At Pulpit Rock, we deal seriously with Scripture. And we also know that many of us have inherited ways of reading Scripture that appear to be serious, but sometimes make it easy for us to miss the bigger picture of what God is doing. And even miss the words he speaks directly to us.
Our prayer is that as whenever we open the book, we will resist the temptation to read in ways that paint pictures of a comfortable Jesus who looks more or less like who we hoped he would, but rather that we allow God to reveal Himself to us, even – and especially – when the God we encounter turns our world upside down. The God who speaks still, and we who listen and respond.
In a recent blog post, I wrote: “Spiritual formation includes understanding the role of the Bible in our lives, learning new practices of hearing God, and walking with God in a venture of self-discovery, to understand how God is working in and through us.”
When I mentioned “the role of the Bible,” I was referring to thinking well about how God intended the Bible to be used in our spiritual formation. Certainly one important role the Bible has is in the use of preaching. Where we are fed through the hard work and study of others. Small group classes or discussions set around the Bible allows us to invite others into our spiritual journey that we might learn from one another.
This February we would like to introduce you to some new spiritual practices that center around the ways we allow the words of God to shape us.
For three Sundays in February, we will be offering what we’re calling Spiritual Formation Experiences. Each Sunday at both 9:00 AM and 10:30 AM in Room 101, we will take some time to introduce a spiritual practice, answer some questions about it, and then most importantly, practice it together. No need to sign up … just show up at one of the two hours (content for both is the same.)
The schedule is:
- February 2 – The Prayer of Examen: Learning to become aware of God‘s presence in our lives.
- February 9 – Creative Expression in the Word: How art unlocks our understanding of the creativity of God.
- February 16 – The Divine Mentor: Reading God‘s word with a listening heart.
If one of your next steps in 2020 is to step into some new rhythms, then these practices might help you do that. To find out more, email me.
