It’s a cool, overcast spring day here in Seattle with a little light rain, a welcome change after last week’s hot dry weather. Last week we planted 38 tomato plants around the house. Most went into our tomato enclosure, built specifically to keep them safe from marauding dogs. (We now have three in our community). However several more snuck into pots. I just couldn’t stop planting. One of the problems with starting from seed is that I always end up with more plants than we know what to do with. This year I have several tumbler tomatoes, specifically designed for hanging baskets. The challenge will be keeping them well watered but I always love the challenge of trying something new.
This year is shaping up to be a time of reconnection, celebration and rich hospitality with friends and family, something that both Tom and I enjoy. For that reason, in my Meditation Monday: Radical Hospitality In Psalm 23. I revisit the Biblical concept of hospitality, and will continue to do so over the next couple of months. As I said in yesterday’s post: “There is no better place to learn to listen, not to the answers in our own heads but to the unsettling questions others ask, than when sitting around the table sharing a meal.” Hospitality is a recurring theme for us on Godspace and I love the enriching posts that continue to be contributed. Many of them stretch my understanding of the wonder of God’s rich hospitality and broaden my perspectives of of what it means to be hospitable. I hope you will check out our many resources on hospitality and allow your own perceptions to be enlarged.
This last week, Lilly Lewin’s post on Ascension Day has some beautiful images and reflection on blessing. Barbie Perks reflects on the spirituality of potholes in her post Cleaning the Gutters. Make sure you watch the very entertaining video on Pothole Golf at the end. June Friesen’s post International Day of Families is also a must read.
For those that wonder where we find all these international and national celebrations that we intersperse with events on the liturgical calendar, check out International Celebration dates, or this National Days of Observance for the U.S.. I must confess I got quite distracted a few days ago looking through this list. Then I found another list for the UK and another for Australia. I had to chuckle over 2 very important observances on the Australian calendar – the Adelaide cup and the Melbourne cup – horse races that are local holidays. Fun and gambling – two favourite Australian pastimes. For New Zealand check out this list, for South Africa and for Canada. Looks as though we all have lots to celebrate. Apologies if I left your country out.
Sunday, May 28th, we celebrate Pentecost, one celebration that always challenges me to be creative. I love the idea of a Tongues of Fire Chili Cookout and Pentecost Kites that I talk about in the post Let’s Get Creative for Pentecost. There are lots of other interesting posts and resources available through our resource page. Pentecost celebrates the birth of the church and the coming of the Holy Spirit filling Jesus’ disciples with the power to go out and change the world. We also celebrate the incredible diversity of the body of Christ, which we catch a glimpse of as the spirit falls and suddenly everyone is able to understand each other – not all speaking the same language but able to understand each other in their own languages. Acts 2:10-11. Pentecost is traditionally the time that many churches pray for the peace of our world in which at times there seems to be so little cross cultural understanding. Diane Woodrow’s post for World Cultural Diversity Day has a pentecostal flavour to it. As she says: We’re not going to have to conform to a “holy homogeneous huddle” but will be able to enjoy our different hues, words, styles, etc in heaven.
The following Sunday is Trinity Sunday, when we celebrate the triune nature of God. This theme was particularly important for Celtic Christians who embraced the Trinity as a family, and each human family unit (be it family, clan or tribe) was seen as an icon of the Trinity. Many of the Celtic prayers reflect this trinitarian nature.
Last year you may remember, I walked around my garden photographing all the red flowers, to give me an extra boost of pentecostal fire. I then looked for tripartite flowers and leaves as symbols of the Trinity. I documented this in last year’s post Celebrating the Trinity Using Flowers.
Let me end with this prayer written as I contemplated the Holy Spirit breathed into us by Jesus (Jn 20:22)
Spirit of God may we breathe in and hold your love within us
May we breathe out and share it with the world
Spirit of God may we breathe in and hold your peace within us
May we breathe out and share it with the world
Spirit of God may we breathe in and hold your life within us
May we breathe out and share it with the world.
