breakfast on the beach

The disciples were overwhelmed, still trying to trust Jesus and understand their roles in the Kingdom. After a difficult time of fishing, Jesus was waiting for them on the beach with a simple breakfast and a chance to be together. That’s it. No huge burdens, cares or commissions. Just breakfast on the beach amongst friends and their Lord. It was a welcomed time of nourishment, respite, and fellowship. It was on the beach that Jesus intimately extended forgiveness to Peter and asked him to feed his sheep. Many of us are struggling with financial situations, hurting from broken relationships, grieving for loved ones who have taken ill or died, depressed & discouraged from dreams un-fulfilled. Life can be hard and distracting. Let’s remember Jesus’ offer to come and fellowship in community with him…to be loved, accepted, and forgiven. That we may be able to embrace others in this same way.

"Peter was one of Jesus' closest friends.....So how do you suppose Peter felt after he denied Christ-not just once, but three times? It must have been devastating.

After the Resurrection, Jesus is on the beach with Peter and the others. Following a night of lousy fishing, Christ yells out to the guys to let their nets down for a catch-just as he did that morning he first called them. Again, their nets are bursting with the load. Just like the good old days. Peter leaps from the boat and swims to Christ. They have breakfast together. Reunited, laughing about the catch, relaxed, warmed by the fire, and stuffed from breakfast, Jesus then turns to Peter...

"when they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, 'Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these?' 'Yes, Lord,' he said, 'you know that I love you.' Jesus said, 'Feed my lambs.' Again Jesus said, 'Simon son of John, do you truly love me?' He answered, 'Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.' Jesus said, 'Take care of my sheep.' The third time he said to him, 'Simon son of John, do you love me?' Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, 'Do you love me?' He said, 'Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.' Jesus said, 'Feed my sheep.'" -John 21:15-17

What a beautiful story. Notice first that Christ does not let Peter sweep the whole matter under the rug. If this issue isn't addressed, it will haunt the old fisherman for the rest of his life. A nagging guilt will make it hard to pray. That sense of who are you kidding? will be there every time Peter tries to tell others about Jesus...

Most of us try to 'put things behind us,' get past it, forget the pain as quickly as we can. Really-denial is a favorite method of coping for many Christians. But not with Jesus. He wants truth in the inmost being, and to get it there he's got to take us into our inmost being. One way he'll do this is by bringing up an old memory. You'll be driving down the road and suddenly remember something from your childhood. Or maybe you'll have a dream about a long-forgotten person, event, or place. However he brings it up, go with him there. He has something to say to you...

The lessons that have been laid down in pain can be accessed only in pain. Christ must open the wound, not just bandage it over. Sometimes he'll take us there by having an event repeat itself years later, only with new characters in the current situation. These are all invitations to go with him into the deep waters of the heart, uncover the lies buried down there, and bring the truth that will set us free. Don't just bury it quickly; ask God what he is wanting to speak to." -John Eldredge, Waking the Dead

RE:FORM

have you ever found yourself in the middle of doing something and you realize that there is something very special happening in the midst of it all? this week was one of those moments for me...and i'm finding it hard to put into words how i feel. what i do know, is that my heart has been impacted in a very profound way due to some very spontaneous and creative events that have taken place at my church recently. this is a picture of what our church is experiencing right now...we've been challenged to WAKE UP and LIVE THE ADVENT-URE. God is transforming our hearts and our minds...renewing our spirits to make a long-lasting impact in our world. we're being called to be active reformers as authentic Christian disciples in an upside-down Kingdom.

last week the director of our vineARTS ministry was commissioned to gather a team of artists and paint a very large mural as a backdrop for the sanctuary stage. the mural would depict the theme of our all-church Bible study in the Book of Acts. our pastor has called us all to be reformers...to make a difference in the world by "engaging in the Spirit-filled advent-ure" (that's "believing for the advent-ure by living a life of daring faith between Jesus' first & second coming"...which is NOW!) he sees reformation like a ripple effect...a rock dropped in water creates ripples that move out from the center farther & farther & farther out...making a bigger impact than the original rock (that rock being Jesus and us being the ripples) so our director called a few of us to task and we set to making this large piece of art a reality. she came up with the design and we all worked on it together. we stretched 3 panels of canvas (equaling 51 feet long and 12 feet high) onto a garage floor to prime. then we hung the canvas & traced the outlines of shapes from a projected image of a multitude of ripples (creating a paint by number on the canvas). then we brought the canvas back to the garage floor to be painted. there were 7 of us artists working for days all hours using large brushes fashioned to long sticks, mops, & brooms to paint the majority of the mural. then the canvas was rehung in it's resting place as a backdrop for the sanctuary stage. and then themed wording was traced from a projector & painted on top. and if that wasn't enough to get us all excited...the director and myself were able to put finishing touches on a strategic part of the mural (the spot where the rock is plunked into the water) by being a part of the worship all 3 Sunday morning services for the paintings' unveiling. the director & myself helped lead worship with the band by painting alongside of them! it was the first time the Vineyard Boise has had that sort of thing take place in a main Sunday service (i know that there are many churches out there who regularly incorporate art in their worship services, so it's not a new thing...but it is a liberating & inspiring experience to be a part of-whether you're the painter or the viewer). and i must say that i was totally honored to be one of the artists who got the opportunity to break it loose in this way. it was an extremely fun experience (unifying & meaningful for all involved). as the band played, as the singers sang, as the artists painted, as the congregation joined in song....we were all shouting praises & clapping in worship proclaiming God's majesty & His faithfulness & His glory....GOD's creativity! and ya know, it wasn't about me. it' wasn't about the music or the vineARTS. in fact, it wasn't about art at all. it was about God...to God, for God. it was truly a moment that transformed us all as a visual & interactive experience representing the beginning of re:form.

