Quietness and Rest – A Great Christmas Gift

Maybe it is just because of the busyness of the last few weeks, or because Tom & I have just booked accommodation for our annual Advent retreat, but I have been thinking a lot lately about the need for rest and quietness in our lives.  I think particularly as we move into what is generally [...]

Advent is Coming – Will You Join Me?

Tom and I are finally done with our travels.  It is good to be back in Seattle and getting my clock and my life turned around after our hectic Fall schedule.

I came back to beautiful orchids in bloom which certainly lifted my spirits when I considered the mountain of work that awaits me…. and it [...]

A garden of solitude

It is a beautiful evening in Seattle and I am sitting watching the sunset over the Olympic mountains.  It is great to have a quiet moment as Tom & I will be travelling again tomorrow to Eastern Mennonite University in Harrisonburg Virginia.  This will be our last trip until after Christmas for which I am [...]

What Is A Spiritual Practice: The Complete Series

September is rapidly coming to a close or at least is seems so to me because we will be heading to Australia next week – for once heading into spring and not winter on our travels.  Before I go I wanted to round off the summer blog series What is a Spiritual Practice with a [...]

Walk to Bethlehem During Advent

Advent is still a couple of months away but here is a really cool idea I heard about this last weekend that would not only prepare us spiritually for the birth of Christ but also physically and emotionally.
A Walk to Bethlehem is an Advent resource developed by St John’s Health Parish Nursing.  The initial concept [...]

Lectionary Resources

If you are like me you are always looking for resources that help you understand the lectionary.  Here is a great list of lectionary resources put together by Bosco Peters in New Zealand.  I particularly appreciate the international nature of the resources.  I would heartily recommend Bosco Peter’s site Liturgy as a great place for [...]

Virtual Eucharist: Is this a Spiritual Practice?

In the light of my recent blog posts on what constitutes a spiritual practice I thought that I need to highlight this fascinating discussion currently going on across several blogs about whether or not we can legitimately celebrate the Eucharist on the internet.  Mark Brown CEO of the NZ Bible Society posted this article a [...]

Another Prayer for Ascension & Pentecost

I cannot remember if I posted this prayer before but as it seemed to be an appropriate one for the season I did not think that you would mind if I posted it again as it affirms both the ascension of Christ and God’s new resurrection created world.  It is part of the evening prayers [...]

Prayers from Ascension Day

Tomorrow is Ascension Day, the day on which we remember Jesus ascension into heaven 40 days after he rose from the dead.  What I did not realize is that for many this is also a celebration of the new creation that God brought into being by the ascension of Jesus.  What beautiful imagery to carry [...]

A Prayer for Pentecost

Here is a litany adapted from the morning and evening prayers that we use at the Mustard Seed House.  I think that it is an appropriate one to use for Pentecost
_____________________________________
God, the light of your Spirit has fallen upon us, 
The seal of your ownership is on us,
You have placed the Holy Spirit in our hearts.
Like [...]