Many blessings
Pentecost ResourcesThese are our Pentecost and Ordinary Time resources – a selection of writings, prayers, ideas, practices and liturgies for celebrating Pentecost and beyond.
By Megan Bollen
In times of global overwhelm or solastalgia, the simple act of picking up trash can offer us hope, and an opportunity to connect to both The Divine and our feminine nature.
For me, local river cleanups were my first exposure to intentionally picking up trash. Gathering with others around the shared desire to tend to the Earth was inspiring. Yet, it was the experience of entering a tarnished, beloved space and moving through it as a wave of healing, that piqued my spiritual attention. It was a short leap from those experiences to realize any walk with others or alone, could be an opportunity to pick up trash.
As I experimented in spontaneous, solo trash pick ups, I developed a growing awareness and appreciation for the ways it nourished my soul. As a practice, I find it similar to gardening in how it keeps my hands busy doing “good work”, while my heart can focus on prayer. It helps me get out of my head space and into my body, aligning ecological beliefs and longings with physical practice.
Anytime we interact with Earth in a tender and attentive way, we are connecting to The Divine. We see the beauty of our living planet through a necessary lens of empathy, responsibility and awe. Picking up trash as an eco-spiritual practice allows us to experience this connection as we work.
It also nurtures us in offering a chance to actively center on, and empower, our feminine nature. This is a welcome gift when we might feel separated from this part of ourselves or in need of a heightened connection to it. The feminine nature to nourish, sustain and protect life is embodied in the act of picking up trash for every human, regardless of gender identity. Its task consists of seeking out and removing environmental harm and fostering an environment where animals, plants, and humans can thrive. Being a part of this healing and restoration, gives each of us a path to return to our feminine nature.
Another way picking up trash offers spiritual nourishment is in its ability to foster hope. In a time when we struggle to see the ways our individual choices impact the collective whole, picking up trash offers a unique opportunity to see immediate results from our efforts. This satisfaction can be powerful fuel for sustaining and growing hope.
In states of overwhelm and wondering where or how to start; picking up trash can be an act of resistance to apathy. For me, it has become something I can literally reach for in times of environmental and spiritual discouragement.
In this way, picking up trash as an eco-spiritual practice, challenges my spirit to press into what our Sikh brothers and sisters call Chardhi Kala, or relentless optimism. It is difficult to see trash return again and again, but that doesn’t stop us from picking it up. We believe and hope for a better future, and we show it in our actions.
Picking up trash can of course still be just, “picking up trash”. And that alone is worthwhile. Yet, I can no longer unsee the opportunity it holds to be more for us, if, and when we want it to be.
In Practice: Go out and pick up trash somewhere important to you. While you do the work, offer prayers for human and environmental reconciliation, prayers for restoration of our polluted waterways, prayers for revitalization of plant and animal kingdoms, and prayers for bold resistance to mindsets, products, and actions that impede the thriving of life around us.
Megan Bollen is a writer and social science instructor in Milwaukee, WI. She holds an M.A. from the University of Colorado Boulder and enjoys playing outside in all kinds of weather. Some of her favorite things to do are biking with her husband and two young children, drinking tea in the woods, and exploring new places.
Celtic Prayer Cards include 10 prayers inspired by ancient Celtic saints like Patrick or contemporary Celtic writers like John O’Donohue. A short reflection on the back of each card will introduce you to the Celtic Christian tradition, along with prayers by Christine Sine and beautiful imagery crafted by Hilary Horn. Celtic Prayer Cards can be used year-round or incorporated into various holidays. Available in a single set of 10 cards, three sets, or to download.
by Christine Sine.
As summer approaches we gear up for a season of hospitality. Friends from Oregon and Australia have already visited and next week family from the East Coast will come to stay. Hospitality is the essence of summer for me. And it is not just the people we interact with that I am talking about. The wild creation of God embraces me with the hospitality of beauty and abundance, beckoning me to come and stay and enjoy all that God provides. What a good time to revisit the Biblical gift of hospitality, so central to the life of ancient Palestine.