further up...and further in

hey there, here we are embarking into a new year together as a small group. i'm excited to see where God will lead us as we journey together...further up...and further in (as C.S.Lewis would say).

with a new year i have created this new blogsite for us. a fun and creative way to keep up on what's happening in our group. i will post (hopefully interesting) blogs to keep us thinking and challenged, along with any events of interest for us to keep note of. it will also be a way that we can reach out for others to join in on the fun.

i will still be emailing the group with my weekly "chats" to update us on details for our study each week and will continue to attach the weekly Acts devotions to those emails so we can keep up with Tri's teachings.

let's keep encouraging each other as we continue our book study in "Waking the Dead" and learn to take back our hearts and live life to the fullest in Christ. we've all come a long way over the last couple of years. let's continue to serve one another and pray for each other.

after enjoying 2 weeks of holiday time off, we will resume our weekly meetings Wednesday night, January 9th at 7pm.

dive deep!

Cheers, Lisa

the story: a risk worth taking

"Life is a Story. This is true for every soul...The story of your life is the story of the journey of your heart through a dangerous and beautiful world. It is the story of the long and sustained assault on your heart by the Enemy who knows who you could be and fears you. But it is also the story of the long and mysterious pursuit of your heart by the God who knows you truly and loves you deeply.You probably can’t imagine there being a glory to your life, let alone one that the Enemy fears. But remember—things are not what they seem. We are not what we seem. You probably believed that your heart was bad too. I pray that fog of poison gas from the pit of hell is fading away in the wind of God’s truth. And there is more. Not only does Christ say to you that your heart is good, he invites you now out of the shadows to unveil your glory. You have a role you never dreamed of having.We are in the process of being unveiled. We were created to reflect God’s glory, born to bear his image, and he ransomed us to reflect that glory again. Every heart was given a mythic glory, and that glory is being restored. Remember the mission of Christ: “I have come to give you back your heart and set you free.” For as Saint Irenaeus said, “The glory of God is man fully alive.” Certainly, you don’t think the opposite is true. How do we bring God glory when we are sulking around in the cellar, weighed down by shame and guilt, hiding our light under a bushel? Our destiny is to come fully alive. To live with ever-increasing glory. This is the Third Eternal Truth every good myth has been trying to get across to us: your heart bears a glory, and your glory is needed . . . now. This is our desperate hour.You are going to need your whole heart in all its glory for this Story you’ve fallen into. You’ll need every ounce of courage and faith and love you can muster. So, who did God mean when he meant you? We at least know this: we know that we are not what we were meant to be. Most of us spend our energy trying to hide that fact, through all the veils we put on and the false selves we create. Our first parents thought they could hide behind fig leaves and in the bushes, and we do the same—only with more sophistication. Far better to spend our energy trying to recover the image of God and unveil it for his glory. One means that will help us is any story that helps us see with the eyes of the heart. Which brings us back to myth. Poet David Whyte says, “Myths reveal to us what we are capable of.” Clyde Kilby offers this image: “Myth is a lane down which we walk in order to repossess our soul.” Wow! Wouldn’t you love to repossess your soul? To live with an unmasked, unveiled glory that reflects the glory of the Lord? That’s worth fighting for.There are stories that you’ve loved; there are characters that you’ve resonated with down deep inside, maybe even dreamed that you could be. Do you know why? Deep is calling unto deep. They spoke to you—they speak even now—because they contain some hint or glimpse into your true self.And that is why living from your glory is the only loving thing to do. You cannot love another person from a false self. You cannot love another while you are still hiding. How can you help them to freedom while you remain captive? You cannot love another unless you offer her your heart. It takes courage to live from your heart. My friend Jenny said just the other day, “I desperately want to be who I am. I don’t want the glory that I marvel at in others anymore. I want to be that glory which God set in me.” Finally, our deepest fear of all . . . we will need to live from it. To admit we do have a new heart and a glory from God, to begin to let it be unveiled and embrace it as true—that means the next thing God will do is ask us to live from it. Come out of the boat. Take the throne. Be what he meant us to be. And that feels risky . . . really risky. But it is also exciting. It is coming fully alive. My friend Morgan declared...“It’s a risk worth taking.”"-compilation of quotes from John Eldredge "Waking the Dead" and "Ransomed Heart"

