MCCSpiritQuest

Thursday June 19,2008

2008-06-19T20:07:00.000-07:00

This is my first trip to New Orleans. I have written about hurricane Katrina and the peoples lives and losses prior to my experience here this week. There is still so much destruction here in so many parts of the city it can overcome you in a short period of time. My reason for being here is to help be a part of the rebuilding effort. My feelings are mixed because I truly want to help more than just this week. So far I feel I have done little in response to such a great need that entire city has, but I am only one person.
There are fourteen people on this trip from the MCC church all who volunteer to do a portion of the needed work according to their skills. The group has been great working together, and through some bumps in the process, but coming out better people in the end. Life is a process, no matter where we are in it. We have more learning for the process and to live to serve in many different ways as we walk the pathway to a better understanding of our selves and our true mission in life.
Sometimes it takes us on a different path when we listen to our hearts and follow through on our feelings with action. Those actions make us better people, and our families enlarge as our hearts do because of this. I salute all of our volunteers for their input, the community and religious leaders and organizations which have come together to provide the tools, housing accommodations, and meals so we can do the work.
While there is still a great need here for volunteers in organizations in New Orleans, they still need to be able to function, and contributions are still needed to complete the work. I urge those who are reading these blogs to look into your hearts and follow up with action. In peace and love,
Diane Knaus, one of fourteen.

2008-06-17T19:18:00.000-07:00

Greatings from New Orleans! The experience here as been a little different than the last, but not much. Instead of gutting we are rebuilding. Once again I am doing drywalling and have a great team. Even though some of them have never dry walled before in their life or even know where to start after the first day they have taken on the challenge and have done a great job. As I got frustrated today over something and I needed to go outside for a moment a lady pulled up beside the house and got out of her car. It was the owner of the house Vera. As we stood and spoke for a moment I walked into her house and introduced her to the team: Norm, Danaca, Patty, Ruth, Eva and Mary. She was so greatful for what we are doing she is bringing us Southern style chicken on Friday for lunch. As I walked her back out to her car she turned before she entered in and hugged me without letting go and whispered in my ear you are a God sent. Now those of you who know me know I dont tear up easily but I had to wipe my eyes a few times before entering back in the house to continue what God sent me here to do. I miss my family and my wife but the hug I received today was amazing and will be instilled in my heart forever!

Lisa K Crumlich

2008-06-17T15:52:00.000-07:00

Adaptation: adjustment or changes to accomidate to one's needs or lifestyle. Adaptation begins with attitude, open minds, and a willingness to do so. Sometimes we choose to make the changes, and sometimes to change is not so much an option, but a requirement.
There have beena few hiccups along the way during our stay in New Orleans. Working with each other, we have learned to make adjustments and adapt to our surroundings and resources. For us this is only a few days, to the folks of New Orleans, it has been 2 and 1/2 years. We know all too well that things don't go quite as planned, but with teamwork and a vision, all things will come together. And in due time. God's mercy and grace has been with us and the folks of New Orleans with many blessing and with still more to come. WooHoo!
Anna : )

Tammy and Sierra in New Orleans

2008-06-17T15:28:00.000-07:00

So. I woke this morning still feeling sore from my fiasco yesterday. Apparently, drywall will fall if you let go of it and my head and shoulders were just the break the drywall fall needed. I ended up with a nice bump on by head and a bruise on my shoulder. Welcome to the Big Easy. Today, Sierra did not feel well so I stayed at St. Matthews with her. It turned out to be an interesting day. We had a chance to spend time alone together and when we did venture out on the street we met very intersting people. People like the owners of Pazzo's Gelato who relocated after Katrina and are committed to making New Orleans their own. They relocated from Pennsylvania and even though they could have abandoned the city after the storm, they decided to dig in and rebuild. They make a kickin' italian beef sandwich and their gelato is fantastic. We also found the worlds greatest flavored ice at "Snowballs". I had the "wedding cake" and Sierra had the "blue kangaroo". Try them the next time you are here. What i find that fills me is the spirit of the people. They fully expect thet even though the recovery efforts are frustratingly slow at times, they will come back. It feels strage to here someone saying Thank You to me. I don't feel like I am doing something special. I originally opted to come to share this part of the world with Sierra and hopefully to have her gain a better understanding of the diversity of how people live and survivie. I am learning that resiliance comes in many forms and I feel like I will use that as I continue to travel in my life journey. Hopefully Sierra will see the Cresent City in its rebirth and take the gifts that it shares with us in her journey; strenghth, hope and determination. I look at this group here with me and feel pride that I have had the honor to know people whose spirit allows them to reach out. I ma glad to be a part of their journey and will remember this time always. Now, we are going try the seafood and more gelato. I'll update you on the flavors. Better yet, come on the next trip and taste it for yourself...Tammy and Sierra

