Culmination of Consumption: 1 Corinthians 13

Dear Pilgrims:

During Lent i have consumed a lot of things. I have consumed a lot of apples and bananas. I have consumed a lot of hours at work. I have consumed a lot of time by surfing the Internet. I have even consumed a lot of television, as i watched March Madness unfold. But does all this consumption make me a better person? More holistic?

No.

We began this journey, through Lent, with the intentions of finding ourselves in the heartbeat of God, desiring to be consumed by the Divine. How have we done? Are our lives fuller because we begin each day immersed in God? Do we feel wiser because we dance with the Creator all day? And are our days healthier and more vibrant because we lay down to sleep in the hands of our loving Father/Mother?

I hope so.

We all know that we consume stuff. Many of us consume at a rate that our waist lines grow and our brain power shrinks. We absorb useless information and miss out on our knowledge of God. And many, if not most, of us wonder why we feel so lost. If we want to know where God wants us, we must begin immersed, wholly, in God. God alone, through our deep dance with Him, brings wisdom, revelation, and above all things: Peace.

We do not need to win that fight when we are overwhelmed with God's serenity.

We will not harm or injure our sisters and brothers, even if they wrong us, when we are wrapped up in the peace of God.

And we will seek the best for even our enemies, when we sit in the walk with our Savior.

Why? Because at the core of loving God, following Jesus, and being consumed by the Spirit is this: we will live lives full of love. Godly love. Sacrificial love. And we will do all we can to ensure that this world, so full of possiblity and potentiality will experience the fullness of Jesus' love through our acts of love.

Love alone has the power to heal brokenness. Love alone invites dialogue that makes peace possible. And love alone accpets the mystery of ministry, knowing love empowers us to sit and wait on God, because God is GOOD! Amen.

Shalom,
jerry

Join us for the celebration of love this Easter at 10:30. But we will begin the Easter celebration with a pancake breakfast at 7:00ish followed by a sunrise service. And we will continue the celebration with the baptism, at Deeter's Nursery in Englewood, OH, of our dear, dear sister. Come let us rejoice and proclaim the goodness of our God.