things are not what they seem...

"Things are not what they seem. We are not what we seem. As C.S.Lewis wrote, 'The value of myth is that it takes all the things we know and restores to them the rich significance which has been hidden by the 'veil of familiarity.'' You are not what you think you are. There is a glory to your life that your Enemy fears, and he is hell-bent on destroying that glory before you act on it. This part of the answer will sound unbelievable at first; perhaps it will sound too good to be true; certainly, you will wonder if it is true for you. But once you begin to see with those eyes, once you have begun to know it is true from the bottom of your heart, it will change everything. As Frodo & Sam wonder outloud in the Lord of the Rings...we too must ask, 'What sort of tale have I fallen into?' it is a question that would help us all a great deal if we wondered it for ourselves. That is the life Christianity is trying to explain to the world. Better, that is the reality into which Christianity is the door. If we could believe that about our lives, and come to know that it is true, everything would change. We would be so much more able to interpret the events unfolding around us, against us. We would discover that task is ours alone to fulfill. We would find our courage. The hour is late and you are needed. So much hangs in the balance. Where is your heart?" -John Eldredge, Waking the Dead.

thought for today:

JOY & SORROW UNITE taken from "Streams In The Desert" by L.B.Cowman

"Sorrow was beautiful, but his beauty was the beauty of the moonlight shining through the leafy branches of the trees in the woods. His gentle light made little pools of silver here and there on the soft green moss of the forest floor. And when he sang, his song was like the low, sweet calls of the nightingale, and in his eyes was the unexpectant gaze of someone who has ceased to look for coming gladness. He could weep in tender sympathy with those who weep, but to rejoice with those who rejoice was unknown to him.Joy was beautiful, too, but hers was the radiant beauty of a summer morning. Her eyes still held the happy laughter of childhood, and her hair glistened with the sunshine's kiss. When she sang, her voice soared upward like a skylark's, and her steps were the march of a conqueror who has never known defeat. She could rejoice with anyone who rejoices, but to weep with those who weep was unknown to her.Sorrow longingly said, 'We can never be united as one,' 'No, never,' responded Joy, with eyes misting as she spoke, 'for my path lies through the sunlit meadows, the sweetest roses bloom when I arrive, and songbirds await my coming to sing their most joyous melodies.''Yes, and my path,' said Sorrow, turning slowly away, 'leads through the dark forest, and moonflowers, which open only at night, will fill my hands. Yet the sweetest of all earthly songs---the love song of the night---will be mine. So farewell, dear Joy, farewell.'Yet even as Sorrow spoke, he and Joy became aware of someone standing beside them. In spite of the dim light, they sensed a kingly Presence, and suddenly a great and holy awe overwhelmed them. They then sank to their knees before Him.'I see Him as the King of Joy,' whispered Sorrow, 'for on His head are many crowns, and the nailprints in His hands and feet are the scars of a great victory. And before Him all my sorrow is melting away into deathless love and gladness. I now give myself to Him forever.''No, Sorrow,' said Joy softly, 'for I see Him as the King of Sorrow, and the crown on His head is a crown of thorns, and the nailprints in His hands and feet are the scars of terrible agony. I also give myself to Him forever, for sorrow with Him must be sweeter than any joy I have ever known.''Then we are one in Him,' they cried in gladness, 'for no one but He could unite Joy and Sorrow.' Therefore they walked hand in hand into the world, to follow Him through storms and sunshine, through winter's severe cold and the warmth of summer's gladness, and to be 'sorrowful, yet always rejoicing.'Does Sorrow lay his hand upon your shoulder,And walk with you in silence on life's way,While Joy, your bright companion once, grown colder,Becomes to you more distant day by day?Run not from the companionship of Sorrow,He is the messenger of God to thee;And you will thank Him in His great tomorrow---For what you do not know now, you then will see;He is God's angel, clothed in veils of night,With whom 'we walk by faith' and 'not by sight' "

Sorrowful, yet always rejoicing. ---2 Corinthians 6:10