Pathways Church Blog

Is the title of this entry bugging you? Can you hardly stand it?

Sometimes we just can’t stand to have things unfinished. Some of you might even be considering taking a Sharpie to your computer screen to finish the word “anticipation” in the title above.

Anticipation of something better to come is a common theme at the core of most religions. Consider these words spoken about Jesus centuries before his birth:

For to us a child is born,
  to us a son is given,
  and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called Wonderful Counselor,
  Mighty God,
  Everlasting Father,
  Prince of Peace. (Isaiah 9:6)

I don’t think we can fully relate to the national anticipation that Jews felt as they awaited the Messiah. In celebration of the Christmas season, we begin a new series this week on the incarnation — God coming to earth in flesh as Jesus. But, we must start before his birth. We must understand the intense longing and anticipation of his coming as it was foretold for centuries.

What is it about an anticipation and hope for something better that pulls us forward each day?
What does life without a hope for improvement look like?

I received the information below in an email today. In light of some of the things we talked about regarding sacrifice on Sunday, I found it to be quite timely. I hope this is something many of us in the Pathways community will consider visiting:

Can you survive the journey of a child? A World Vision AIDS experience

In the last few months, thousands of people across the nation have been impacted by the World Vision AIDS Experience. Now, this highly acclaimed, 3,000-square-foot exhibit is coming to Seattle in observation of World AIDS Day.

Where: Pier 66, Alaskan Way, Seattle

When: Thursday Dec. 1 – 1pm to 7pm
Friday Dec. 2 – 10am to 7pm
Saturday Dec. 3 – 10am to 7pm

Come walk in the shoes of a child living in an AIDS-affected community in Africa. The stirring audio tour combined with captivating photography and visuals will transport you to the heart of Africa – where you’ll discover that HIV/AIDS is stalking you at every turn. Will you survive? For more information visit: http://www.worldvision.org/actingonaids

As our Core Value reads: “We struggle, but not alone. We search for meaning, but others walk the path alongside us. We partner with God to redeem creation, but we do so in conjunction with others. We sacrifice of ourselves, but must have others to whom we give. The New Testament is filled with teachings on how we are to live with ‘one another’. We laugh together and cry together. We celebrate together and grieve together. We were not meant to journey alone.”

What thoughts strike you as you read this?
In what ways have felt longings for what is described here?
How have you experienced community like this?
Can community be “had for the taking” or must one “buy in”?

I’d be interested in your thoughts.

Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. John 15:13 (TNIV)

This saying of Jesus is simple to understand and difficult to embody. It illustrates the fourth core value of Pathways: sacrifice. Here’s how our description of the value reads:

Here the teachings of Jesus become very unpopular. True love transcends self and ease and therefore requires sacrifice. God first demonstrated that love to us through the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus, on the cross. As an act of worship, and in response, we give our lives, sacrificially, to Him and to those around us. To follow Jesus is to reflect His giving nature; to take more interest in the needs of others than of ourselves.

How have you found this value to be true? How have you found more fulfillment in living for others rather than yourself?
Who is someone that you admire and respect because of their willingness to give of themselves for the sake of others?
If we are called to live a life of sacrifice for others, how do we keep from being taken advantage of?
What keeps us from giving of ourselves for the benefit of others?

Why is it that today, in our culture, the word “Redemption” has been reduced to the point that it is only associated with recycled aluminum cans or coupons? It is such a powerful word in the Scriptures. It is a simple concept but when applied to our lives it is overwhelming. It simply means to pay the price for what was once yours in the first place. It is a restoration to how God desired the world in the first place.

God is a redemptive God. The Scriptures are filled with redemption stories and those stories are not to end within its pages. Your story is to reflect this aspect of our Creator as we participate with Him in the redeptive process. “On earth as it is in heaven”

Share a redemptive story with us (your own or another with which you are familiar).
What does it mean for us to participate with God in redemption?
Let’s discuss.

Last week’s theme is, I hope, far from being wrapped up for any of us. Understanding a greater meaning, and how that should shape our identity and our actions is a huge concept that we should continually be processing.

As we offered last week, here are some book suggestions that might help you further explore this topic:
Searching for God Knows What, by Donald Miller
Mere Christianity, by CS Lewis

Please continue the quest to search for fragments of meaning even in the mundane, and explore how they fit into the great mosaic of Ultimate Meaning. Here are some ideas and questions to help you on that journey:

• After Sherri and I watch a movie, we discuss what truth we saw in the movie. This had led to some engaging conversations in how we understand each other and our world. Whenever you watch a movie or TV show, listen to a song, or read a book, ask yourself what parts of it resonate with your soul. How do those resonating bits fit in to the greater mosaic of Ultimate Meaning?
• Think of close friends of yours who have no interest in “following Jesus”. Where do you see them finding meaning, and how does that meaning fit into the framework of Ultimate Meaning?
• Is is possible to find false meaning in things that have nothing to do with Ultimate Meaning? If so, how can you determine the diffrerence between something that gives false meaning and something that gives true meaning?

If you have any further thoughts to offer — on these ideas or on the topic as a whole — please share them in the comments below.

One final note — for those of you who weren’t able to be at the weekend gathering yesterday, we finally sorted out how to record the message! Visit the podcast page for information on how you candownload it or subscribe to the podcast to automatically download the messages each week.