Local Group for Positive Change

A few months ago I learned about this amazing project here in Portland.

It's called the Winter Cache Project.

Here is their mission:

The mission of the Winter Cache Project (WCP) is to free ourselves from a dependence on industrial agriculture and to increase our community food security by developing sustainable local food systems. By growing and storing our own food to last throughout the winter and educating ourselves about agricultural issues, we aim to create a working example of how we can come together as a community to provide for our basic needs by employing the principles of mutual aid, equal access, and self-determination.

...and a little of how it works:

We are a community group striving for food security. We welcome all community members to contribute to the group, each in their own way. The food that we grow and store is re-distributed back to those who have contributed to the project. We are not a charity organization that gives food away for free. However, we do understand that not everyone is able to help out with the project and these people still deserve fresh and healthy food. We support and contribute organically grown vegetables to the efforts of other local community groups working to make positive social change.

How do you think our efforts as New Light might be similar or in line with the Winter Cache Project's activities?

In our gathering on Monday as we were praying through the newspapers, we discovered that Earth Hour is this Saturday from 8-9pm.

It’s pretty simple, really. You turn off the lights for 60 minutes in order to send a powerful message about the need for action to address global warming. Millions of people from around the world will unite and switch off their lights for Earth Hour.

Switch off your lights on Saturday, March 29th from 8-9 pm. We’ll be enjoying a candle lit evening here at our house. We'll be using this for ideas for what to do during Earth Hour.

There is a rally at Monument Square starting at 7:30 as well. Allen and I won’t be going but maybe a group of you would like to go.

This is a small way we can take a stand for God’s Green Earth.

Our Way of Approaching the Spiritual Life

New Light strives to be a community where we grow deeper in our faith through an inward journey as well as an outward journey. This cross image illustrates, on the horizontal axis, how our faith life calls us to both public and private practices. As shown on the vertical axis, a balanced faith also involves works of mercy (actions of world transformation) and works of piety (actions of personal transformation). For our community, this image provides a guide for a balanced faith - a faith that seeks to love God more deeply and love others more fully.

Some actions fit neatly into one of the four quadrants, but many overflow from one to another. Here are some examples of spiritual practices we encourage:

• Acts of Devotion: personal time spent with God reading Scripture, praying, dancing, listening to music, or writing in a journal. This may include personal disciplines like fasting or meditation.

• Acts of Worship: any time we gather together to give thanks and focus on God's love for us and our love for God.

• Acts of Compassion: volunteering time to care for the needs of others. This might include working at a soup kitchen, giving to someone else from your own possessions, or spending time listening to someone else.

• Acts of Justice: writing letters or calling legislators to advocate for justice for the poor and the oppressed, or to promote peace; making choices to not purchase goods that were made by persons in oppressive conditions.

What do you think about this model for a balanced faith?

Christ is Risen! Risen indeed!

Jesus Christ, we greet you!

Your hands still have holes in them,

your feet are wet from the dew;

and with the memory of our names

undimmed by three days of death

you meet us,

risen from the grave.

We fail to undersand how;

we puzzle at the reason why.

But you have come:

not to answer our questions,

but to show us your face.

You are alive

and the world can rejoice again.

Hallelujah!

Amen!

from Stages on the Way,
Iona Community

(Chicago: GIA Publications, Inc., 2000)

A Prayer for Good Friday

Shock Me with the Terrible Goodness of this Friday

Holy one,

shock and save me with the terrible goodness of this Friday,

and drive me deep into my longing for your kingdom,

until I seek it first —

yet not first for myself,

but for the hungry

and the sick

and the poor of your children,

for prisoners of conscience around the world

for those I have wasted

with my racism

and sexism

and ageism

and nationalism

and religionism,

for those around this mother earth and in this city

who, this Friday, know far more of terror than of goodness;

that, in my seeking first the kingdom,

for them as well as for myself,

all these things may be mine as well:

things like a coat and courage

and something like comfort,

a few lilies in the field,

the sight of birds soaring on the wind,

a song in the night,

and gladness of heart,

the sense of your presence

and the realization of your promise

that nothing in life or death

will be able to separate me or those I love,

from your love

in the crucified one who is our Lord,

and in whose name and Spirit I pray.

