Session 6

Sometimes my leisure itself has become an anxious, and rushed business. Most often, my rest is restless. Can you have leisure time without anxiety?

Holiday
Holi day
Holy day

The holy day can be a day of evacuation and vacating, rather than rest and joy in the Lord. Perhaps it is not that we need more holidays but rather we need more of a Christlike sense of time; timeliness and timelessness.

Sometimes, I just want to disappear, or allow time to stand still. Do you want, for a few moments, to disappear?

A must - something you MUST do.
A true must constrains or liberates. It brings clarity. It balances playfulness and seriousness. In must there is a freedom and great gladness. For musts, you choose yet have no choice. You and dress yourself and go where you want and let someone else dress you and lead you to where you don't want to go. You live from a center that looses and binds you. It is deeply fulfilling and full of sacrifice.
I long to live like that. What are my musts? What are your musts?

Session 5

Did Adam and Eve fall because they trusted in themselves?

Do we wage war on ourselves, deny self, and die to self rather than run, retaliate, sulk and self destruct?

Thinking about Cain and Abel lately, Genesis 4 ...
Abel's offering was favored, chosen and blessed. Cain was cursed, rejected and scorned for his offering but he was still PROTECTED, KEPT, and WATCHED OVER.
I was recently at a Bible study where someone was blessed with a jogging stroller they had wanted and someone else was blessed with a dress they were looking for and had received as a gift. I sat there and started to think...where is my blessing? This isn't fair. Then fought with...God you are good and just. You love me. You give me what I need. You are faithful.
God's eyes are never off of us, his beloved children.

Is life fair? Is God fair? or is God just? Where do we get the idea that God is fair? Some assume and only expect the lovey dovey, no hardship on us just our enemies, kind of God.
Justice isn't always fair. If someone is murdered, someone is missing. It's not fair for anyone. It is fair for us to die for our 'sins' - disobedience to God?

Do the right thing. What is the right thing? Quit your sulking; stop the self pity; have a right attitude; offer thankfulness, kindness, and generosity; give ourselves into his keeping and entrust our riches, children, homes and lives. What is the right thing? Faith. Do the right thing.

God's definition of wellness isn't about health, finances or job security.
"...it is well with my soul..."

Holiness is truth and God's wisdom in the inmost place. Are you Holy?

Good behavior can be our true self exposed or our true self concealed. Which is it for you?

Session 4

Unless we see or touch or experience, there is a shade of doubt.

Skepticism = looking at a matter closely, study something with great care and detail.
Perhaps the church needs more skepticism.
You have heard 'don't always believe what you hear'.

The holy wild = God hungry doubts that pull us to our knees, force us into the word, and we wrestle with God until we receive a blessing.

Miracles in the Old Testament usually created distance rather than intimacy.
People who saw Jesus' miracles were still unsure to follow.

Is the depth of our doubt roughly porpotional to the depth of our faith?

We can be off the fence and still have questions, can't we?

Deny death, cloak sickness, hide old and decrepit away...today's culture shuns wounds and takes offence at a God who associates with suffering, blood and heartache. Some would rather see him do stunts, tricks, give blessings and cater to our every prayer and need rather than observe a God who participates in roughousing, battlefields and befriending losers.

When doubt is replaced with faith and truth, is our response worship?