Having been so inspired by Moot it was kind of inevitable that the following evening saw me back in New Forms, where Dream was exploring A life more ordinary
Romans 12 Place Your Life Before God 1-2 So here's what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him.
We reflected on the images we hide behind, those projections of ourselves that we somehow feel are more worthy, more admirable than the reality…and were invited to draw something on a mirror to represent this. I so often ponder where aspiration (the air brushed image) becomes deceit so this was both challenging and helpful – and when the mirror was smashed with a truly impressive crash there was no chance of missing the point! God engages with our reality...however much we might wish that God wouldn't!
There were a series of stations to engage us….a map on which we were invited to use a cocktail stick to plot our position…out on a limb….seeking guidance…..on the path of obedience….Having scored a hole on our sheet, we then turned it over to discover that right where we were, in whatever state, is where God meets us.
Simple but effective – the sort of hug from God that everyone needs more often than not.
Other stations included a graffiti wall on which we wrote places or situations where we had encountered God in the previous week and a string of paper people to cut out and label as people who showed us God
.There was also a rather exciting station “Heavenopoly” – where you could place yourself and those on your heart in the appropriate square on the board…Free Parking? In gaol – just visiting?Needing support from the Community Chest? Overwhelmed by the riches of Mayfair?
I didn’t use this myself but the friend I was with was very enthusiastic about it – and there were other stations too…all apparently creative and inspiring.
After some time to engage with these, we broke bread …each communicating ourselves in silence.
Wonderful! Just wonderful!
5 comments:
kathryn, i've been so slack in blogland this summer that i haven't even said hello to you! and then i was super depressed not to have the funds to come across the pond for greenbelt. i'm feeling very jewish about this ie next year in jerusalem for me and rob is becoming "next year in cheltenham"...all that to say...i've missed you and your amazing country! and next year save me a spot on your greenbelt calendar! we'll do tea at the tiny tea tent!
i may make it to the UK before next august and if i do i would love to meet you face to face!
so be forwarned : )
hope you're having an amazing summer and have a wonderful fall too!
lilly
Kathryn, thanks very much for your encouragement as you write about the service - I'm glad it enabled you to connect with God. I've linked to this post on my blog 'here' - hope that's ok!
Malcolm
Kathryn,
Greenbelt sounds wonderful!
Something your post reminded me to ask -
I am often fascinated by your use of stations for unique worship experiences (especially with children, youth and those who are not used to traditional church) and I'm wondering if you have some sort of resource for designing them. I would guess that they are used here in the US by somebody but I really haven't seen them done in Episcopal churches I've been to. I would like to try this approach in the future, so any resources you can suggest would be helpful!
Thank you!
This sounds so good it is making me feel more that Greenbelt is somewhere I want to be, sometime! I also appreciated the link to the Dreams site - am going to pass it on in the hope some ideas will be used...
aww shame we didn't get to meet at last. I dashed off v quickly back to dorset then on the Liverpool. Thanks for such positive comments!
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