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On Tuesday morning, after finishing up a worship service at Birmingham Lodge, I was approached by a gentleman with a big grin saying, “We won!”. I knew he was referring to the 18 inning baseball game, but I was pretty certain the Jays lost. While I am not a sports fan, I appreciate the passion and excitement of those who are, and everyone should enjoy things they love --and I knew from the fans in my life that the Jays lost. The man repeated his certainty that “we” won. And then it hit me. He was a Dodgers fan. I encouraged him to lower his voice and watch his back!
That’s the thing about knowledge, we are all biased by what we already know. We believe the narrative we hear, and act from that place. With the excitement about the Blue Jays in the World Series, I assumed the only ‘we’ around here would be Toronto fans. We are influenced by what we see and hear, and then our brains fill in the gaps.
When Paul wrote to the new church at Philippi (Philippians 4:4-9) he said:
4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. 9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.
Paul exhorts the new church practice their faith, in the face of a violent world, oppression, scarcity, to turn their minds to Christ and think upon, to cling to that which is true, noble, lovely…
No matter what you see and hear to the contrary! Be not of the mind of the world, but of God. Seek the good, name it, claim it, and you will begin to believe it, to live it. When we practice these things, they become our narrative, the guiding story of our lives. And the God of peace will be with us.
Advent 2025
Final plans for all dates & events for Advent- Christmas are underway.
We will be guided by a program from A Sanctified Art (same publisher we used in Lent) and the theme is: What Do You Fear? Insisting on Hope.
“This Advent series takes seriously the angels’ message and trusts that Christ’s birth truly is good news of great joy for all people. The resources look closely at the fear and terror looming in the background during the time of King Herod and invite us to consider the fears we hold now. Fear can divide and paralyze us and even be used as a tool for oppression. But what if we formed a different relationship with fear? Can we acknowledge fear without letting it rule us? Might we catalyze our fears into love and action? What if naming our fears helps us see more clearly how God is breaking in and where God is at work?
As you journey through this season, may your hope become gritty and resilient. May you remember: hope that trembles is still hope. This season, let us insist on hope and trust that good news is greater than fear.”
This series brings us art, poetry, children’s bulletins, devotional guides, Advent Calendars and more.
Stay tuned for Resources as they become available.
We have chosen to print the Devotional Books, as they were popular at Lent.
They will be available free of charge (but if you would like to make a donation, they are $5 each).
Everyone is welcome to take one!
Bible Study will continue on Thursday mornings (10 am coffee, 11 am study)~ we will begin using these Advent materials on Thursday, November 27.
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