Hospitality in ancient Palestine was more than a courtesy extended to friends and travellers. It was the means that villages used to determine if strangers were friends or enemies, a threat or an asset to the community. Extending hospitality by providing food, water and shelter was a way to temporarily adopt strangers into the community and hopefully convert a potential threat into a friendly alliance. Sometimes oil was poured over the head of the stranger as a sign of welcome.
It is probable that it was these customs that David referred to in Psalm 23:
You prepare a feast for me
in the presence of my enemies.
You honor me by anointing my head with oil.
My cup overflows with blessings. (Psalm 23:5)
In this verse David is most likely not talking about God preparing a banquet for us to eat while our enemies sit around with empty stomaches drooling over the lavish food we are enjoying. This is a verse that speaks of the ancient practice of hospitality, an invitation to sit down and enjoy a meal with strangers and those we perceive as a threat, an encouragement to seek for understanding and reconciliation rather than division and hatred.
What an important message for today. We live in a world of great division where there is much necessity for all of us to sit down over a meal with those we disagree with and see as a threat. As you think about this what comes to mind? What situations are you currently facing that might be defused by sitting around the table during the summer and sharing a meal? Where have you seen God prepare a feast that has brought enemies together and overcome fears and disagreements? How could you prepare a meal “in the presence of your enemies” and offer open hospitality to those you disagree with?
In Jesus’ day this kind of hospitality was considered more than a commandment. It was a sacred obligation, filled with the joy of serving both others and God. Those that did not extend hospitality to orphans,widows and the homeless could be rejected. Like early monastics and Celtic Christians, Jews believed that sometimes in welcoming strangers they welcomed angels into their midst.
Jesus repeatedly demonstrated his joy in offering hospitality as he fed the crowds, sat down with tax collectors and shared a passover meal with his disciples. Even after his death he came back to share meals as a way to communicate his message of salvation and hope.
As I thought about this today, the picture that came to me was of Jesus sitting and eating that last meal with Judas. Then I saw him get down and wash Judas’s feet. He must have realized that Judas was about to betray him, but he still reached out in embrace not division. I wonder if he hoped that through this gracious act of hospitality towards him Judas would change his mind.
At communion each week our priest says “All are welcome at the table” yet the welcome of God begins long before the institution of communion at the last supper. Radical hospitality is at the heart of God’s creation. Every time I go out into the garden and harvest the abundance of God’s provision, or walk through the neighborhood enjoying the beauty of God’s world I am aware of the radical hospitality of a God who comes to welcome us all home to the kingdom banquet.
Many feel surrounded by enemies in the current political climate. How do we respond in these hard times? This is not a time for complacency but for commitment, not for hate but for love, not to close doors but to open them, not for violence but for peace, not to wound but to heal, not to bring division but to inspire reconciliation.
There is no better place to learn to listen, not to the answers in our own heads but to the unsettling questions others are asking, than when sitting around the table sharing a meal. And there is no better time of year to take Jesus’ radical call to hospitality seriously and reach out with love not hate, seeking to build bridges not walls, to embrace compassion not conflict. Summer, with its more relaxed pace, provides time and space to listen to the voice of God more intently. It is in the place of listening that change can begin for all of us.
As we move towards summer and your desire to be hospitable to friends and family, think about the people you disagree with, want to exclude or think are about to betray you. How could you reach out with radical hospitality to them in this season? Sit with your eyes closed and listen to this version of Psalm 23. What names come to mind? Perhaps it is someone like Mary, an unwed mother who could have been thrown out by her family. Or someone like the lepers Jesus healed, despised by the society around them yet welcomed by the son of God. Or the Roman soldier whose servant Jesus healed, foreigners like immigrants, refugees and those of other religions. What are the first steps you need to make to reach out in a spirit of hospitality and reconciliation? How could you embrace the radical journey of hospitality
Closing Prayer
Lord help us to listen deeply not to the answers in our own heads but to the questions others ask. Lord help us to provide environments where others can relax, express themselves and learn to listen too. We know that listening is where change begins and we all need to change. May we learn to listen deeply and see our world transformed.
