secular sacraments
If we are very fortunate, every now and then our senses encounter a moment of beauty so transcendently marvelous that the experience becomes for us a portal or gate to the eternal. Wordsworth saw in such moments an "intimation of immortality," a memory of the soul's eternal existence before our birth, when "trailing clouds of glory, we come from God." Celtic Christianity described the event more biblically as a "thin space" or "thin place" where whatever separates the seen and unseen dimensions becomes almost transparent.
Pilgrim HeartChristianity is far more than a set of beliefs or a compelling intellectual vision; it is also a comprehensive way of life." This premise both motivates and informs author Darryl Tippens, who in his delightful new book Pilgrim Heart presents "an invitation to consider afresh what it means to live like Jesus."
self-examination
The purpose of the church, the Christian life, believers meeting together, grace-gifts, recognized leadership, and all the spiritual disciplines, is to make us more and more like Jesus. With that in mind, we are to examine and purify ourselves (2 Cor. 13:5; 7:1). While an Oxford student in 1729-1730, John Wesley wrote a list of questions for his own self-examination, and later refined the questions for use in his small groups. This regular exercise in self-examination was one of Wesley's "methods" that gave rise to the nickname "methodist." Today, nearly three centuries later, Wesley's 21 questions are still as applicable and challenging as the day he first wrote them.
the essence (five gracEmails)
On your last day of life on earth, what will have really mattered? In the face of a myriad daily demands for time and energy, what is most worthy of our attention? "My faith," you say. "Spiritual matters. Things that last for eternity." But what is the core of our faith? What is the essence of Christianity? Not in a theoretical sense but in terms of every-day life. What does God want most from us? Can we possibly get a handle on human existence at its best -- an earthly life that brings joy to God and satisfaction to us?