at least 9 months in advance, or Camano Island Inn.
Leaning Into Very Full Plates
Our plates are full to overflowing with new and exciting ventures that we invite you to join. There are many opportunities for our associates to collaborate in our projects and we invite you to participate. Partnering with MSA is a mutually collaborative venture that strengthens all of us in our faith as we grapple together to explore more of God’s purposes for our lives. Consider an internship for a week, a month or a year, or volunteer to help with an event or programme. Our summer intern Cory Adam Baker commented: My imagination has been sparked to a more creative vision of what God’s mission in the world is and can be. (Read his entire report here).
Leaning Into Sustainable Faith and Sustainable Life for the Future.
Together we are planting mustard seeds that help grow the kingdom of God. Thank you for your support and prayers as we move into this busy season.
Blessings,
Christine Sine
Executive Director Mustard Seed Associates
This post is out of date. Please see our updated version here.
Halloween is still a few weeks away, but by the Halloween costumes, candy and gruesome house decorations appearing, and the horror movies ready to launch, I would say it is very much on peoples’ minds here in the US. So it is time to think about what you are going to do. Now I am not an advocate for Halloween. When I grew up in Australia, it was not really celebrated and it always seems weird to me that Christians celebrate it as much as non-Christians, but here in America, it is such a part of the culture that we really need to think about creative faith-based ways to celebrate.
I am not going to get into the theology here. Some Christians see this celebration as evil and like to stay home with their lights off. Others feel we should participate in ways that engage and redeem the culture. I am of that persuasion and so thought that you might like some resources to help you too:
Verge Network has a useful article Twelve Simple Ways to Be Missional this Halloween.
Another helpful article from Grace to You: Christians and Halloween. It includes some historical perspectives as well as some suggestions for alternative celebrations like harvest or Reformation festivals. They also point out that there are some not so good alternatives like Hell house evangelism. I particularly love the idea of taking acts of mercy out into the community and “treating” needy families with food baskets, gift cards, and the gospel message.
One alternative is to hold an All Saints Party. Rather than celebrating Halloween celebrate All Saints Day on November 1st. Have kids dress up as their favourite person or saint. Finding Truth in Halloween is a good article to start with. It has some great ideas for All Saints/Halloween party with downloadable coloring pages for kids.
This is a great alternative way to share stories (maybe of the saints that have most influenced you life), decorate pumpkins if you must but also consider some alternatives like decorating window panes with non toxic paints or making Fall/harvest decorations. This article from Christianity Today is a thoughtful approach. You may also like to look at: Should Christians Celebrate Halloween and Should Christians Celebrate Halloween (yes, 2 different articles with the same name) which are good articles about this.
One of my favourite ideas is Reverse Trick or Treating: The goal is to publicize the fact that most chocolate sold in the US is tainted by child slavery and exploitative conditions for adult workers. Fair trade eliminates child labour and ensures healthy working conditions with a living wage for workers.
Thousands of groups of Trick-or-Treaters in the United States and Canada will unite to help:
- END poverty among cocoa farmers
- END forced/abusive child labor in the cocoa industry
- PROTECT the environment
- PROMOTE Fair Trade
How? By distributing Fair Trade chocolate to adults, attached to a card explaining these problems in the cocoa industry and how Fair Trade presents a solution. You can learn more about this initiative here.
My growing concern for just working conditions for children makes me a strong advocate for this. I think it is a wonderful way to raise awareness of these issues and show consistency for our values.
I love this little video that some reverse trick or treaters put together a couple of years ago – not sure if they were part of the Fair Trade movement though.
Green America also posted an interesting article a couple of years ago that is worth a read. It highlights some of the concerns about the toxicity of paint and waste of materials. Here are some of their thoughts and suggestions:
- Face paint: A 2009 study by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics found that 10 out of 10 children’s face paints tested contained at least trace levels of lead. This article provides some DIY alternatives.
- The Candy Problem: In 2017, 41 million kids in the U.S. went trick or treating. Last year Americans spent something like $2.6 billion on Halloween candy. No wonder one out of three children in America are overweight and many will develop diabetes. Consider making your own healthy treats, giving out non-food items like polished stones, temporary tattoos, or friendship bracelets.
- Swap costumes: Millions of costumes are purchased in the U.S. each year. Consider holding a pre-Halloween party to swap, mend, make or borrow costumes from your friends.
- Organize a Community or Neighbourhood Event. Green Halloween started in Seattle but grew into a national phenomenon with community events at more than 50 locations. You might want to join in the fun and get to know some of your neighbours.
What to do with the pumpkins though? Make the most of them. Kids and adults alike love carving and decorating pumpkins, but I hate to watch them slowly rotting on the porch. I grew up with pumpkin as a main part of my diet. It is great in soups, pies and roasted as a vegetable. Or as pumpkin bread or muffins. You can also save the seeds and toast them in the oven with a little salt. Here are links to some of my favourite recipes:
Pumpkin Soup Caribbean Style with Black Beans
Pumpkin Bread: This is a great recipe – and as it says, it is adaptable.
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins: I chose this recipe because it tells you how to make pumpkin puree. I would use less sugar and whole wheat flour however.
Gluten Free, Grain Free Chocolate Chip Muffins: I have not tried this recipe but it looks interesting – uses almond butter and honey instead of sugar.
Gluten Free Pumpkin Oatmeal Anytime Squares: Again, I have not tried these but they look very interesting.
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