(NOTE: Today’s post is adapted from a previous 2016 post)
Looking for hospitality inspiration? We have an entire resource page dedicated to hospitality. Find recipes and reflections on numerous hospitality topics, including Celtic hospitality, prayers, and liturgies. Click on Hospitality for more!
Interestingly in planning for this something else popped up and I wrote a piece around King Charles’ coronation to do with cultural diversity. As a good detective says “there’s no such thing as coincidences” and my QEC practitioner is always saying how things come up for a reason that we need to explore.
So what does come to mind when we talk about “cultural diversity”? What picture/image comes to mind? And what does cultural diversity look like?
Meaning according to https://www.dictionary.com/
- the cultural variety and cultural differences that exist in the world, a society, or an institution: Dying languages and urbanization are threats to cultural diversity.
- the inclusion of diverse people in a group or organization: to embrace cultural diversity in the workplace.
The Modern Cockney Festival looks at how the culture of Cockneys, which was originally a word used for those born within the sound of Bow Bells in London, has morphed and changed and come to embrace all those who feel they can relate to some of the cockney traditions. There are other events like this that are for people who feel they relate to those traditions, cultures or similar, that at one time certain races, genders or creeds may not have.
There are differences in cultures that we need to recognise, honour and celebrate and I believe we are getting better and better are recognising the big differences, but what about the more subtle ones?
I live in North Wales and when we moved here we did think that the only differences were between Welsh and English, but the longer we’ve lived here and the more people we have come to know we have found that there are much more subtleties within the land than we originally envisaged. Many of which can get lost within the bigger picture. We’ve had both Anglican church parish boundaries and electoral boundaries changed recently due to population density. But there is a major cultural difference between those who live on the coast and those who live in hills, those who live nearer the English border and those who live on the Western reaches, those who live in the large towns and those who live in isolated villages. Within a population of just over three million people there is a great range of diversities.
I lived in Belfast in 1996-7 which gave me a feel there for the cultural diversity of the city and the surrounding countryside. I got to know people who were Protestant and Catholic, Unionist and Loyalist, who had moved to the city from a village where everyone knew each other and those who lived in the city but also knew each other. Belfast in the mid 1990s was like no city I’ve ever lived in before. I cannot comment about the rest of Northern Ireland because I never made it over to Londonderry or into the hinterland. The population of Northern Ireland is less than two million and yet so diverse.
Having lived in both these places I have seen how especially government or media do not honour the diversity of these nations but make judgement calls about what they need as a whole, what they want as a whole, and even what these people think as a whole. There is no space for different wants and needs.
I know too that I am guilty of this with Native American tribes, with people who live in India, Asia, and all those myriad of countries I have never visited and never had the time to really get to know. Yet Revelation 7:9 says
After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from EVERY nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands
I think the reason the bible says “multitude” is because then no one can give an exact figure. I think this is because God understands and knows each different group of people however big or small, however diverse, and is going to make sure they are fully represented in heaven.
Note the word EVERY in there. Not most, not a few of, not even the majority, but EVERY nation, tribe, people and language will be there whether here on earth they have been recognised at all.
I believe that we need to stop lumping people into easier to handle homogeneous groups believing we know what they want or need or think but we all need to start listening to, talking to and really finding out how we can all fit together but still stay cultural diverse.
I think we also all need to be true to our own cultural diversity and who we fit with. I’m working with people who are between 15 and 40 years younger than me. Even those who are 15 years younger than me are of a different generation, have different values, different tastes, remember different music and TV programs. I have to accept that even though I am friends with them I also have a different culture that I relate to and fit comfortably into.
I do think too often we try to find a homogeneous whole that we can fit into instead of enjoying the over laps. There is nothing to be afraid of in being cultural different to someone whether they are in our street, town, workplace, country, or that we never meet at all. God says “EVERY nation, tribe, people and language” will be standing shoulder to shoulder praising. We’re not going to have to conform to a “holy homogeneous huddle” but will be able to enjoy our different hues, words, styles, etc in heaven. Maybe we could start doing it now. But also realise how much overlap there is.
