For those of you that are attending Sunday Celebration Services at Unity Church of Raleigh, you know that Advent has begun and that we’ve entered a new series. Jesus’ birth heralded a new level of love in the world and an invitation to embrace even deeper levels of “Love’s Awakening” in our lives.
Won’t you commit now, to intentionally walking this journey of awakening for the next 23 days? This means consciously choosing one or more spiritual practices to bring you into the mystery and power of love – the mystery and power of God.
I’m choosing to read the “Love Chapter” in 1 Corinthians 13 every day. Won’t you join me?
The Excellence of Love (1 Cor 13) (New American Standard Version)
If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing.
Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Love never fails; but if there are gifts of prophecy, they will be done away; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be done away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part; but when the perfect comes, the partial will be done away.
When I was a child, I used to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child; when I became a man, I did away with childish things. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known.
But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love.
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Thanksgiving - Then and Now
During this Thanksgiving Season, we embrace an extraordinarily powerful spiritual practice, that of giving thanks. When we give thanks, we notice what is present rather than what is missing. We live in gratitude and that means our spirit is lifted up.
A Harvest Story from Illinois
I grew up in rural Illinois where October and November were literally months of harvest. Since my grandparents on both sides of the family were farmers, I was accustomed to discussions about crop yield and prices per bushel. By mid to late November, the hay had been baled and stored in the barns. The soybeans and corn were combined. The soybeans were sold and the corn stored in bins. Year after year the fields provided sufficient harvest to feed the cattle through the winter. Most years the yield was high enough that excess grain was delivered and sold to the local grain elevator.
You may think that after the corn was combined, the harvest is over, but there is a little known practice that followed. We would ask the farmer’s permission to pull a wagon through the fields and pick up the “extra” corn. Most years we’d pick up several wagons of “extra” corn. Delivered and sold to the local grain elevator, this “extra” corn provided money for our Christmas giving.
We relished in our abundance. We had money for the gifts we gave to family and friends, and we had money for dinners provided to local charities. During those days our home was not filled to the brim with stuff. We often waited months for a special gift and not infrequently the “special” gift was a humble blanket to replace one that had become threadbare. Focused on what we did have, we rarely concerned ourselves with what we didn’t have. We were grateful for every gift and felt very blessed to be able to give so much.
Gleaning the extra corn from the fields wasn’t all about the corn – or the money it would bring. Since we gathered with our neighbors to pick up the corn, this was also a social event. After hours of walking the fields, picking up corn and tossing it in the wagon, we gathered for a potluck feast and story telling. So … November was a wonderful time of harvest.
When we gathered around the family tables on Thanksgiving Day, we not only celebrated the harvest, but our good fortune to have wonderful relationships and the abundance from which we would give. Christmas was always a joyous time of giving from our plenty.
Fast forward to 2008.
At Unity Church of Raleigh we gathered for a Thanksgiving feast on Sunday, November 23rd. Our tables were filled to overflowing with turkey and favorite foods. Our harvest includes a conscious awareness of the many gifts God has given us. We celebrate both our individual growth and our growth as a spiritual community. Sharing the common bond of agape love, our love for God, Unity and these wonderful spiritual principles that continue to bless our lives, we also share gratitude for the connection that is so evident in our church family. We are a welcoming community – a community that joyfully shares our spiritual journey.
Our collective prayer life is deepening. After our visioning session in October, a number of people formed prayer partnerships. We’ve also begun to consciously pray for the emergence of God’s gifts in and through one another. The photos on the walls represent our core essence and thus our gifts as a spiritual community. What FUN to watch new photos appear on the wall each Sunday and to celebrate the emergence of these gifts in all of us.
Sunday, we celebrated this and so much more!
A BIG thank you to Karen Grover and her team for providing such a grace-filled feast. Kudos to everyone on the planning team who made it possible for over 70 people to share a HOT meal together. It is no trivial matter, actually due to impeccable planning, that everyone was able to walk through the line, be seated and eating within ten minutes of saying grace.
We laughed and talked, answered Turkey Trivia questions and relished in our relationships with one another. What a delight to share our gratitude and abundance. And share we did! Outreach is one of the emerging passions within our community. Terri Conyers, a representative of The Healing Place, introduced their program to us. This organization has an impressive success rate supporting drug and alcohol addicted men and women in reclaiming their lives.
This year, in addition to our Share-a-Bear and animal rescue projects, our Christmas Outreach Projects include providing gifts for the men at the downtown location of The Healing Place. I look forward to sharing the emerging story of our reaching out to these men who are willing to step up and experience something new. That’s right. They signed up for a “project with a local church” and do not know that they will be the recipients of your thoughtful generosity. Meanwhile, we delighted in being able to give so abundantly from our tables. Terri brought pans of food to the women at the north location of The Healing Place, the surplus from our dinner.
So … we receive and we give … and we give and receive … and we participate whole heartedly in the good God has for us! Clearly, the harvest at Unity Church of Raleigh has only just begun!!
