- Act2 10: 25-26, 34-35, 44-48
- Psalm 98: 1, 2-3, 3-4
- 1 John 4: 7-10
- John 15: 9-17
- Thinking outside the box
- It's easy enough to say that there are no bounds to God's love. What are some practical ways that you see God demonstrating that day by day?
- What are some circumstances in which your ability to love where challenged?
- What is it that you fear most about extending love to another?
- Do you think Jesus has the same fears for you in your life?
- How do you think that the two of you can deal with those fears?
- Rejoice with me
- Who is the first person that you go to with really good news?
- When you tell that person about really good things happening in your life, does the conversation turn to thanking God?
- What do you think would happen if you turned the conversation to thanking God the next time that someone had something wonderful to share with you?
- Love me, love my maker
- If we get to know God by loving, then does it follow that truly knowing God will foster love in our hearts?
- When you get to know someone else, you learn their tasts in music, where they grew up, what sort of family they have. What sort of small talk do you make with God?
- How do we get to know God?
- How do we know that we're not just talking to ourselves?
- Joy, unleashed
- What gives you joy?
- If that is gone, is the joy gone as well?
- How would you distinguish that sort of joy from the joy of the Lord?
- How joyful are you?
- What are you doing about that?
- How much like me does someone have to be before I can be hospitable to them?
- How thankful am I to God for the good things that He gives me?
- What have I done lately to be better at loving others?
- What am I doing to build my trust in God?
The Sacred Other
The challenge in relating to somone else, is to let them be else to you.
Not assume that they are just like you, see things your way.
Instead, let them open up to you, show you what's important to them,
What their dreams are, their hopes, their sorrows, what gets them out of bed.
When we fail to listen to that other, they will eventually know.
They will see that you are relating to a caricature of them,
An image of yourself, cast in their likeness, but not their substance,
And, if you are lucky, they will get your attention, and tell you that you're not listening.
There is no one like God, no other other as distinct as He is.
The hard part of prayer is to be open to that otherness, that distinctness
And build a relationship to that other, always ready for surprises.
And learning to respect those surprises however they come.
I'm starting with "come again?"
The next time that I think I've gotten something in prayer
That I cannot process, I'll just ask God "come again?"
Not to win time, but to take accountability for truly under standing.
Not assume that they are just like you, see things your way.
Instead, let them open up to you, show you what's important to them,
What their dreams are, their hopes, their sorrows, what gets them out of bed.
When we fail to listen to that other, they will eventually know.
They will see that you are relating to a caricature of them,
An image of yourself, cast in their likeness, but not their substance,
And, if you are lucky, they will get your attention, and tell you that you're not listening.
There is no one like God, no other other as distinct as He is.
The hard part of prayer is to be open to that otherness, that distinctness
And build a relationship to that other, always ready for surprises.
And learning to respect those surprises however they come.
I'm starting with "come again?"
The next time that I think I've gotten something in prayer
That I cannot process, I'll just ask God "come again?"
Not to win time, but to take accountability for truly under standing.
Shalom!
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