How many cultural groups do you belong to?
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Yesterday was the Feast of Ascension on the Church Year Calendar. This event in the life of Jesus has been celebrated since the 4th century but many of us haven’t ever given it much thought. You can read about it in Acts 1, but this year’s lectionary finds us in the gospel of Luke and this account is much shorter.
He said to them, “This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms.”
Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. 46 He told them, “This is what is written: The Messiah will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, 47 and repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. 48 You are witnesses of these things. 49 I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”
The Ascension of Jesus
50 When he had led them out to the vicinity of Bethany, he lifted up his hands and blessed them. While he was blessing them, he left them and was taken up into heaven. Then they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy. And they stayed continually at the temple, praising God.LUKE 24: 44-53
WHAT ABOUT BLESSING?
I had never noticed the verse “He lifted up his hands and BLESSED them.” The last thing Jesus did before he physically left the planet was to BLESS his followers. He didn’t give them a big long TO-DO list, or a set of rules they should remember, but rather he gave them a blessing!
Eric Gill 1882 1940
What do you think the blessing was that Jesus gave his disciples as he ascended?
Think about what the word “Blessing” means to you. What blessing do you need from Jesus? Want do you need/want to hear from Jesus?
BLESSING. noun
noun: blessing; plural noun: blessings
God’s favor and protection.
a prayer asking for God’s favor and protection.
”a priest gave a blessing as the ship was launched”
a special favor, mercy, or benefit
Check out the different Bible verses about blessing HERE.
Look at the quote below, what do you think? How does it feel to participate in God’s delight?
BLESSING meta carlson
I met Meta through an online book study I did last fall. She is a mom, pastor and author who lives in Minneapolis. She writes wonderful books of blessings and poetry you can find on her website
ascension by giotto
You can discover more art to pray with in a slide show below created for our Thinplace gathering this week by Teri Valente.
ART SLIDE SHOW for The Ascension created by Teri Valente
Maybe like me, you could use some blessing today. I didn’t grow up in a family that was about blessing. We had loads of material blessings but the honor and favor that Jesus bestows is not something that happened to us as kids. I need to be reminded that Jesus is all about BLESSING ME AND YOU!
“A blessing evokes a privileged intimacy. It touches that membrane where the human heart cries out to its divine ground. …A blessing is not a sentiment or a question; it is a gracious invocation where the human heart pleads with the divine heart.” John O’Donohue
Here are some words of Blessing for YOU! Which word of Blessing pops out/stands out to you that you need from Jesus now? Write it down and carry it with you today!
PEACE
INVITED TO REST
HONORED
HEIR of God
ACCEPTED
WELL PLEASED
FORGIVEN
CHOSEN
FILLED With JOY
DELIVERED
FILLED
HEALED
FRIENDSHIP /FRIEND of God
FILLED With HOPE
FREEDOM…You are set free
SATISFIED WITH GOOD THINGS
LOVED UNCONDITIONALLY
You might choose to copy the list and cut out each word/phrase, put the words in a basket and choose one each week or every couple of days to RECEIVE from God and carry with you!
How would your life be different if you lived in the BLESSING of GOD rather than in self criticism or comparison?
Who in your life needs to receive BLESSING? How can you help bless them in the days ahead?
I am reminded of the song that helped me a lot during COVID times …. May we all choose to receive the Lord’s BLESSING this week and pass it along to others! AMEN
©lillylewin and freerangeworship.com repost from last year.
By Barbie Perks
On my walk yesterday I noticed the gutters in the road, how full of leaves and grass cuttings they
were, how much of the mole heaps end up being washed into them, and considered how, over time,
those deposits compost and become fertile spots for seeds to germinate and grow. If those gutters
are not regularly swept and cleaned, the grasses and weeds grow stronger, and their roots begin to
crack through the cement/tar edges of the road. Come the rains, the power of water washes those
edges away and potholes form. There are times when those potholes become so big, traffic health is
threatened.