2008-06-16T19:05:00.000-07:00

Okay so I'm getting this over with so Eva stops bugging me!:)

Our day began with an orientation to the UCC recovery effort here in New Orleans, what to expect and how to be safe. We then split up into two groups to begin our work. One group did some structural work on a house damaged by termites. Ruth and I got to do some drywalling. I learned a little about drywalling in the process, namely the drywall seams have to meet up on a joist when drywalling ceilings! (Also, I need to see my chiropractor now since my neck has a permanent crick in it:) And now from Ruth...

Well.....I learned how to cut drywall, put it up, and use a drywall lift to do the ceilings. There are multiple steps for everything and these steps must be done correctly for the final product to come out right. For those of us that came on the trip the last time, it is much more rewarding to be rebuilding houses than gutting them.

And so the day ends. I am tired and have a headache, but all in all, it was a good day. I am thankful to have the opportunity to be back here again. We have had to remind ourselves that we are missionaries, here to serve and, as such, we must be flexible. No, things are not always as we wish they were...we have giant cockroaches here at the church, we are still having plumbing issues, and we have to unlock about a million doors just to go to the bathroom, but it's all good! We are God's hands and feet and light in this world. I pray that, as we serve, people will be touched by Jesus' light in us. Ruth has something else to say...

I was sobered and reminded of how lucky I am when I went into the trailer at the worksite to use the bathroom. I was surprised that a whole family could live in such a small space...not to mention that I couldn't figure out how to flush the toilet but that's another story...:) As I found last trip, serving in New Orleans really puts life into perspective. The destruction is still evident....three years later. Despite setbacks and frustrations, I will continue to serve to the best of my ability.

Well, it's late and we have a long, tiring day ahead of us. We are thankful for the love and support we have received from our friends and family in making this trip possible in so many ways. Blessings on you all...

With love,
Patty and Ruth:)

Sunday, June 15

2008-06-15T13:37:00.000-07:00

Who stepped in the doggie doo?

We arrived! We arrived at St. Matthew's United Church of Christ at 9:10 am Central Daylight Savings time in the midst of a torrential downpour. There was lightning, a moat around the castle in the back church play yard and a rising drain in the women's restroom that Mary Kelly watched rise beneath her feet as she used the facilities. Our hosts were kind enough to get the plumbers out on a Sunday to fix the problem.

Most of us joined Big Easy MCC and St. Matthew's United Church of Christ for a joint worship. Others just needed some quiet time. By the time church ended, the rain had stopped and we moved in our gear. When people cleared out from church, we had a tour of the facilities and learned about the ins and outs of the church (seriously in and out...we need a key to take a shower and then to get back in the church).

This afternoon, we showered, and we slept and got settled in. Denise had to make her very own cave to sleep after being up for 29 hours straight.

The trip was safe but we had our challenges with 6 rainstorms, 3 severe, fog, lightning, and even a rainbow...Pictures will be posted later tonight...

We leave tomorrow morning at 7:15 am for orientation and work begins after that. Tonight we eat and snooze and clean...

Watch for more...later

Jesus Priority 5: Build Up Treasures in Heaven

2008-03-11T08:34:00.000-07:00

Take a look at this video. It’s about all the STUFF we let get between us and Jesus, and how Jesus keeps calling us to him … and how Jesus saves us, again and again. It's about 6 minutes long.

I showed this video this past Sunday night because it just seemed like the perfect illustration of this week’s Jesus Priority: Build Up Treasures in Heaven. The scripture for this week was Luke 12: 15-28, the parable of the rich fool.

In this scripture reading, Jesus cautions us about letting the priorities of the world take precedence over the priorities of God. In his book, “The Jesus Priorities,” Christopher Marical suggests the following three steps we can take to ensure we stay focused on Jesus, rather than spiritually meaningless stuff, like money: 1) Detach from Earthly Possessions, 2) Maintain an Abundance Mentality, 3) Act Justly.