— Ted Loder, Guerillas of Grace: Prayers for the Battle

Inspiration from England

So here we are in London, having already spent 10 days in Sheffield, the fourth largest city in England. Finally we have wireless internet!

Sheffield has lots going for it, but it's also a city with some very real urban issues: economic instability, homelessness, middle class flight, racial tension, neighborhoods in decline, and all the symptoms that accompany the transitions when majority populations become the minority. We spent our time not in the city center, where there are resources and where redevelopment efforts are focused, but in outlying areas - specifically the Burngreave neighborhood, now largely a Muslim neighborhood - with trips to various other areas on several occasions.

We're thankful especially for the opportunity to travel one day to Bradford, a once affluent but now struggling industrial city with lots of poverty, also home to the University of Bradford and Bradford College and the site of serious race riots as recently as 2001. We visited the Desmond Tutu House on the edge of the campus, run by a young Anglican priest, Rev. Chris Howson, who is doing some amazing things to help students and other young people connect with spirituality and efforts for peace and justice. Here's a guy who doesn't just talk the talk; he's in the trenches, on the front lines, speaking out passionately with a prophetic message about injustice and a word of hope for the oppressed and forgotten.

Some specifics:

• So concerned about global warming and the depletion of fossil fuels, he doesn't own a car and doesn't drive. He rides his bike and uses public transportation. Period.
  
• We met a young woman, a student, who doesn't consider herself a Christian, but she's been so inspired by Chris that she participates regularly in worship at JustChurch, which focuses on issues of peace, justice, and human rights, and she considers it a spiritual practice to get arrested on a regular basis for standing up for the rights of those on the margins.
  
• The house is also home to Treehouse Cafe, run by the Bradford Centre for Nonviolence, which promotes local, organic, fair trade food. We had a great lunch there!
  
• Sunday worship at the Desmond Tutu House, held at noon, is informal, participatory, and relaxed, intentionally seeking to include those sometimes excluded from the church, including those new to faith, while helping to bridge the gap between personal piety and social justice.

Bradford, England is not Portland, Maine, and every context calls for different kinds of ministries, but it's inspiring to find people who live their passions... whose passions spring from the Kingdom message of Jesus Christ... and who lead communities to proclaim the Gospel of peace and righteousness and justice for all God's children. Our prayer is that New Light will be just that kind of community.

What do you say?

New Light Daily Devotional Readings

Howdy all:

Sorry we're a little behind in posting. As you probably know, we're still in England, and we haven't found wireless internet to be as prevalent as we had expected!

Looking forward to being back with you soon! Happy reading and meaningful reflecting!

Blessings,
Allen & Sara


Guide to Daily Devotions
Week of March 2, 2008

S – Scripture: Read the assigned passage slowly and carefully.
O – Observation: Record observations on the passage… What is the lesson for you?
A – Application: How do these words apply to you in your own life?
P – Prayer: Write a prayer to God concerning this passage and your life.
Y – Yield: What do you need to surrender to God for this lesson to become alive in you?

Daily Exercise:

• Read the assigned Scripture passage.
• Using the SOAPY guide (above), record thoughts and reflections in your journal.
• Pray the Covenant Prayer .

Daily Readings:

Sunday, March 2: John 6: 27-40
Monday, March 3: Mark 7: 24-37
Tuesday, March 4: Mark 8: 1-10
Wednesday, March 5: Mark 8:11-26
Thursday, March 6: Mark 8:27 - 9:1
Friday, March 7: Mark 9: 2-13
Saturday, March 8: Mark 9: 14-29

New Light Daily Devotional Reading

Guide to Daily Devotions

Week of February 17, 2008


S – Scripture Read the assigned passage slowly and carefully.
O – Observation Record observations on the passage… What is the lesson for you?
A – Application How do these words apply to you in your own life?
P – Prayer Write a prayer to God concerning this passage and your life.
Y – Yield What do you need to surrender to God for this lesson to become alive in you?