A Harvest Story from Illinois
I grew up in rural Illinois where October and November were literally months of harvest. Since my grandparents on both sides of the family were farmers, I was accustomed to discussions about crop yield and prices per bushel. By mid to late November, the hay had been baled and stored in the barns. The soybeans and corn were combined. The soybeans were sold and the corn stored in bins. Year after year the fields provided sufficient harvest to feed the cattle through the winter. Most years the yield was high enough that excess grain was delivered and sold to the local grain elevator.
You may think that after the corn was combined, the harvest is over, but there is a little known practice that followed. We would ask the farmer’s permission to pull a wagon through the fields and pick up the “extra” corn. Most years we’d pick up several wagons of “extra” corn. Delivered and sold to the local grain elevator, this “extra” corn provided money for our Christmas giving.
We relished in our abundance. We had money for the gifts we gave to family and friends, and we had money for dinners provided to local charities. During those days our home was not filled to the brim with stuff. We often waited months for a special gift and not infrequently the “special” gift was a humble blanket to replace one that had become threadbare. Focused on what we did have, we rarely concerned ourselves with what we didn’t have. We were grateful for every gift and felt very blessed to be able to give so much.
Gleaning the extra corn from the fields wasn’t all about the corn – or the money it would bring. Since we gathered with our neighbors to pick up the corn, this was also a social event. After hours of walking the fields, picking up corn and tossing it in the wagon, we gathered for a potluck feast and story telling. So … November was a wonderful time of harvest.
When we gathered around the family tables on Thanksgiving Day, we not only celebrated the harvest, but our good fortune to have wonderful relationships and the abundance from which we would give. Christmas was always a joyous time of giving from our plenty.
Fast forward to 2008.
At Unity Church of Raleigh we gathered for a Thanksgiving feast on Sunday, November 23rd. Our tables were filled to overflowing with turkey and favorite foods. Our harvest includes a conscious awareness of the many gifts God has given us. We celebrate both our individual growth and our growth as a spiritual community. Sharing the common bond of agape love, our love for God, Unity and these wonderful spiritual principles that continue to bless our lives, we also share gratitude for the connection that is so evident in our church family. We are a welcoming community – a community that joyfully shares our spiritual journey.
Our collective prayer life is deepening. After our visioning session in October, a number of people formed prayer partnerships. We’ve also begun to consciously pray for the emergence of God’s gifts in and through one another. The photos on the walls represent our core essence and thus our gifts as a spiritual community. What FUN to watch new photos appear on the wall each Sunday and to celebrate the emergence of these gifts in all of us.
Sunday, we celebrated this and so much more!
A BIG thank you to Karen Grover and her team for providing such a grace-filled feast. Kudos to everyone on the planning team who made it possible for over 70 people to share a HOT meal together. It is no trivial matter, actually due to impeccable planning, that everyone was able to walk through the line, be seated and eating within ten minutes of saying grace.
We laughed and talked, answered Turkey Trivia questions and relished in our relationships with one another. What a delight to share our gratitude and abundance. And share we did! Outreach is one of the emerging passions within our community. Terri Conyers, a representative of The Healing Place, introduced their program to us. This organization has an impressive success rate supporting drug and alcohol addicted men and women in reclaiming their lives.
This year, in addition to our Share-a-Bear and animal rescue projects, our Christmas Outreach Projects include providing gifts for the men at the downtown location of The Healing Place. I look forward to sharing the emerging story of our reaching out to these men who are willing to step up and experience something new. That’s right. They signed up for a “project with a local church” and do not know that they will be the recipients of your thoughtful generosity. Meanwhile, we delighted in being able to give so abundantly from our tables. Terri brought pans of food to the women at the north location of The Healing Place, the surplus from our dinner.
So … we receive and we give … and we give and receive … and we participate whole heartedly in the good God has for us! Clearly, the harvest at Unity Church of Raleigh has only just begun!!
Monday, November 10, 2008
The Emerging Story
What an exciting time for us at Unity Church of Raleigh!!!
God's vision for us is MAGNIFICENT and we are tapping into it. Weekly we see evidence of God's Vision and Our New Story emerging through us. Woohoo!
After 72 hours of interviews, a truly life changing weekend facilitated by Rev. Mary Omwake , and the open and receptive consciousness of nearly 42 people, God's vision for Unity Church of Raleigh is coming into focus!
We're discovering
our core essence i.e. what we LOVE about Unity Church of Raleigh
the gifts and passions of our people - WOW!!
specific projects to bring all of this into expression.
As a community we highly value:
connecting with God
diversity, love and acceptance
welcoming and connecting
prayer and meditation
our Sunday Celebration Service: the music, message and meditation
our Youth
Sacred Service (the emergent term for "volunteering")
And all of this centered in our love of God.
As we move forward, we will :
connect more deeply through ...
Social Events
Intergenerational Events
Education: Adult Classes continue on Wednesday evenings; New Class prior to Sunday
Celebration Service (after the first of the year)
expand our Outreach into the community ...
Christmas Projects
develop our Inreach to support our Unity Church of Raleigh Family
evolve our Children's Ministry to include Family, creating Intergenerational Events
Be sure to sign up for this BLOG to view "People in the Spotlight" as they generously share their gifts and passions to facilitate and fulfill God's vision in our emerging story!!
View our Calendar for the NEW events that are being created (www.localendar.com/public/ucrcalendar).
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