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Please take a moment with me to ponder "The Greatest Story Ever Told"
"Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
and they shall name him Emmanuel,"
which means, "God is with us."
Matthew 1:23 (Isaiah 7:14b)
(From the book
Taize: Worship Feast, Abingdon Press)
What an amazing story! Imagine what Mary and Joseph must have thought about the news that God was coming to earth..... The greatest part of the story is that God chose to come in the first place... God came and we can know a peace beyond understanding. God came and we are forgiven. God came and the oppressed and impoverished have a Savior and Advocate. God came--and we will live forevermore.
Think about your favorite part of the Christmas story. Is it the angels? the wise men? the shepherds? the journey to Bethlehem? Now reflect on God's choosing to come at all- coming to make a way for a restored relationship. What is the significance of the story for you? How will you respond to the greatest story ever?
Prayer: "God who came to earth, come to us again and again through your Holy Spirit.
Be with us even now.
Write us into your holy story and help us live empowered by the truth of our forgiveness and eternal life. Thank you for coming to our world. Welcome, Lord Jesus Christ. Amen."
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What's new and EXCITING!!! at the Resource Center?
Imagine a New Economy
, by John D. Herman, is a study guide intended for use by small groups and individuals who want to wrestle with the struggle between heart and treasure. The series is designed to immerse participants in the biblical readings which deal with our relationship to and use of our money and possessions. The daily readings, questions, and prayers provide the opportunity for a continued interplay between the participant, the Word, and the Spirit. The reflective questions at the end of each of the 13 chapters invited discussion and interaction within a small group. Along with small groups, this study can be used in several creative ways; a year-long stewardship study for your Stewardship Team; a worship or educational series about stewardship, generosity, simplicity, money or materialism; a senior HS ministry focus on life goals and pursuits; and more!
"This is an intriguing invitation to engage a new economy as described by God through Scripture
and based on the core beliefs that everything belongs to God and all is a gift from God.
As followers of God's word, we are entrusted with living into this new economy through our daily decisions and the conversations we have in community with others."
-Keith A. Mundy, Program Director, Stewardship (ELCA)
Send an email to me at the Resource Center, asking for "Imagine a New Economy" to get your hands on this new and thought provoking book, published in 2016! Each day I come in to the Resource Center I read another of the entries, I have yet to be disappointed!
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