Daily Exercise:

• Read the assigned Scripture passage.
• Using the SOAPY guide, record thoughts and reflections in your journal/
• Pray the Covenant Prayer .
  
  Sunday, Feb. 17: John 5: 19-24
  
  Monday, Feb. 18: Mark 3: 7-19
  
  Tuesday, Feb. 19: Mark 3: 19-35
  
  Wednesday, Feb. 20: Mark 4: 1-20
  
  Thursday, Feb. 21: Mark 4: 21-34
  
  Friday, Feb. 22: Mark 4: 35-41
  
  Saturday, Feb. 23: Mark 5: 1-20

Welcome to Journey through the Season of Lent!

We've just begun the journey through Lent -- a season of 40 days (not counting Sundays) beginning with Ash Wednesday (super early this year... February 6) and continuing through Holy Week until dawn on Easter Sunday.

For some people, Lent is all doom and gloom -- depressing with its emphasis on giving things up, its focus on repentance and sin and self-denial. We want to suggest a new approach to Lent, though: not doom and gloom, but rather a season filled with opportunity -- opportunity for self-reflection and renewal and recommitment to the way of Jesus and to living a Christ-centered life.

Instead of giving something up this Lent (or in addition to!), how about taking something on? How about taking on a more faithful practice of prayer? How about commiting to a regular practice of reading and reflecting on Scripture, using the Guide to Daily Devotions that we offer here on this blog, or following some other plan for Scripture reading that works for you? How about taking on a practice of spending some time in silence each day -- in a quiet room, going for a walk, even in the car while driving without the radio or CD playing blaring (but keep your eyes open and focused on the road, and your hands firmly on the steering wheel, please!)? These are just a few ways to make this a meaningful season of spiritual preparation.

This is the season in which we remember, on one hand, Jesus' 40 days in the wilderness at the beginning of his ministry, and on the other hand his journey to the cross. Both were times of great difficulty and struggle for him. But for us, the point of Lent isn't, after all, to wallow in misery or suffering or to beat ourselves up for our sinfulness, but rather to look inward in order to prepare our hearts for a deep and joyful experience of Jesus' resurrection on Easter Sunday! Lent invites us to live abundantly!

Here are a few other suggestions for making this a meaningful Season of Lent:

• Skip one meal a day (or fast one day a week) and donate the money you save on food to help feed hungry people through a hunger relief organization.


• Start a prayer “rhythm.” Say a prayer every time you brush your teeth, see a commercial on television, or check your e-mail.


• Read from the Bible every day. (Use the Guide to Daily Devotions.)


• Forgive someone who doesn’t deserve it — maybe even yourself.


• Give up soda or chocolate or TV or something else that will create a hunger in you, as a way of focusing on your hunger for God.


• Spend thirty minutes a day in silence.


• Write someone a thank you letter.


• Plan to visit a home-bound neighbor, a nursing home resident, or an elderly friend weekly during Lent.


• Invite a friend, neighbor, relative, or co-worker to come to a New Light gathering with you.


• Pray for help in resisting racial prejudice, and for the courage to oppose it.


• Tithe: as an act of worship and an expression of gratitude, return 10% of your income to God during this 6-week period.


• Volunteer one afternoon a week at a local shelter, a tutoring program, a feeding ministry, or some other worthy organization.

Lent

Lent is a time to take the time
to let the power of our faith story take hold of us,
a time to let the events
get up and walk around in us,
a time to intensify
our living unto Christ,
a time to hover over
the thoughts of our hearts,
a time to place our feet in the streets of Jerusalem
or to walk along the sea and listen to his word,
a time to touch his robe
and feel the healing surge through us,
a time to ponder and a time to wonder...

Lent is a time to allow a fresh new taste of God!

