Journey Church

Mary walks in the favor and tension bestowed on her by her God.  In that tension she experiences grace and redemption offered through the death of her son.

Just like the star which can only be seen in the night sky, hope is most often found in adversity.  When we are at the end of ourselves, do we find ourselves sinking or do we cling to the promises of God?

 

 

Our church has for sometime stretched out it’s hand of mercy.  But what about Justice?  Where and how are we supposed to exert our influence? Jesus came to earth for the sake of the oppressed.  What are we doing to serve that purpose?

We are not designed to hide in comfort.  Our mission is to enter a world of suffering, to empathize. To engage.  We must have eyes to see hurting people and meet them at their point of need.

Pastor Jamie reads from Jesus’ teaching on how salt flavors and preserves and how light guides and reveals.  We are called to add value to other people’s lives.  (This is a brief message from our Pastor as its conclusion was given by our church family celebrating and affirming those who had been salt and light in their lives.)

Church community is a gathering around the person of Jesus and the sharing of his Spirit.  At Journey we will dwell in those communities, we call them soul environments.  For us, this is imperative.  Nobody survives in isolation.

We must practice living.  Spiritual practices are about staying awake. Spiritual practices are about movement.  We are stuck because we are not moving.  Moving takes faith.

All enjoyment naturally spills out into praise. God is calling us to delight in Him, not because He needs our praise – He is not deficient in anyway. Celebrating Him is yet another gift He offers us.

Advent was meant to create some stirrings in us. Waiting. Anticipation. Expectation. Preparation. Longing. All for the moment that God comes to the earth as a man. Now, what do we get to look forward to? Renewal.

Simeon, guided by the Spirit, has been longing for Messiah. Holding on to hope. His confession of faith transitions him from hope to joy and peace.