The Greatest Question Ever Asked

It is no secret that I have a obsession with most things Crayola. And if you read Defining Embrace, you also know that I am passionate about creativity, the power of play and asking the question, 'What if?' especially with children. Well, Crayola created the following video that is a great summary of my philosophy. I want to also keep the imagination and creativity alive in all people. I want to ask questions that lead to greater wonderment and dreaming. And I have been wondering if the greatest question is, 'What if?"

I, like Crayola, want to extend this invitation to all people to be people of imagination, of dreaming and unending creativity.

Practicing Through the Lens During Lent

If you use Facebook, Twitter or instagram, which are all social media agents, you may have friends that are taking part in some sort of photo-a- day challenge. Some of these projects challenge individuals to take a photo of a certain idea or item each day. I began my own photo-a-day project three years ago which I called “Once Upon a Day.” I challenged myself each day to take one picture. There were no boundaries and most were taken via my cell phone and uploaded to a website that tracked my progress.

My purpose through this project was three-fold: 1. To have time each day to reflect 2. To teach myself discipline 3. To create a space to share the mundane and extraordinary events as I went through the year. After that year was over, in which I did successfully take a picture every day, I completed all three of those tasks and even completed my first New Years Resolution. Beginning with the new year in the church, I began another Once Upon a Day project, but that is not the only photo project I’m working on at this time. 

This Lent, Rethink Church, an extension of the United Methodist Church, is challenging people to think differently about church. They have created a Lent photo-a-day project. Each day of Lent is associated with one word or a short phrase. Participants are challenged to take time each day to reflect on the word or phrase and then share their perceptions with the larger community through social media.

Rethink Church’s goal for this project is for participants to take up the practice of being aware and intentional, two of the reasons I began my first photo challenge in 2010.

During Lent we may face the challenge of ridding ourselves from a practice or habit that may discourage our relationship with God and our community. Sometimes we take things up during this season in the church such as participation in weekly Lenten services or giving additional money to the poor.

This year, what are some ways we can practice being aware, intentional and reflective? If you are still searching for that answer, I invite you  to join in with on this Lenten Challenge. It could be through capturing these ideas on film, maybe it is drawing or coloring reflection, or it could be spending time together understanding what is so unique about these 40 days.

Check-out my journey of rethinking church this lent by following me on twitter, instagram or checking out my photos here.

Join the conversation:
Instagram:  #40days #rethinkchurch
Twitter: #40days #rethinkchurch 

The Darkness in our Lives

I read these below earlier. And then I reread these words over and over again. I needed to hear them. And I need to continue to hear them.

"While we live in the light, rejoice in the light, sing of the light, darkness can be beautiful in any time of year. It calls us to rest and to hope, inviting us to acknowledge our inabilities and our fears. It stills our work and even our sense that we can do it, making us poor, bringing us to seek our sheltering community. In the darkness everyone is in need, and those who know what the darkness reveals will not be surprised by the discovery of the abyss of need in each of the people they encounter."

Lathrop, Gordon. The pastor: a spirituality. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2006, 85. 

Dirt People

Today, I am reminded that we are dirt people. From the the dirt we were created. From the dirt our story is told. And because of that, to the dirt we will return. I am having a difficult time figuring out what this means this year, but I will do my best to be open to a forty-day wondering.

Blue Donkeys, Oreos, Inclusivity in BSA and Coffee Shops

Each week I find myself reading through blogs, journals and newspapers. I want to share some of the most valuable pieces I have found from a variety of different sources:

Blue Donkeys from Thoughts from Paul Hill by Dr. Paul Hill

Dr. Paul Hill, Executive Director at Vibrant Faith Ministries, learns another a lesson from his four year-old grandson, who he calls one of his current mentors. Through watching James color during worship, Hill makes the connection that we can learn a lot when we stop assuming that a donkey is a donkey. If we allow ourselves not to be constrained to what we think we know, we can expand the way we lead. 

Oreos in the Dark from Pastor David L. Hansen by Pastor David L. Hansen

It seems that there are those who watched Super Bowl XLVII for the game, while others were watching for the commercials. Hansen shares that it costs $4,000,000 for 30 seconds of advertising for one of the coveted spots during the game. When the lights went out in the Superdome during the game, Oreo took to Twitter to share a message. They did not pay millions of dollars for that slot that got  them over 15,000 retweets. Hansen makes clear that congregations have the same resources that Oreo did for one tweet that went viral, but many churches are not using the resources that are available. 

Why Boy Scouts Should Be As Inclusive As My Church from Huffpost Religion by Glenn Blockmon

Glenn Blockmon is congregational president of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Olympia, Washington. As the Boy Scouts of America consider lifting their ban on LBGT individuals as troop leaders, Blockmon shares that BSA can learn something from his congregation. He says "scouting best serves our mission to youth when it respects our welcome to all people."

Why You Should Work From A Coffee Shop, Even When You Have An Office from Fast Company by Wesley Verhoeve

Verhoeve learned from personal experience when his company was misplaced for six weeks the importance of working away from the office from time to time. He found the experience to be so beneficial to his work that he continues to have "coffee shop days." Learn more about what Verhoeve says are the perks of working out of the office.

Holding on

I am listing to this song on repeat today. It is from Tales from the Bad Years by Kait Kerrigan and Brian Lowdermilk. I'm dwelling in the following lyrics -- "The earth keeps turning the light/ Keeps shifting an eye/ Keep holding on... I'm growing up again."

I am left wondering what can I stop holding on to as I accept that the earth will keep turning us towards the light. A force larger than myself will continue to help me see, even when I may not want to. There are a lot of things that I need to be able to let go of in order that I can have focus on seeing the light and looking towards the vision.

A New Kind of Monasticism

The restoration of the church must sincerely depend on a new kind of monasticism… the time has come to gather people & do that. #bonhoeffer
— Sandy Kathleen (@sandykathleen) January 27, 2013

Dietrich Bonhoeffer tackles the question that we all know we have asked. We want to know what will bring upon the restoration of the church. I want to know this. I need to know this. I can pretend to live in hope, but I also need answers. I need to know what is next.

Bonhoeffer was plagued with this question, but as he spent time with the students at the seminary of the Confession Church he knew that the change of church depended on a new kind of monasticism. He also realized that this could not just be something we continued to talk about with no action taken. The confession church was a place where Bonhoeffer could gather people together and do something different. It was a place and space where people could live life together. They could live in community, they could pray, they could worship and they could give thanks to God.

What would restoration of church look like today? Who are the people we just need to gather to get this done?

A Promise to Have Conversation

Can we all make a promise to have conversation on all issues? Conversations where listening may be just as important as speaking? Conversations that turn into action?