so much more

you just have to start somewhere

2011-02-02T11:01:00.000-08:00

It's not that there is nothing to do, or no ideas to write about, or no tasks to be done. But that feeling of paralysis, wondering where to begin, what's most important can be like a gargantuan road block. I hear the chorus of "Going on a Bear Hunt," a child's book which I read often to the boys, "Uh Oh! ... can't go over it, can't go under it! Have to go through it!" So, through it I go! And like I've also been reminded, You just have to start somewhere. On my wall is a palindrome: "Simply begin; Begin simply." Having a cluttered mind makes any beginning more difficult than it has to be, usually ending in the feeling that I'm stuck, flat out, lying on my back, waiting for something to change. Into this, I hear this solid voice, young and tingling with hope and humour: "Get up and walk!" It's so simple! Or in some cases, before the garden flourishes, we hear, "Get out and dig!" Start somewhere!

got fruit?

2010-04-09T21:17:00.000-07:00

One of my favourite memories growing up on the family farm in Central Alberta was our tiny orchard. By "tiny," I mean three apple trees. Because of the relatively harsh climate, we needed to tend those three trees with a lot of tender, loving care. The first few years, they were just twigs and we weren't sure they'd ever grow apples. So, you can imagine how we celebrated when we ate the first apples from our trees! Every year, we'd prune and tend them, and every year, we'd get more fruit. Apple sauce, apple pies, apple jelly.... mmm. So much to be thankful for!

We're about to begin a sermon series on the fruit of the Spirit. You might be feeling like your orchard is pretty sparse, but God's promise is that he can cause growth in any life! Or you might be enjoying the wonderful harvest of a well-tended life, thanking God for allowing your life to be fruitful.

In any case, our prayer is that you'll notice his abundant presense in your life, expressed in the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.

So Much More

2010-02-02T21:07:00.000-08:00

I saw a book with this title once, a few years ago, and have not forgotten it. "So much more" sums up what I often feel after having had a conversation, or after preaching or teaching. In the moments of afterthought, I begin to articulate what I would say if I could say it again. And then I would add, "And still there is so much more..." Like Brother Lawrence wrote, God has infinite treasures to give us. And Paul wrote, God can and will do much more than we can even ask or imagine.
This is often what pulls me in. I wonder, what else is there to this moment? What am I being invited to notice? What do these words also say?
So, this is going to be about teasing out what is so much more than we first thought or heard, saw or felt.