I was gently reminded that there are times in our lives when our hearts collect hurt. Whether the
hurt comes because of words spoken to us or by us, spoken in jest, disparagement, scornfully,
sarcastically, or in anger; or whether it is deposited by the negligent, or intentional actions of
another person or persons. If the hurt is not regularly cleaned away it festers, it will compost into
bitterness, unforgiveness, isolation and withdrawal. These seeds grow, tended by the storms of life,
and eventually we find that we are surrounded by potholes that threaten our mental, emotional,
and spiritual lives. Our joy in life drains away and any energy we have is spent in navigating our way
around the ever-growing holes.
Scripture speaks about hearts in many ways, so I think our heart-health is important to God. We can
ask God “search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if
there is any offensive way in me and lead me in the way everlasting” (Ps 139:23-24), “Test me O
Lord, and try me, examine my heart and my mind” (Ps 26:2).
When God reveals what we need to bring to light from out of the dark depths of our heart, “For God
who said, ‘let light shine out of darkness’, made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the
knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.” (2 Cor 4:6), then “we can approach the throne
of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of
need.” (Heb 4:16). When we pray about those hurts, God will help us to clean them out of our
hearts, and the result will be that peace that Jesus promised – “Peace I leave with you; my peace I
give to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled.” (John 14:27)
May the God who created us, who redeemed us, who loves us, who knows us so intimately, bring us
to that point of surrender, that insight into what is troubling us, enable us to lay it down before him,
and move forward in peace.
Never heard of pothole golf? Take a look here:
No matter the time of year, it’s important to pause and take time to reset and restore. An excellent way to do that? Take a personal retreat. Building a retreat into the rhythm of your life is a spiritual practice often lost in our helter-skelter, busyness-is-next-to-godliness world. This booklet is based on the most popular posts about spiritual retreats published on Godspacelight.com over the last few years and provides resources for taking a spiritual retreat either on your own or with a friend or spouse. Check it out in our shop!
By Karen Wilk
Earth shalom,
The call of this poem,
While glaciers melt
And ocean reefs swelt,
Chemicals cloud the atmosphere
And plastics pollute, far and near
God’s precious creatures going extinct
And all of it, all of us, intricately linked…
Yet no confession, no lament,
No remorse, no clothing rent
Deaf to the cry, the lament of the wild
Deaf to the sound
Of anxious parent, vulnerable child
What will be left? When will we stop?
On a collision course but does anyone care?
The forest, the garden, all laid bare
Because of us, the land moans (Hosea 4)
Wasting away, drying up, creation groans (Romans 8)
The beasts of the field, birds of the air, fish in the sea
So far from shalom the way it should be
no acknowledgment of holy ground
The sacredness of all of life, all around…
Yet yeast still grows in kneaded dough
And mustard seeds even in rocky ground can grow
When will we hear? How will we go…
Not just with platitudes
But with reformed actions and attitudes
Justice, passion, respect and gratitudes
Creator has named us stewards, made to till and to tend
Image-bearers, who also on earth do depend
How will we once more all creation, befriend?
Letting go, giving up our over- consumption,
Accepting and embracing the need for disruption
To our systems, our politics, economics, corruption
Finding our way back to harmony, equity, love’s eruption.
Shalom in our hearts, our heads and our hands
Shalom for all creatures, all waters and lands
Shalom with Creator, creation invitation, participation spans
The whole universe, all life, can we see it? -In Eternity, she stands.
Jeremiah 14:2
“Judah mourns, her cities languish; they wail for the land, and a cry goes up from Jerusalem.
Hosea 4:1-3
1 Hear the word of the Lord, O people of Israel,
for the Lord has an indictment against the inhabitants of the land.
There is no faithfulness or loyalty
and no knowledge of God in the land.
2 Swearing, lying, and murder,
and stealing and adultery break out;
bloodshed follows bloodshed.
3 Therefore the land mourns,
and all who live in it languish;
together with the wild animals
and the birds of the air,
even the fish of the sea are perishing.
Romans 8: 22a We know that the whole creation has been groaning…
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