HopeGateWay

When we open ourselves to the joy and pain of others, it helps us to understand our own joy and own pain. We can only let go of the power of seeing the world through own own limited view, when we recieve the joy and pain of another as our own. This is what Jesus meant when he said, "Love One Another."

Less consumption, more compassion. Richard Foster writes, "Fasting helps us keep our balance in life. How easily we begin to allow nonessentials to take precedence in our lives. How quickly we crave things we do not need until we are enslaved by them.” What non-essentials have taken precedence in your life? What things have crowded their way to the center, until you feel like you’re enslaved by them? How can you set these things aside through the practice of fasting? Where can you cut back on consumption so you make space for compassion?

What if we really had the wisdom to accept the things we cannot change and the courage to change the things we can. How would our lives be different? We might move into a whole new reality, or we might be able to accept the reality we have for what it is. Acceptance brings us peace. Jesus embodied acceptance even as he worked for change.

Over and over in the Gospels we see an ebb and flow – Jesus is attracting great crowds, he’s teaching and healing, and everywhere he goes, people are following him. Over and over, in at least eight places recorded in the Gospels, Jesus leaves the crowds behind, he sneaks away to a deserted place, all by himself, to pray, to seek the comfort of solitude, to invite God to renew his spirit. For Jesus there was a back-and-forth rhythm, between action and contemplation. How about you? How might you draw closer to God through solitude and silence? Less noise, more listening...

We all need to make a space for grace in our hearts, in our lives, for ourselves. We need to confess so that we can be open the forgiveness we long for. We need to make space for grace all around us. We need to share grace with others.

Hope.Gate.Way. has tried to live by a series of Core Values. The first of which is Community. True community is something rare and wonderful, but is a reality among us. What makes community? How can we each contribute to community? The message this week also includes some great sharings from various people in the community.