The Gospel? By all means…it goes without saying. (Cherry Picking – Part 1)

It’s always fun for me when Susan posts provokatively (okay…all her post provoking – even if they just provoke a hunger for cinnamon buns) and she hits on a topic that is also on Becky’s mind and my mind (Becky – glad you are back from NYC and blogging away).

So today the topic is leap-froggin from church to church and Susan rightly emphasizes that in our consumerist mentality we tend to shop for the church that is cherry picked just for me.

Blizzards and Bonhoeffer…

“This text speaks

of the birth of a child,

not the revolutionary deed

of a stong man,

or the breath-taking discovery

of a sage,

or the pious deed

of a saint.

It truly boggles the mind:

The birth of a child

is to bring about the great transformation of all things,

is to bring salvation and

redemption to all of humanity.” – Dietrich Bonhoeffer

More on the Gospel…and the Contemplative

Tim Keller nails it! (HT: Justin Taylor).

The Gospel is my nourishment. Keeping my eyes focused on my Savoir and who he is and what he has done and the fact that I now have intimacy with him 24/7/365 (yes, even while doing laundry and cleaning toilets) is what mends my broken heart and transforms my focus from an inward one to an outward one. Engaging in contemplative mind-altering states (such as centering prayer) or practicing a silence in which I watch my thoughts from a distance like watching clouds is not a discipline advocated or supported by Scripture. “Going deeper” is not some advanced spiritual technique (like it is for eastern pagan religions) but a long, slow process in which we engage God with our entire being, through His Word, and through prayer, and community, and service, and evangelism and through enjoying his ever present presence. But it all starts with the Gospel, grows through the Gospel and culminates with the Gospel.

The Gospel…

At the end of the day, when I’m weary, when my bones ache and I haven’t the energy to drag myself to bed…I need to hear the Gospel.

In the midst of a crazy, hectic day filled with demanding clients and a fitful four year old and sassy six year old…I need to hear the Gospel.

Drinking in the word!!!

I stumbled upon this passage fairly recently.  It needs no follow up comment from me.

“As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth;  It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it” (Isaiah 55:10-11, NIV).