-- Ann Weems, from Kneeling in Jerusalem

(Louisville, KY: Westminster/ John Knox Press, 1992)

New Light Daily Devotional Readings

Guide to Daily Devotions
Week of February 10, 2008

S – Scripture: Read the assigned passage slowly and carefully.
O – Observation: Record observations on the passage… What is the lesson for you?
A – Application: How do these words apply to you in your own life?
P – Prayer: Write a prayer to God concerning this passage and your life.
Y – Yield: What do you need to surrender to God for this lesson to become alive in you?

Daily Exercise:

• Read the assigned Scripture passage.
• Using the SOAPY guide, record thoughts and reflections in your journal]
• Pray the Covenant Prayer

Readings this week:

Sunday, Feb. 10: John 12: 44-50
Monday, Feb. 11: Mark 1: 1-13
Tuesday, Feb. 12: Mark 1: 14-28
Wednesday, Feb. 13: Mark 1: 29-45
Thursday, Feb. 14: Mark 2: 1-12
Friday, Feb. 15: Mark 2: 13-22
Saturday, Feb. 16: Mark 2:23 - 3:6

This Week's Spiritual Practice

In line with our first week of Living the Questions: Invitation to the Journey and the begining of The Season of Lent (a time of spiritual preparation before Easter) we are going to be walking a labyrinth.

Trinity Episcopal Church Portland will be hosting public Labyrinth walks on:
Wed., February 6th, 11am - 8pm

Take advantage of the hours during the day or in the evening to walk, pray, meditate through the path.

We'll be going at various times through the day. Hope to see you there.

Super Bowl Party

Join us on Sunday, February 3, beginning around 5:00pm at Allen & Sara's house (31 Sheffield Street, Portland) for a fun time of watching football, commercials, and the half time show. We'll have plenty of "alternative" activities for those who aren't football fans as well. Bring your favorite appetizer to share!

Read on for information about our Souper Bowl of Caring service opportunity...

Help us feed hungry neighbors

On Super Bowl Sunday, we’ll also participate in a national effort, called “Souper Bowl of Caring,” to help feed hungry people. The idea is simple: all around the country, churches, schools, and community organizations are collecting non-perishable food and monetary donations to support soup kitchens, food pantries, and hunger relief organizations in their local areas. All of the money collected is donated to a charity selected by the participating organizations — none of the money is sent to Souper Bowl headquarters.

The non-perishable food we collect will be given to Project FEED (Food Emergency Exchange Depot), an emergency food depot located in the basement of Woodfords Congregational Church. Project FEED was founded in 1975 by a group of clergy and lay-people concerned with the growing number of Portland residents who were without a reliable source of food in emergencies. Project FEED is supported by 23 churches and 2 synagogues in the Greater Portland area and is staffed completely by volunteers.

Financial gifts received in the soup kettle will be given to Wayside Soup Kitchen, Maine’s largest soup kitchen, which has been providing nutritious meals to the homeless and poor of Greater Portland since 1986.

In 2007, over 14,500 groups participated in the Souper Bowl of Caring, generating over $8 million. Since the Souper Bowl of Caring began in 1990 as the idea of one local church youth group, more than $41 million has gone to help people in need.

New Light Daily Devotional Reading

We are moving through Scripture using the
S-O-A-P-Y Guide

Here are the daily readings for the next few days.

Friday - January 25: John 4:16-26
Saturday - January 26: John 4:27-42
Sunday - January 27: Mark 7:31-37
Monday - January 28: John 4:43-54
Tuesday - Janary 29: John 5:1-18
Wednesday - January 30: John 5:19-29
Thursday - January 31: John 5:30-47
Friday - February 1:John 6:1-15
Saturday - February 2: John 6:16-27
Sunday - February 3: Luke 9:18-27
Monday - February 4: John 18:15-18, 25-27
Tuesday - February 5: John 18:28-38

Enjoy! & aim for openness as you read.

Living the Questions begins Monday at 5:30

After a false start due to last Monday night's winter madness, we're all set to start the new group, Living the Questions, this week: Monday, January 21, from 5:30-7:30 pm, in the downstairs community room at O'Natural's (83 Exchange Street, Portland).

