We are finishing our second round of Back to Basics classes at Christ
Church Cathedral. Basic Discipleship is the lynchpin course -- during
the five weeks we learn about and experience the spiritual practices of
prayer, worship, learning, serving and giving -- and build a community
of support and accountability for integrating them into our lives. For
each week of the class, I'm posting a very truncated
summation of the ideas we discussed and the homework given. It's not
meant to be a substitute for the class ... but I hope it will whet your
appetite.
We started off for 15 minutes in small groups talking about these questions, then came back to the large group for sharing.
I - Check in on prayer – how is it going? What are you noticing? Barriers/gifts? What was it like to pray on the question “Jesus, who are you?”
II - process the worship experience from last week. Describe it to any in your group who weren’t there. What did you notice? How did it feel? What about our Cathedral liturgy most feels like communal worship and not individual prayer? Did you experience Sunday worship differently after last week?
Guiding Scripture
Is there anyone among you who, if your child asks for bread, will give a stone? Or if the child asks for a fish, will give a snake? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him! (Matthew 7:9-11)
We have everything we need. Our creation story tells us that God has given us all we need and we lack for nothing. We have access to wisdom. It is all around us. As Eucharistic Prayer C says “From the primal elements you brought forth the human race, and blessed us with memory, reason, and skill.” We are made in God’s image. We have forgotten that. We have exalted ourselves instead of God, but we can still get back to that place where we God is at the center of our lives and life. It’s about believing what’s inside us already that we might not know is there.
We need to remember what we have forgotten. We need to return to God. That’s what discipleship is about.
Remember the five spiritual practices or "holy habits" and how they relate to the Great Commandment:
Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength – Pray/Worship
Love your neighbor as yourself – Serve/Give
Learn is the hinge. Learn is that growing in relationship to God. Learn is the reflection that balances action. It takes attentiveness and intention.
Two primary texts for learning:
1) The text of life – attentiveness to the wisdom of God emerging around us
2) Intentional study for which the sole purpose is learning.
It’s the difference between learning on the job and professional development. Both are critical. Frame this in terms of Isaiah 55 – God wooing the people of Israel – saying “this is my dream for you. This is the abundant life I offer” (think John 10:10).
Sometimes it helps to hear it a different way. Here is the way a modern translation – Eugene Peterson’s “The Message” translates it:
Note a couple things:
*This is for everyone. Growth is for everyone. God is for everyone.
*Don’t spend your money on junk food. (You are what you eat).
Read Galatians 5:16-26. What do you take into your body? Not just food but all the different messages. What do you read, watch, listen to? It all shapes you. It all makes you either self-centered or Christ-centered. Is what you take into your body fostering the fruits of the Spirit or is it leading you into what Paul calls the works of the flesh? Be aware! What we need is here … but a lot of stuff we don’t need is here, too. Be discerning. Help each other.
Our whole economic system is based on convincing us we need poison and that we have to sell all we have to buy it – not just our money, but our time, our focus, our all. Eat only the best. Fill yourself only with the finest
*Seek a wisdom that is higher than our own. It is within us, but it is buried deep. Hays Rockwell used to say "The image of God is in every person, but sometimes it is in deep, deep disguise." Seek it out. Seek it out in conversation. Seek it out in intentional study. Slow down. Reflect. Ask questions. What do you notice?
For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.
This is about looking for a different way of thinking. How might Christ see this? Where is Jesus in this for me? For my community? For the world?
The “holy habit” of Learn takes two forms:
-the text of life
-other texts intentionally chosen and time spent with.
Not just action (buzzing through it) but time in reflection. Small pieces.
We went into small group for 15 minutes more and talked about these questions, then back to large group for sharing:
*What in your life is junk food and what is “only the finest”? Is a little junk food OK? What does your diet look like?
*What is your learning style? Do you learn best reading? Conversation? Movies? Taking a walk and thinking? Be sure what you choose is something that allows challenge and difference to come into your life (“my thoughts are not your thoughts.”)
Assignment for next week.
*Pray minimum of 10 minutes a day.
*Pray for your prayer partner every day, call them on Tuesday and Friday.