Detach: Keep in mind that your income, your home and all the other resources you are blessed with come from God. While researching this scripture passage, I was shocked that one commentator referred to our attachment to luxuries as practical atheism. But it makes sense. Because if we say we earned everything we’ve got by our own merits, then we’re saying we don’t believe God had anything to do with it, or us. But as Christians, we know our lives and everything we have ARE from God. Our resources are entrusted to us, but they are not ours. If we can maintain a sense of detachment from them then they won’t take us over, like the things of the world almost overtook the girl in the video skit.

Maintain an Abundance Mentality: This point’s very simple. We are challenged to believe that there are enough resources world-wide for everyone to get what they need to be OK. Plus, if we believe our resources are entrusted to us from God, then at any time we should be ready to give cheerfully from our abundance. This is the natural outcome of successfully detaching from our possessions.

Act Justly: When we are detached from our possessions, and when we believe there are enough riches to go around, then we naturally pool our resources in ways that benefit those who don’t have as much as we do.

Our church does OK in this area. On the one hand, we are great at rallying around families in need, and many other Christian activities to boot. And many of our members tithe, which means they give a certain percentage of their income each week. And as long as this continues, our church will be fine.

We have a growing edge, though. In preparation for this sermon I looked up our giving statistics, and I was shocked to realize many of our members’ monthly giving to the church is less than what it costs to buy a tank of gas. But what is blocking so many of us from sharing our abundance with our church?

I bet you’re wondering how giving regularly to our church is a justice issue. That’s easy. Our church exists because we pool our resources. And because we have a church we are able to worship Christ and be a witness for Christ’s love of everyone, including us GLBT folks.

I ended my sermon with this prayer that I’d like to share with you:

O Holy God, You have blessed us in so many ways, so that we truly are richer than Solomon could ever have imagined. You have blessed us with cars and televisions, laptops and Bluetooth-enabled voice-activated navigational systems that bounce our requests off satellites in space so we won’t lose our way. Help us not lose our way in the forest of luxury, help us stay true to who you are calling us to be. Help us to cheerfully answer YES each time you ask us to share a little of what you’ve given to us with others in our world.
In the name of your son, Jesus Christ, we pray. Amen.

—Josie Byzek

Living the Jesus Priorities: Spread the Word

2008-03-04T06:56:00.000-08:00

Spreading the Word has always been difficult for us, it seems. If it were not difficult, we should have every seat filled in every congregation every Sunday! Sometimes it is difficult to understand that we, each one of us, have been commissioned by God to spread the news of God's love for humankind and the mercy of God when we fail to show that love. Every person deserves to know that they are a person of worth and that God has a plan for their lives. Jesus' strategies for sharing this news were effective...and more than that, they can be replicated in our lives! What are the strategies?

1. Share the Mission

Matthew 4:18-22
18 As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea-- for they were fishermen. 19 And he said to them, "Follow me, and I will make you fish for people." 20 Immediately they left their nets and followed him. 21 As he went from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them. 22 Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed him.

Jesus did not stop, however, with those he originally called...check out Mark 9, when the disciples find someone outside of their group healing. The Disciples cry, "Foul!" but Jesus says, "If they aren't against us, they are for us." Check out the story of the man possessed by demons in Mark 5. After he is healed, he wants to follow Jesus but Jesus tells him to go home and tell his friends.

2. Invite Everyone!

Matthew 22:1-14
Once more Jesus spoke to them in parables, saying: 2 "The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding banquet for his son. 3 He sent his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding banquet, but they would not come. 4 Again he sent other slaves, saying, 'Tell those who have been invited: Look, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready; come to the wedding banquet.' 5 But they made light of it and went away, one to his farm, another to his business, 6 while the rest seized his slaves, mistreated them, and killed them. 7 The king was enraged. He sent his troops, destroyed those murderers, and burned their city. 8 Then he said to his slaves, 'The wedding is ready, but those invited were not worthy. 9 Go therefore into the main streets, and invite everyone you find to the wedding banquet.' 10 Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered all whom they found, both good and bad; so the wedding hall was filled with guests. 11 "But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing a wedding robe, 12 and he said to him, 'Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding robe?' And he was speechless. 13 Then the king said to the attendants, 'Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' 14 For many are called, but few are chosen."

Fill the place! Invite! Invite! Invite! Don't judge who should be invited. Be God's love to people and bring them in! Jesus' invitation was always connected to the circumstance of the person. And don't worry about what people might think of you because you invite! What might they think? That you are a follower of Christ? That you care too much? That you love too unconditionally? There could be worse things....But to be willing to invite and let it become a natural part of who you are, you must take the time to really know Christ--not just the facts--but to know Christ as you would a best friend.