Learn more about some of the topics we're be exploring in Living the Questions.

Learn more about our community of faith, New Light.

Please join us on Monday evening for great food and a little introduction to this group.

New Light Daily Devotions

Guide to Daily Devotions
Week of January 18-24, 2008

S – Scripture: Read the assigned passage slowly and carefully.
O – Observation: Record observations on the passage… What is the lesson for you?
A – Application: How do these words apply to you in your own life?
P – Prayer: Write a prayer to God concerning this passage and your life.
Y – Yield: What do you need to surrender to God for this lesson to become alive in you?

Daily Exercise:

· Read the assigned Scripture passage.
· Using the SOAPY guide, record thoughts and reflections in your journal
· Pray the Covenant Prayer


Day One: James 1: 1-18

Day Two: James 1: 19-27

Day Three: James 2

Day Four: James 3: 1-12

Day Five: James 3:13 – 4:12

Day Six: James 4:13 – 5:12

Day Seven: James 5: 13-20

Oh, the snow!

The snow is beautiful, but....

Today we were planning on starting our new group at O'Naturals, which is very exciting. But now we have snow, snow, snow. It is only supposed to get worse this afternoon. I called to cancel our food order this morning (since I didn't think many would show up). Allen and I are/were planning to head down just in case anyone shows up, but they told me to call ahead in case they are closed. So....bummer! It looks like a total wash, for today.We'll just act like we were gonna start next week on the 21st and go from there.

It is going to be a great group with some people who have been a part of new light for the past few months and some new people who have yet to connect with us. The conversation is sure to be lively with all the wonderful topics in Living the Questions. The food is always great at O'Naturals. We are going to order sandwiches and soup to share. We'll just have a basket so you can donate what you can to cover the cost of the food. It's making my mouth water just thinking about it. Hopefully they will still be open this evening so at least Allen and I can get some good warm food, on this snowy day.

See you here or there.

This Week's New Light Devotions

Daily Exercise:

· Read the assigned Scripture passage.
· Using the SOAPY guide, record thoughts and reflections in your journal
· Pray the Covenant Prayer


Day One: Acts 9: 1-9

Day Two: Acts 9: 10-19

Day Three: Psalm 29

Day Four: Matthew 3: 13-17

Day Five: Genesis 35: 1-15

Day Six: Jeremiah 1: 4-10

Day Seven: Matthew 12: 15-21

And we're off... 2008 has begun!

Happy New Year! And welcome to this Winter Wonderland!

There's nothing like a good snowstorm (or a whole series of them in rapid succession!) to transform the landscape. So often we get so used to our environment that we fail to see what's all around us, until a blanket of white makes everything new. As the snowbanks grow higher and higher... as the slush under our feet and the tires of our cars forces us to take a slower pace... as the branches of the trees are highlighted in white and glimmering with ice... as our very breath becomes visible... in all these signs of the season, God nudges us to see and experience the world with fresh eyes.

We're so glad you're checking out our New Light blog. If you're visiting for the first time, you'll notice that what follows is a whole series of reflections, one for each day of the Advent Season through which we have recently journeyed. Interspersed with these reflections, you'll find news about some of the ways we have practiced our faith and interacted with our community in the days leading to Christmas. In true blog fashion, these are all mixed together in progression.

Especially we hope you'll notice the invitation to join us for a new Monday night group called "Living the Questions" about to begin on January 14 - 5:30 pm in the downstairs community room at O'Naturals Restaurant (83 Exchange Street, Portland). We'll share dinner each week, watch a short video clip in which some theologians and teachers reflect on questions of faith, and then spend time in discussion and sharing. We hope you'll plan to join us for this group! If Mondays don't work for you, there's another group meeting on Thursday evenings at 6:00 pm at our home (31 Sheffield Street). Newcomers are welcome in both groups!

Please keep checking back for updates! It's so exciting to take on this journey - rethinking what it means to follow Christ. As a community, we're striving continually to love God more deeply and love our neighbors more fully. Welcome to the journey!