*Continue prayerful work if you choose.
*One hour of worship a week.
*One hour of intentional learning (you can break it up any way you like).
When you talk with your prayer partner, ask them: "Tell me about what you are learning." not just “are you doing it?”
We started off for 15 minutes in small groups talking about these questions, then came back to the large group for sharing.
I - Check in on prayer – how is it going? What are you noticing? Barriers/gifts? What was it like to pray on the question “Jesus, who are you?”
II - process the worship experience from last week. Describe it to any in your group who weren’t there. What did you notice? How did it feel? What about our Cathedral liturgy most feels like communal worship and not individual prayer? Did you experience Sunday worship differently after last week?
Guiding Scripture
Is there anyone among you who, if your child asks for bread, will give a stone? Or if the child asks for a fish, will give a snake? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him! (Matthew 7:9-11)
We have everything we need. Our creation story tells us that God has given us all we need and we lack for nothing. We have access to wisdom. It is all around us. As Eucharistic Prayer C says “From the primal elements you brought forth the human race, and blessed us with memory, reason, and skill.” We are made in God’s image. We have forgotten that. We have exalted ourselves instead of God, but we can still get back to that place where we God is at the center of our lives and life. It’s about believing what’s inside us already that we might not know is there.
We need to remember what we have forgotten. We need to return to God. That’s what discipleship is about.
Remember the five spiritual practices or "holy habits" and how they relate to the Great Commandment:
Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength – Pray/Worship
Love your neighbor as yourself – Serve/Give
Learn is the hinge. Learn is that growing in relationship to God. Learn is the reflection that balances action. It takes attentiveness and intention.
Two primary texts for learning:
1) The text of life – attentiveness to the wisdom of God emerging around us
2) Intentional study for which the sole purpose is learning.
It’s the difference between learning on the job and professional development. Both are critical. Frame this in terms of Isaiah 55 – God wooing the people of Israel – saying “this is my dream for you. This is the abundant life I offer” (think John 10:10).
Sometimes it helps to hear it a different way. Here is the way a modern translation – Eugene Peterson’s “The Message” translates it:
Note a couple things:
*This is for everyone. Growth is for everyone. God is for everyone.
*Don’t spend your money on junk food. (You are what you eat).
Read Galatians 5:16-26. What do you take into your body? Not just food but all the different messages. What do you read, watch, listen to? It all shapes you. It all makes you either self-centered or Christ-centered. Is what you take into your body fostering the fruits of the Spirit or is it leading you into what Paul calls the works of the flesh? Be aware! What we need is here … but a lot of stuff we don’t need is here, too. Be discerning. Help each other.
Our whole economic system is based on convincing us we need poison and that we have to sell all we have to buy it – not just our money, but our time, our focus, our all. Eat only the best. Fill yourself only with the finest
*Seek a wisdom that is higher than our own. It is within us, but it is buried deep. Hays Rockwell used to say "The image of God is in every person, but sometimes it is in deep, deep disguise." Seek it out. Seek it out in conversation. Seek it out in intentional study. Slow down. Reflect. Ask questions. What do you notice?
For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.
This is about looking for a different way of thinking. How might Christ see this? Where is Jesus in this for me? For my community? For the world?
The “holy habit” of Learn takes two forms:
-the text of life
-other texts intentionally chosen and time spent with.
Not just action (buzzing through it) but time in reflection. Small pieces.
We went into small group for 15 minutes more and talked about these questions, then back to large group for sharing:
*What in your life is junk food and what is “only the finest”? Is a little junk food OK? What does your diet look like?
*What is your learning style? Do you learn best reading? Conversation? Movies? Taking a walk and thinking? Be sure what you choose is something that allows challenge and difference to come into your life (“my thoughts are not your thoughts.”)
Assignment for next week.
*Pray minimum of 10 minutes a day.
*Pray for your prayer partner every day, call them on Tuesday and Friday.
*Continue prayerful work if you choose.
*One hour of worship a week.
*One hour of intentional learning (you can break it up any way you like).
When you talk with your prayer partner, ask them: "Tell me about what you are learning." not just “are you doing it?”
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