Date: 19 Jan 2003
Time: 09:01:28
What in the h ..... does this mean? We are steal creatures of the world, we may live in Christ, but the world is very much with us, we can't escape our bodies (last week), we don't live in a spiritual realm, there is a concreteness to our life. So what is Paul actually saying?
tom in ga
Date: 19 Jan 2003
Time: 11:48:41
Paul was expecting Jesus to return at any moment. Of course he had to deal with this issue when time passed and Jesus did not return. PH in OH
Date: 19 Jan 2003
Time: 18:14:27
tom ... you make me laugh! Your first question is one I frequently aske on first reading Paul!
Blessings, Eric in KS
Date: 20 Jan 2003
Time: 07:57:03
Tom - I'm right there with you! With last week's text I began to tie into the idea of utilizing the spiritual disciplines. I'm going to continue it this week...stop what you're doing and pay attention to what God is communicating, the direction God wants you to go/us to go as a church, etc. Spiritual disciplines help us move the focus from our own needs/desires to God's will. bobbie
Date: 20 Jan 2003
Time: 15:24:46
tom in ga ... the New Interpreter's Bible says this is about detachment.
Whaddya think?
Blessings, Eric in KS
Date: 21 Jan 2003
Time: 07:59:16
Sounds like a withdrawal from society, life and ministering to anyone. But I think it is good advice for starting to meditate. Sort of a clearing of the mind. Nancy-Wi
Date: 21 Jan 2003
Time: 13:05:03
Eric in KS,
How is it that you are so inspired. I am amazed at your quickness and ability to target the scripture so well. Thank you.
Yes, I think detachment will work. Something Jonah had to learn, something that Paul speaks to the Corinthians about (do you think these earthly Christians ever really heard him?), and something that the newly fresh disciples were soon going to learn (but really not too well). O well, we find ourselves in the same boat (oops, the disciples climbed out of that immediately!)
tom in ga
Date: 21 Jan 2003
Time: 13:31:53
detachment, tom, is something we clergy have to learn too....
I just received one of those scathing filled-with-venom notes that blame me for someone else's (the writer's) lack of spiritual growth. Detaching from it ... letting go of the anger and hurt feelings it has caused ... is really difficult. "Let those with parishioners be as though they had none..."????
Blessings, Eric in KS
Date: 21 Jan 2003
Time: 19:41:20
Any thoughts about connecting the phrase "the appointed time has grown short" with our fear of impending war? (The time to prevent war is becoming shorter and shorter...) Or is that too politicized an application? (I tend to avoid overt politics from the pulpit).
DGinNYC
Date: 22 Jan 2003
Time: 07:24:06
As I read this, cant help think about the very prophetic songwriter/singer Paul Simon. "Sound of Silence" Hello darkness me old friend, I come to talk to you again...but my words like silent raindrops fell....and echoed in the wells of silence...and the people bowed and prayed to the neon god then made, and the sun cried out it's warning and the word that it was foring, and the sign said the words of the prophets are written on the subway walls and tenmant halls...and echoed in the wells of silence.... Paul, was a little ahead of his time, or given a prophet voice in the 1960's? Pastor Mary in OHIO
Date: 22 Jan 2003
Time: 12:32:16
Eric, et al... Perhaps it is not really detachment we need, but redirection... As servants of God, if we are sure we have done as God has directed us, then the discomfort or anger of others is really His, not ours. It may even be a sign that we're doing a good job! May God bless and guide you as you discern what, if any, lesson you need to learn from this experience. (been there!) If you find that it isn't meant for you, tehn discard it and get back on track. [I know...easier said than done! :)] As for the passage, I think it needs the same response...if we are eagerly and expectantly awaiting Christ's return, diligently following His lead, emphasizing His teachings, living as He lived, then all the things of THIS life that normally take all our attention, time and energy, will become less important, less urgent, than serving Him. Maybe it is a reminder that He should be our life focus? just wandering thoughts so far.... RevJanet in CNY
Date: 22 Jan 2003
Time: 06:40:15
Eric in KS, Amen. As you know it was this very issue I faced awhile ago. The difficulty of unattaching from the anger of others, feeling drawn into their meanness, placing my projections on to their anger, letting my narcisstic wound to bleed, unable able to free myself from my pain. Detachment is the goal for all of us ... we need help and direction. I think of Friedman's concept of the "non-anxious" presence, which I think is a type of detachment from others: staying connected and yet not sucked into the craziness. Thanks again, tom in ga
Date: 22 Jan 2003
Time: 12:49:22
I appreciate the idea of detachment. I think that is exactly what Paul is after. Now, how do you conceptualize detachment for children? Politics doesn't wash with my 4th grader, and my 1st grader just wants to be in the same political party that I am. It's really about living in the moment. Kids are quite good at that, actually. The congregational sermon could include the importance of being like a child, but that still doesn't help the person giving the children's message. Doing what needs to be done now, without regard to other people, our stuff, or anything but what God wants. Hmmm... Jim in OH
Date: 22 Jan 2003
Time: 18:29:13
Eric, If the note was signed, which would surprise me since you said it was filled with venom, the writer might need to be confronted in some manner, or s/he will likely remain a thorn in the congregation for time immeasurable. S/he has sinned against you, and it may be your reluctant responsibility to follow the advice in Matthew 18. If it was unsigned, maybe the best thing would be to forget it, if possible, or to share it with a trusted (clergy?) friend who can maintain your confidentiality, and help you to detach. Blessings to you. Michelle
Date: 23 Jan 2003
Time: 10:41:16
all of you have been sharing some important stuff! Thanks for your reflections. Eric of KS, sounds like you are doing some good ministry, and being yourself. That is the only way you get scathing letters. I'm praying for you. I'm getting from the discussion, that if you are willing to "detach" from the stuff of this world, and be what God has called you to be (Leaving the time table to God), then as a "less anxious presence," trusting God for our care. Shalom pasthersyl