Goodness Weekly 11.14.22
“If you could only sense how important you are to the lives of those you meet; how important you can be to the people you may never even dream of. There is something of yourself that you leave at every meeting with another person.”
– Fred Rogers
Christmas for Camelot Families:
Give a gift to a child!
We are hoping to partner with the families at Camelot Elementary by providing affordable Christmas gifts for 100 of the children at the school.
This is only possible with your help—here’s how it works:
Purchase toys through the Amazon Wishlist
Make a donation via online link
We’ll set up a toy store at the school for the parents to shop (shoot us a message if you want to help with this too!)
Caregivers will choose 2 gifts per child at price points of $2 and $4
They will be able to wrap and take gifts home with them to give on Christmas
Join us in spreading the love and joy of Christmas in a way that is honoring and dignifying to all people ❤️
Message from Jess:
When I was a girl there was a phrase around my house that my dad would use as the weekend approached: “Saturday is work day.” Every Saturday morning my dad would get out his yellow legal pad and make a list of every task that needed to be done inside and outside of the house. It could have been picking up the sticks around the five acre yard before mowing, or building a deck, all I know is that my brother Josh and I hated Saturday work day.
We would try our best to mess up the jobs and frustrate dad enough to get out of them (which almost never worked), but inevitably we’d spend the daylight of Saturday crossing things off the list.
As I worked through sabbatical prep with my coach, she asked what tapes had been playing in my head about rest. That one was a big one—and others – like you don’t play until your work is done. Now as an adult I have come to realize what I’m certain my dad was feeling—the work is never done!
I tried to work harder, later, more efficiently to earn the luxury of rest, but it turns out that more work just took its place. It also turns out that this is not how God designed or commanded us to live. So we’re trying a different kind of work, the kind that is changing me from the inside, the kind that I talked about in our worship service last night. Paul talked about the idle believers in our passage in 2 Thessalonians 3, and I wonder how many of us would fall into that category now?
The ones who sit in the pews but never consider how God desires to shape their daily lives? Or those of us who work so hard for God that we never actually spend any time being with God.
If we are going to be a community that truly desires flourishing for one another and our neighborhood, it starts by being with God and with our neighbor.
We have two challenges this week:
First – create some time for something that is restful to you. Rest doesn’t always mean napping or lying around, but maybe for you it’s gardening or playing basketball to give your mind and heart a break. Whatever it is, make time and invite an awareness of God’s presence in it.
Second – find someone who doesn’t think or believe or look or act like you and go and listen.
Spend time in the garden for a place of
peace and rest
In Marshall Rosenburg’s Nonviolent Communication: A Language of Life, he advises humble listening that gets behind the words and to the needs and desires of another person with questions like:
What is that like for you?
Have you felt like this before?
How can I understand this better?
Be present and listen to understand, listen to learn, listen to grow and hear what new thing God might want to teach you.
I can’t wait to see what we’ll learn.
May goodness be with you each day this week
Love - Jess
What’s Good:
We had so much fun with our little friends at Family Morning this past Saturday! Join us back December 10th for a super special Family Morning, Christmas Work-Shop-Til-You-Drop. Be on the lookout for more information!
Upcoming Events:
Sunday, November 20th, 4:30pm Outdoor Worship
Wednesdays at 7:30pm Youth Group at The Stirmans
Saturday, December 3rd Camelot Elementary Affordable Christmas!
Saturday, December 10th Christmas Work-Shop-Til-You-Drop
Morning:
God I come before you today with a heavy heart
that aches for our hurting world
In a time where children starve and people fear for their
lives and their safety
I feel like I want to climb back into bed
and hide under the covers
Lord, show me today how I can work to
bring your goodness into the world
Lift my weary head and puffy eyes and strengthen me to love every person I meet today
And may every act of love be an expression of worship to you.
Amen.
Evening:
As the nights grow longer and my heart settles in
I long to be held by your presence God.
I am weary but will not grow tired of doing good
Help me to rest in your warmth tonight,
ready for a new day where you call me to love
In Jesus name,
Amen.
