From Trees in Winter to Advent
"People are there for us to love, like trees in winter." This quote from Brother Lawrence via Anne Lamott reminds us that God desires us to love one another especially when the one we love is difficult to love. "...like trees in winter" reminds us that we don't love one another for what we can get nor do we love one another because it is fruitful, effective or rewarding. We just love, because.
The image of trees in winter has special value today with the winter blast that has over taken us the last two days. The cold weather and icy streets slow us down and make us deliberate. We move with more care as we walk or as we drive and we pay greater attention to our surroundings. The snow reminds us of the idyllic Christmas and although I doubt any of it will be around when Christmas actually gets here it is nice to see the white stuff on the ground when Christmas music is on the radio. All of this is great preparation for Advent.
Like tree's in winter we are bare and fruitless and waiting for new life, growth and deliverance. Like the countryside covered with ice and snow and seemingly devoid of life we are waiting for warmth, relief and comfort. Like God's people before Christ's arrival we get to anticipate his arrival like they did. But rather than enter into the exact same scenario that they were in we get to participate in a accelerated reenactment of the drama of Christ's first arrival and the inauguration of his Kingdom.
In the midst of winter's darkness and our unfruitfulness we can anticipate the arrival of our Hope.
This weekend for Advent we celebrate the Night of Hope.
Advent is here!
This coming Saturday marks the first weekend of Advent and the beginning of the Church Year. To prepare for this weekend you can meditate upon these verses:
Isaiah 9:2"The people walking in darknesshave seen a great light;
on those living in the land of deep darknessa light has dawned."
John 8:12"When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”John 1:1-5"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it."The next four weeks our worship times will be a bit different as we focus upon the coming of Christ as a child, as a deliverer and as a king. This week we celebrate the
Night of Hope.
Two Special Prayer Opportunities
There are two very special on-going prayer opportunities that I want to share with you. The first is an invitation to pray on Saturday afternoons prior to our worship gathering. The prayer team meets in the first room on the left upon entering the Foundry. Look for Paul Riley or Sarah Balocca and they will give you directions. This is a good time to pray for our worship time for the evening and for various needs within our body.
The second opportunity is taking place on Tuesday nights at the home of John and Marci Laffen. "We meet at 8:15 p.m., after the kids are in bed, on Tuesday's, and meet for about an hour. We share prayer requests before, share Scripture during prayer, and seek the Lord through adoration, confession, thanksgiving, and supplication." This is a special experience of prayer and worship and a great time of sharing together. This prayer time might move to Thursday's if that is more convenient for all involved.
In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."
Special Note From Brad & Michel
Dearest Brothers & Sisters in Christ, our family at Wheatland Mission,
Thank you all so very much for your prayers and concerns for Michel and I as we continue through 2006 wondering if our warranties have run out! We know better but we certainly do thank God for all the love and support from our church family and we wanted to say thank you also. We will do so personally but wanted to get something out to express our gratitude and love for each and every one of you! We are truly blessed. We look forward to seeing you all next Saturday Dec. 2nd mostly because it's the beginning of Advent but also to be together with you all as we worship our Heavenly Father and focus on the Greatest Gift ever, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. See you then, looking forward to gathering together!
brad & michel moser
Giving Projects @ Wheatland
Greetings Friends!
With the holidays upon us it is important for us to think about tangible ways we can bless people. Our faith is practical, so let's not miss out on opportunities to meet the practical needs of people we know and even those we don't.
There are two projects that we are working on in the next two weeks that do just this. The first one you are already familiar with: Shoeboxes filled with gifts and supplies for Haitian children. The second one is a family we are adopting from Youthville. This is a special thing for us to do because we have several members of our little community who are employees of Youthville.
We are on a bit of a hurry in getting this family cared for so let's pull together and make it happen. Below are some gift ideas for the family that come from the caseworker that knows them best. We want to be able to deliver all of this to them by the 11th so feel free to begin bringing these items ASAP.
Todd Lewis has been key in helping us with this so if you have questions feel free to give him a call at: 761-1555. Thanks to you Todd for helping us organize this.
Thanks to all of you,
Paul
Mother’s gift ideas:
Gas Gift Certificate
Wal-Mart Gift Certificate
Target Gift Certificate
Restaurant Gift Certificate
**I spoke with the case manager who works on this case and she said that the mother could definitely use these things, but she would also probably really like some different pampering items (she never buys any of these things for herself) like lotion, nice gloves, a coat, bath items, cozy socks or slippers. She has also recently gone back to nursing school and might appreciate notebooks, pens, decent brief case/school bag**
Child #1 Male 13yrs
Gift Ideas:
Clothes (32 pants, large shirts)
Movies/Music Gift Certificates
Restauant Gift Certificates
Child #2 Male 10yrs
Gift Ideas:
Sports Equipment
Clothes (10-12 pants and shirts)
Movies/Music Gift Certificates
Child #3 Male 7yrs
Gift Ideas:
Board Games
Movies/Music Gift Certificates
Superhero (specifically superman and spiderman)
Clothes (Size 7)
Child #4 Female 15yrs
Gift Ideas:
Teen Magazines (Teen People, hair style)
Jewelry, nail polish, purse, bath and body supplies
Movies/Music Gift Certificates
This Saturday Night...
...after our worship gathering, lets all go to Java Nation and:
Mmmm...
Turkey, Turkey, Turkey
Don't forget to enjoy our 1st Annual Turkey Dinner this Saturday. Invite your friends, bring some food and enjoy the time together.
We begin eating at
5:00. We will share in worship afterwards and then have dessert after that.
