In Plain View

Week One Focus: Choosing a time and place for contemplative prayer.

Is it possible to experience contemplative prayer at any time and in any place?  Yes!  In fact, we should adopt contemplative prayer as a mindset throughout each day.  However, the reality is that it is difficult for most of us, especially beginners, to focus deeply enough without taking some steps to eliminate distractions.  Even the experts need to set aside a special time and place in addition to the practice of contemplative prayer throughout the day.  The act of scheduling a time and place for contemplative prayer makes it a central part of the plans for your entire day and assist us in having our minds and hearts prepared when the anticipated time arrives.  A mind that is harassed and fragmented by external affairs is hardly prepared for contemplative prayer.
Choose a time that will likely be free of interruptions and when your mind is clear.  The best time is when the children are asleep, or the family is out of the house.  For most people, early morning is the best time, but others do well with contemplative prayer at night or even as a break during the day.  The key is quietness, a clear mind, and keeping your scheduled appointment with God.
The choice of a place is equally important.  It should be a place of peace and quite without any distractions.  A tranquil outdoor setting is good, but comfort should be considered.  If you choose a place inside your home or office, be sure to turn off all phones and other devices.  If you cannot completely disconnect from the world, it is a good practice to involve a trusted friend or spouse in guarding your quite time.  They can handle distractions by simply saying, “he/she is in prayer now, can I take a message.”
This week, set aside a time and place and begin by reading your Bible, say your normal prayers and then sit quietly for a few minutes and listen for the voice of God.  Next week we will focus on the process of contemplative prayer.

Adapted from Celebration of Discipline by Richard J. Foster

January Focus: Contemplative Prayer

Perhaps nothing robs us of the fullness of life more effectively than the distractions of noise, hurry and crowds.  These prevent us from perusing anything more than the superficial elements of life.  Many of us have become so accustomed to the distractions that we become anxious if we are alone without some kind of noise like a television or radio playing in the background.  If we are going to have fullness of life as God intends we must make a conscience effort to return to the type of quite contemplative prayer practiced in the Bible by the prophets, by the apostles and by Jesus himself.
Contemplative prayer is not related to mysticism and even differs from the more well-known traditional Christian prayers of adoration, confession, thanksgiving and supplication.  Contemplative prayer is the ability to hear God’s voice and obey his word.  It involves creating a physical, emotional and spiritual place which welcomes Christ to come and creating an inner sanctuary in our hearts where we meet with Him, listen to Him and learn from Him.

Focus on the Spirit

I believe that God means for every Christian to enjoy fullness of life.  Though all of humanity is seeking fullness of life in their own way, few ever find it and most of those who do, find it impossible to keep. Our greatest need today is not for more or better elements of life but for the deeper elements.  It is the deep spiritual elements that are most needed and that are usually missing in our lives.  By focusing on the lost practices of true discipleship and spiritual disciplines, we can rediscover the fullness of life God means for us to have.  These are not new thoughts.  As a pastor I have been concerned about the destructive elements that are having increased influence in the lives of God's people.  After reading Celebration of Discipline by Richard Foster I wanted to find some way to help share some practical suggestions that may be helpful to counter these destructive elements.  As time allows, I will try to include some thoughts on the topic of spiritual disciplines.  As time goes along, feel free to comment or ask a question.

Sailboat Hidden In Plain Site

My wife and I debated on where to store our little sailboat during Christmas so that it would be out of the way of our outside decorations.  There just was not a good way to hid it.  We finally decided to hid it in plain site.  I used rope lights to outline the hull and the rigging.  It kinda looks like a giant Christmas tree.  Then for good measure we added an inflatable tree and snowman.  It may be a little too whimsical, but it has been a lot of fun. Merry Christmas!

The Truth About Halloween (As Best I Understand It)

There is a lot of confusion out there about Halloween and there is no shortage of opinions.  Some see it as a harmless evening of fun, some see it as a dark event that separates us from the light of God and others see it as an excuse to dabble in and promote evil in our world.  Most children, like those at Plain View Elementary see it as harmless fun (article).  Adults see it as an opportunity to act on our latent desires for mild foolishness without the penalty of social rejection that would typically be applied.  For most people Halloween is popular because everyone loves a good time, and I believe the enormity of the group of would be fun seekers is too tempting for those who would "cash in".  Consider this, according to an CNN.com article, Halloween is one of the biggest spending draws of the entire year and is therefore not likely to disappear anytime soon.  But retailers are not alone in their plans to cash in.  Those who wish to show evil in a less negative light use Halloween to lure in some of the unsuspecting and that causes a real Halloween fright for the Christians who try to protect the unsuspecting from those who lurk under the veil of short lived acceptance that comes with Halloween.  What we end up with is two small ends of the spectrum fighting against one another for access to those in the middle majority who are just having a good time.

So what is right?  Obviously, those who seek the dark evil of this world, at Halloween or at any other time, are treading a path separate from God and that is contrary to the life a Christian should live.  But should Christians avoid any and all aspects of Halloween?  Are church sponsored "alternative" events that use the opportunity to share the gospel the way to go or are churches just giving in to the world?

I found a lot of good information on the subject at The History Channel.com and at Wikipedia.  Basically, Halloween began as a pagan celebration of Samhain (pronounced sow-in), in Ireland two to three thousand years ago.  There was an effort by the Catholic Church in the seventy century to overtake the pagan day by introducing All Saints Day to coincide with Samhain.  The day before All Saints Day became known as All-hallows Eve which we know as Halloween.  The effort never really was successful, because people tended to keep the pagan elements and just added them to the Christian elements.  So basically, Halloween is a failed effort to establish a Christian "alternative" to the pagan celebrations.  We are still trying to to that today.

Some churches ignore Halloween, some go with the alternative activity approach and some fight against it entirely.  I believe as the Bible says, that it is wrong to pursue the dark evil of this world, however I do not feel it is wrong to use the opportunity of Halloween to point toward the Light.  If it takes handing out some candy while dressed like a clown walking an invisible dog to get that opportunity, then I say go for it.  I do not argue against any well meaning Christan brother or sister who disagrees (article) with that stance, because I see their point as well.  Ultimately, I hope it is the mission of all Christians to bring as many as possible into the Light.

Happy All-hallows Eve and "Trunk-OR-Treat"!