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Tuesday, May 27, 2014
Pilgrimage Day 1 - Heidelberg
We finally made it here in Germany, and I haven’t slept in
over twenty -four hours. From the beginning we have been submerged in the
German culture. Margaret and I got laughed at in customs and that was pretty
embarrassing. Once we got to Heidelberg we met Olga our tour guide. We went to
the town square or a MarktPlatz where the Church of the Holy Spirit sat in the
middle of the square. It was founded as a Catholic church, but was later split
into Catholic and Protestant at the same time in the early 1700’s. We ate lunch
at Scheffel’s (a very authentic German place) and I had the grilled sausage, but there was
also schnitzel and there was other many local foods. Then we our Schlosstickets
and headed up the mountain to the Heidelberg Castle, and we could see the whole
city from the castle. In the castle is
the world’s largest vat of wine. It was
even so big that is had a dance floor on top of it! As we left Heidelberg we visited the small
shops and had pastries. Even saw a mime.
And as I write this we are on the
way to Saarbücken, and we have been stuck in traffic for almost two hours. The day ended being really great though. We had pizza for dinner back at the hotel and
then went to bed to rest up for another great day!
Guten
Nacht
-Hayes
Monday, May 26, 2014
Spiritual Plan for Pilgrimage 2014
Good Morning!
With my bags now packed and waiting by the door, I am realizing in a new way that our pilgrimage experience is now upon us. What will we learn? What will God have to say to us?While we are intentionally taking your children "away" -- away from their devices, away from regular contact with familiar surroundings -- we are all united in the spirit of prayer, and I would ask that you hold all of us in prayer as we travel, not only for our safety, but that God would reveal himself to us (and in particular, to your teens) in new and profound ways. To that end, what follows is a brief summary of the spiritual program that Matthew and I have developed for the days ahead. Please consider reading and praying along with us in this shared way.
Sandy+
We will not follow the Morning Prayer lectionary as prescribed in the Prayer Book. Instead, we will be tracking the Exodus story, with a few additions from other parts of Holy Scripture, asking always the question, "What does it mean to set out on a journey with God?" Specific passages and reflection questions follow.
DAY 2 - May 27 - Arrival - Setting out from Egypt - Exodus 16:30-34, 40-42, 50-51
In the wilderness, the Israelites relied on God for everything. They could not survive without him. Even their food came only from him. But, they also could not collect more food than they needed. God sustained them with just enough. What does it mean for us to live as people to whom God gives us our daily bread -- just enough for this day -- and to trust that tomorrow he will give us our daily bread for tomorrow?
Day 6 - June 1 - Exodus 20:1-21
Day 6 - June 1 - Exodus 20:1-21
The Israelites time in the wilderness was God's opportunity to teach them how they would live, and act, and behave. God's people would behave differently because they were God's people. In the story o receiving the Ten Commandments, note how the people approached God with fear and reverence.
Today, we will also worship with Episcopalians in Frankfurt. Think about our connections to each other through the language of prayer; the same words and scriptures being used in Frankfurt and Memphis and all around the world.
Day 7 - June 2 - Exodus 34:1-12
After leading the people of Israel through the Wilderness, he dies on Mount Nebo after anointing Joshua to lead his people into the Promised Land. This is a moment of completion and also a recognition that there is more work and ministry to be done by the next generation of leaders.
Day 8 - June 3 - Matthew 17:1-9
And Jesus went up a high mountain with Peter, James, and John, and was transfigured before them. Jesus went up a mountain, to a place alone and apart, and revealed himself more fully to his disciples. Though the disciples did not want to return, they had to walk down the mountain, because there was work to be done in the valley. In what ways has God revealed himself to us more fully on this pilgrimage? What have we learned from this time on the mountain with God?
This is the day on which we are slated to visit the Buchenwald Concentration Camp. The adult leaders of the pilgrimage are planning to use this day as a case study in the problem of evil. What has our learning about God in the week just past taught us about how to encounter evil and to speak over it words of peace. We have intentionally left the scriptures for this day open so that we might discern further what God would like us to hear on this day. Please hold us in your prayers especially tightly today.
Day 10 - Travel Home - Luke 24:1-12
Resurrection. God brings new life out of death, redeeming all of our experiences, and creating in us new people, totally different from what we were before. We reenter the world with the sure confidence that God will bless the experiences we have had on this journey,
As we get on the long flight back from Frankfurt to Detroit, we will present the pilgrims with Luke 24:13-35, the walk to Emmaus, wherein Jesus appears to his disciples as they walk on the road after the resurrection. How might God appear to us in new ways as we journey home?