3. Challenge With Love

Matthew 19:16-22
16 Then someone came to him and said, "Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?" 17 And he said to him, "Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. If you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments." 18 He said to him, "Which ones?" And Jesus said, "You shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; 19 Honor your father and mother; also, You shall love your neighbor as yourself." 20 The young man said to him, "I have kept all these; what do I still lack?" 21 Jesus said to him, "If you wish to be perfect, go, sell your possessions, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me." 22 When the young man heard this word, he went away grieving, for he had many possessions.

We are the rich young man. God did not send Jesus to solve our problems. What are we withholding from God?

Jesus said, "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me." (Matthew 16:24)

Some questions to reflect on:

Who have you invited to join God's realm? Who will you invite next?
What are some ways you could share your mission to be a disciple of Jesus?
Who could you tell? What could you write?
What are you withholding from God?
Who in your life needs to be challenged? How can you confront that person with love and humility?

Living the Jesus Priorities: PRAY

2008-02-25T13:24:00.001-08:00

Matthew 6:5-15
5 "And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. 6 But whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. 7 "When you are praying, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do; for they think that they will be heard because of their many words. 8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. 9 "Pray then in this way: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. 10 Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. 11 Give us this day our daily bread. 12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13 And do not bring us to the time of trial, but rescue us from the evil one. 14 For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you; 15 but if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

Habits to Form:

Pray Alone--we must remember to do our introspection (self-examination) before we are ready to come to God in prayer. This is the place of intimacy with God.
Pray Persistently--not for our wants, but for the will of God and for the Spirit to fill us and guide us.
Pray in the Presence of Others--not in the context of worship, but in the circumstances and situations we find ourselves in. As we pray with others, we share a part of our faith and our beliefs about God and in so doing, invite others to believe and have faith.
Pray Simply--as in the prayer that Jesus taught:

Our Father: use whatever name is intimate and personal for you

Who art in Heaven, Hallowed be thy name: we look up to offer praise and remembering who God is, we are led naturally to humility as we approach God.

Thy kingdom (realm) come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven: we are not telling God what we want to accomplish but we are learning what God wants us to accomplish.

Give us this day our daily bread: remember that bread was a staple, an essential for Jesus. Ask for your essentials...not your wants...but the essentials of your faith and life, i.e. the capacity to love as God has loved us, understanding God's will, to be part of that will.

And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors: critical for our spiritual well being is to acknowledge our shortcomings, our sins. If we never verbalize that we have committed sins in thought, word, or deed, we can decieve ourselves into believing that we have not sinned. But "all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God."

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: call your temptations by name and believe in God to strengthen you and to provide support to fight them.

Reflection Questions:

Where is your "mountain" for being alone with God?
How can you protect time for prayer in your daily routine?
How can you cultivate ongoing opportunities to pray with others?
What are some ways you can keep your prayer life simple?
In prayer, how much are you listening?

Pastor Eva

More thoughts on forgiving, forgetting and love

2008-02-20T08:18:00.000-08:00

I personally separate forgiveness and forgetting by remembering that Jesus never told us to forget. Forgiveness means for me that I will not hold the action against the person. It does not mean that I will forget it, it only means I will try not to bring the past into the present moment when I am interacting with that person. For example, when a person broke into the church when I was pastor at Dundalk Church of the Brethren, and we found him still asleep in the building, we still called the police. We still went to court and asked that damages be paid. But if he were to walk into the building again on a Sunday morning, I would have expected peo ple to welcome him as a fellow worshipper, not tell him to go away or that we didn’t want him because of a past deed. I would never forget he broke in, and I wouldn’t trust him to lock up the building—or even give him a key—until he had earned that trust back. We are not expected to roll over and play dead.

Eva

A further response:
You make a good case for forgiving vs. forgetting, but I think it depends on the case and the person. My first impulse, always, is to forgive. But then the action keeps coming up or seeping in and it seems like, more often than not, I only manage to set myself up for more punishment. OR, I want to forgive (even SAY that I do) but find myself super-sensitive to the actions of the 'trespasser' -- I seem to think that they are only looking for ways to get over on me. And then when they do I feel like such a schmuck!

Response to: Love

2008-02-20T08:14:00.000-08:00

Below are the thoughts of someone who wrote to me. They agreed for me to post their response but without their name...