If your name begins with A-M please bring a side dish such as stuffing, potatoes, cranberries, relish, etc.
If your name begins with N-Z please bring a dessert.
(If you want to bring a dessert but are early in the alphabet trade with someone.)
Christmas Shoebox Money
Don't forget to bring some money for our Christmas Shoebox campaign. Michelle B. has created some shoebox receptacles to receive your donations for this special program. We aren't making the boxes ourselves but sending money, $15 per box, to Haiti and they will be prepared there.
Make your checks out to Wheatland and write:
shoebox in the memo line.
Thanks for giving to the ministry in Haiti!
Missional, ORGANIC, Holistic...
organic adj 1: being or relating to or derived from or having properties characteristic of living organisms 2: constitutional in the structure of something (especially your physical makeup) n : a fertilizer that is derived from animal or vegetable matter [syn: {organic fertilizer}]
A few weeks ago I began a new series of posts entitled
Three Good Words: Missional, Organic, Holistic. I want to continue with the second of these three words,
organic. Let me first begin by asking you what you think this word means as it relates to life in the church. There is no doubt that it has become something of a suburban buzzword. When I go to buy coffee I have a choice. I can buy the organically grown coffee or the coffee that was somehow grown without any organic means whatsoever. What!?
This little coffee illustration points out the fact that the word has lost some of its meaning and been infused with meaning that is dependent upon the context of the conversation. So, to begin our discussion let me ask:
If a church were to become "organic" what would that look like? (I have purposefully not given much content, other than the dictionary definition, to the question. Let's wrestle with this a bit.)
Turkey Dinner This Saturday!
This Saturday the Wheatland Mission will be celebrating a Thanksgiving meal together. The church will provide the turkeys (3 smoked and 2 roasted), drinks and table service. We do need you to bring something. For those of you whose last name starts with A - M we ask that you bring a side dish. For those whose last name is from N - Z we ask that you bring a dessert.
We will begin eating at 5:00 PM. Dinner will be first, followed by our worship time and culminating with dessert. See you there!
Meleagris gallopavo
True Colors: Reprise
Way to go Chloe! Thanks for contributing your part to the life of the Wheatland Mission!
Romans 12:1-3...for this Saturday
This Saturday we are going to continue our conversation from last week by looking at Romans 12:1-3. We are inching our way through the chapter. Here are some questions to ponder until we meet.
First, do you think that the word in v. 1 that is translated "bodies" could actually be referring to the different "bodies" or groups of Christians as much as our individual physical bodies and selves? (We introduced this idea last week.)
Second, how are Christians supposed to discern God's will? How do we that as a group?
Third, what is an example of "sober judgment?" Is this a reference to us thinking to highly of ourselves or too low?
A Christ Hymn
OUR attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:
Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
but made himself nothing,
taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
and became obedient to death—
even death on a cross!
Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
and gave him the name that is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
Many scholars believe that the above is an ancient hymn or chant which the early church used in their regular gatherings of worship. When Paul was speaking to the people in the church of Philippi he used these words, which may have been in common use in the Philippian's worship, as a reminder of how they were to order their lives and how they were to relate to one another.
By seeking Jesus' face in our interactions with one another we might see the real transformation in our personal lives that God desires. The example of Jesus' life and death and glorification are used as a model for our growth in relationship to one another. This short passage combines two vital pieces of the Christian life: good theology and good practice (Orthodoxy and Orthopraxy). In it we are reminded of the essential truth that Jesus was fully human yet fully God. At the same time, we are reminded that the consequence of this truth is to be transformed relationships between those people that God has redeemed.
The "Christ Hymn" ends with yet another important challenge to us which is worship. Every encounter with Jesus, every engagement that we have with theological endeavor or inquiry should have as its ultimate result acts of worship. If our theology doesn't lead to doxology we should investigate whether our theology is truly Christian or not.
At Wheatland I intend for us to make this "hymn" a regular part of our worship as it becomes a part of lives. With God's grace it will transform us, and our relationships with one another, from the inside out.
Oh Ted
Well, bloggers and pundits all over the place are commenting on the recent resignation of Ted Haggard, the pastor of New Life Church in Colorado Springs and the president of the National Association of Evangelicals. The accusations are astounding and numerous and, it appears, that some of them are true. At times like this I am motivated to pray the words from I Corinthians 13 that say:
"Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance." NLT The NIV says "always hopes"...always hopes that the worst isn't true.
But if it is true (and even if it isn't) we pray:
Kyrie Eleison, Lord Have Mercy.
The Faces of Jesus...with in our church
This weekend we are refocusing our theme,
"The Faces of Jesus" by looking at how we see Jesus at work within our own congregation. How do we see Jesus face in the midst of our interactions with one another and our shared life? To do this we will be reading from Romans 12 which is a wonderful source of wisdom for those who are seeing out how to live the life Jesus calls us to within the community of fellow Christians.
Let me encourage you to read the entire chapter before church this weekend and pay special attention to the first two verses.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY CALANA!!!
Many of you wished Ty a happy 26th. Be sure and wish Calana a belated 26th birthday too. Also, Miles Brown and our old friend Ross Townsend in Green Bay, celebrated birthdays yesterday too. (I don't know how old those guys are.)
"People are there for us to love, like trees in winter." This quote from Brother Lawrence via Anne Lamott reminds us that God desires us to love one another especially when the one we love is difficult to love. "...like trees in winter" reminds us that we don't love one another for what we can get nor do we love one another because it is fruitful, effective or rewarding. We just love, because. 