Sunday, May 25, 2014
Preparing for pilgrimage. Tomorrow 21 youth from CHC depart for Germany! #Pilgrimage2014
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Tuesday, May 13, 2014
Cheap grace vs. costly grace
Today I wanted to talk about something that I am very proud
of accomplishing.
Something only .5% of the American population has done.
Something that takes a lot of work and takes a lot of will
power…
Naturally, I am talking about running a marathon.
So far I have run two full marathons and one half. And I
am very proud of that.
When I think about my time that I spent training for these
runs, a few things stick out to me. One
of the main things was that it wasn’t easy.
It took a lot of work, a lot of time, it was difficult, inconvenient,
and a lot of times very painful. Not
everyone understood why I wanted to run a marathon so badly. Not everyone could relate when I would say
how my legs were worn out after getting back from a 10 mile interval run. Not many people even understood what that
was. But I had made running a marathon a
goal of mine. Something that I wanted to
do. Something that was important to
me. So I did it.
I made it a priority in my life and made it happen.
Do you have a story like that?
A time that you made a goal for yourself and worked really
hard to make it happen?
It doesn’t have to be about running. Maybe you had a subject in school that you
struggled with but you decided that you were going to work really hard and do
well in that class.
Maybe it was that you wanted to make a sports team, or
become a starter , so you trained really hard to get better or prepare for
tryouts.
Or you were determined to get a certain score on your ACT or
SAT…so you studied really hard and worked really hard to prepare.
If you think about it, I am pretty sure that you can create
a decent size list of things that you decided were important to you. Things that you wanted to accomplish and
worked really hard to make it happen.
Now, look back at your list…is being a better Christian one
of them?
If you are like me, probably not. I can’t even lie…when I thought about things
that I worked really hard to accomplish, being a good Christian was not
something I immediately thought about.
Why is that though?
Our minds jump so quickly to school or sports or work…those
are the things we focus on and really work hard for….but our own faith is not
very high on the list most of the time.
Why is that? Is it
because it is less important?
No, I don’t think it’s that.
Is it because it is easier?
Eh, if it is…it’s only because we made it that way.
We are pressured in all aspects of our life. Pressure to do well in school, do well at
work, be successful in life…but when it comes to the church, it is a come as
you, you are always accepted place.
Which is wonderful!
And what it should be!
But there is a lot more to it also.
If we think about it…we will force ourselves to work hard
for something that is for ourselves…except our faith.
We have been given the gift of God’s Grace…
But what does that mean?
Do we just accept this gift and say, “Thanks G! Maybe I’ll
see ya next week! Unless I’m not tired
from staying up late on Saturday night…or want to sleep in…or don’t feel like
getting out of bed…or am feeling lazy…or whatever reason I decide to make up
next Sunday morning.”
That is like hearing the Gospel being preached as “Of course
you have sinned, but now everything is forgiven, so you can stay as you are and
enjoy the consolations of forgiveness.”
It is about as meaningful as muttering “My bad.” As you walk away from
someone after running into them in the hallway.
This is what famed German Theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer
would refer to as cheap grace.
In his words, "cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring
repentance, baptism without church discipline. Communion without confession. Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross,
grace without Jesus Christ." That
does not sound like a great thing for someone who claims to be a
Christian. If grace was the gift given
to us through the crucifixation of Jesus Christ, then how can we receive this
gift without Jesus?
Is
grace suppose to be easy?
Now
read this quote: "costly grace confronts us as a gracious call to follow
Jesus, it comes as a word of forgiveness to the broken spirit and the contrite
heart. It is costly because it compels a man to submit to the yoke of Christ
and follow him; it is grace because Jesus says: "My
yoke is easy and my burden is light."
Which
one sounds more accurate? Which one do
you agree with more?
That
second one also comes from Bonhoeffer, referring to costly grace.
Why
is it so acceptable and easy for us to make a goal for ourselves and then work
really hard to make it happen?
What
if you made the goal, I want to be the BEST Christian I can be.
What
would that look like?
How
difficult would it be?
What
would we have to change about ourselves to stop living a life of cheap grace
and start striving for costly grace.
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