Pastor Eva

I believe that, as humans, it is impossible to achieve complete forgiveness. I try as hard as anyone I know, but I don't know how to separate the forgiving from the forgetting...if I forget, then I'm guilty of losing the lesson, right?

Living the Jesus Priorities: Love!

2008-02-18T06:04:00.000-08:00

LOVE: Read these scriptures and reflect....

Matthew 7:12
"In everything do to others as you would have them do to you; for this is the law and the prophets."

Matthew 22:35-40
35 and one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. 36 "Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?" 37 He said to him, "'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.' [Jesus is quoting from Deuteronomy 6:4-9, the beginning of the Shema, a prayer offered by our Jewish sisters and brothers as they enter and leave their homes and rise in the morning and sleep at night] 38 This is the greatest and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' [Jesus is quoting from Leviticus 19:18] 40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets."

Habits to develop:
1. Show mercy!

"Jesus offers mercy because of who GOD is." [from The Jesus Priorities]
"The ability to treat others with mercy regardless of how they treat us requires that our actions flow from principles, not circumstance...we were not designed in the image of God to be reactive. We don't have to let circumstance or emotions determine our responses." [from The Jesus Priorities]

2. Forgive without limits!

"No act lies beyond forgiveness." [from The Jesus Priorities]
examine the story of the woman who washed Jesus' feet (Matthew 26:6-13; Mark 14:3-9; Luke 7:36-50; John 12:1-8)
Jesus forgave sins and affirmed faith. We are called to do the same. (Matthew 16:19; 18:18)

3. Love others as God loves!

Matthew 7:12 (see above)
Read the story in Matthew 25:31-46.
"The lesson of this story cannot be misinterpreted. Jesus' message is twofold: (1) all humans are worthy of and in need of God's love; and (2) all humans are accountable for offering God's love to others." [from The Jesus Priorities]
Love is the fundamental act God seeks from our freedom to choose.

Questions for reflection:

Who needs your mercy?
How have you been shown mercy?
Who is the one person in your life with whom you would most like to be reconciled?
How are you called to love as God loves? How are you called to be an extension of God's love?

Reflections on Healing

2008-02-14T07:06:00.000-08:00

I am amazed at how difficult it is to heal ourselves. I am being reminded of my own words by many people these days as I look forward to seeing a surgeon. I feel like I need to assure that I am present for Easter...for my partner...for court hearings...for people in all kinds of places for all kinds of reasons...but how then do we--do I allow God to be in control of the healing in my life. This week, we have all been slowed down a bit because of the weather. It has been a time of reflection for me. I go to the doctor this week for my right elbow...it is swollen. Another time, I will need to go for a pap smear...those wonderful annual checkups...then it will be to a surgeon for the gall bladder...

Today someone sent a wonderful reading to me about mayonaise jars and coffee. It is a story about a teacher who fills a mayonnaise jar with golf balls and asks if it is full. The class says yes! Then the teacher takes pebbles and shakes them down into the jar and again asks the class if the jar is full...and the class says yes! Then the teacher takes sand and shakes it in among the pebbles and the golf balls and the teacher asks one more time, "Now is it full?" And the class again says, "Yes!" Then the teacher takes 2 cups of coffee and pours them in. Is that how we continue to cram things into our lives? The teacher reminds the students that if they had begun with the little, mundane things we do (the grains of sand), there would be no room for the important things like (friends, family, and God). But there should always be room for a cup or two of coffee (or tea) with people who are important.

I am glad for my own healing for that reminder in my life today.
Pastor Eva

Practices for the First Essential Habit: Heal

2008-02-10T12:27:00.000-08:00

Stay deeply connected to compassion
Say yes to strangers
Do what is within our power to do
See with the heart

How do you intentionally act with compassion?

How can you say yes to strangers?

Does somebody near you, or on the edges of your life, need compassion: what is within your power to do?

Think about someone you may have judged harshly. If you look again with your eyes and your heart, what do you see?

Welcome!

2008-01-23T09:10:00.001-08:00

This is a new blogspot for Spiritual Growth and Bible Study at MCC of the Spirit in Harrisburg, PA. During Lent, we will be studying the book The Jesus Priorities: 8 Essential Habits by Christopher Maricle. It is available at Cokesbury or Amazon.com. So get the book. Come to worship and hear a sermon on the priority we will discuss for the week. (This begins on February 10) Then check here for the scriptures, questions, and discussion and add to the discussion! I will try to check it regularly and help the discussion along.

This is a new venture...help us try something new!

Pastor Eva