Confession

by Ken Kelley

After a great rehearsal of Lenten music with the bell choir last, I went home with a smile on my face and a song in my heart. Some of you probably think it rather odd that the music of Lent, or anything else on our Lenten journey, would be cheerful. We’re practicing 3 different versions of “What Wondrous Love Is This” which ends, ”and when from death I’m free, I’ll sing and joyful be, and through eternity I’ll sing on, I’ll sing on, and through eternity I’ll sing on.”

Yes, we must go through Good Friday before we can get to Easter. As we journey toward Easter (resurrection), we confess and we repent (turn a new way-- toward God).  I came across a prayer of confession this week written by Dr. C. Welton Gaddy and pray that you will find it meaningful: 

Prayer of Confession

God, forgive my incompleteness:
not growing in Christ,
not expanding my knowledge of the Scriptures,
not developing all my talents.

God, forgive my disinterest:
a lack of concern for needs around me,
apathy regarding the lostness of millions,
blindness to hurts I could help heal.

God, forgive my dishonesty:
taking the easy way rather than the right way,
speaking in one manner while living in another,
silencing truth to preserve tranquility,
settling for less than what is best,
loving tradition more than obeying your pioneering Spirit.

God, forgive my loudness:
talking when I should be listening,
proclaiming when I should be studying,
busying myself with new tasks
when I should be finding a quiet place to rest.

God, forgive my silence:
feeling love and failing to whisper it,
reeling with joy and not shouting hallelujah,
knowing truth and forfeiting an opportunity to share it,
sensing a need to share my faith and squelching the impulse.
God, please forgive me.

I pray that you will:
have your complacency challenged as you turn toward God, find a place of peace,
and share your joy and God’s love with the world.

Godspeed,
Ken

At-ONE-ment with God

By Rev. Eric Folkerth

Lent is *supposed* to be about “turning a new way.”

Unfortunately, for too many people, we grew up believing it was about “feeling bad.”

There’s a big difference between the two. And that difference is summed up in this year’s theme for Lent at Kessler Park: “At-ONE-ment.”

The word that gets thrown around a lot during Lent is “repentance.” And unfortunately, perhaps this word, more than any other, has messed up Christians along the way.

To “repent,” for far too many of us, has come to mean “to feel bad.” 

But that’s not actually what repentance is. The word’s most literal meaning is “to turn in a new way.” There’s no emotional baggage to it, whatsoever.

(Or, there doesn’t, by definition, have to be…)

It’s a decision, or a calling by God, to move in a new direction in life, through our actions, and how we live.

Somewhere over the years, though, that whole meaning got lost. My fantasy is that hundreds of years ago, there were clergy who felt like people weren’t feeling bad ENOUGH. So they doubled-down on making people feel bad for their choices during Lent, and the whole season became pretty dark and depressing.

Somewhere along the way, the Church took the whole season of Lent into a very somber and serious place. “Turning in a new way” got replaced with “feeling bad.”

Please understand me, all this is not to minimize feeling sorrow for our past-actions, regretting past mistakes, and most importantly apologizing and making amends with those we have harmed. They are DEEPLY important for us and for those around us.

But too often we stop before we are done. Too often, we get caught in what psychologists sometimes call a “shame spiral.” We *excel* at feeling bad. We spiral down into shameful thoughts that paralyze us. We can’t stop thinking and ruminating on past actions we regret. Even worse, others of us feel an overwhelming sense of shame about our personhood and life, that come from harmful messages we internalized from others. Some of us feel shame ALL THE TIME. 

So, Lord knows, we don’t need the CHURCH piling on.

The “shame spiral” is paralyzing.

But, don’t miss this huge irony….it also keeps us from true “repentance!” It keeps us from moving in new ways which lead to life, health, wholeness and love.

So, this Lent, we’ll be focusing more on “repentance” in its original meaning: “To turn in a new way.”

And we won’t be focusing at all on it’s cultural meaning —“To feel bad or shameful”— at all.

When we “turn in a new way,” when we reconnect with God and feel God’s presence in our lives, it creates “At-ONE-ment.” with God….being ONE with God…connected to God at a deep and real level. We remember that however God created us, we are GOOD children of God. God wants us to do things that give us life, freedom and happiness. God wants us to be AT ONE with God.

That’s the real meaning of Lent. And I hope you’ll join us for worship this season as we unpack all of this over the coming weeks.

Grace and Peace,

EF

Ash Wednesday

I believe Ash Wednesday is the most honest day of the Christian year. It’s the day we speak most clearly about the truth of our earthly lives:

“We are dust, and to dust we shall return.”

Think about it for a moment. It’s a remarkably blunt and honest observation. We are mortal. We are frail. Our bodies, as we age, will start to fail in a number of ways that we will not be able to control. 

The only difference between us and the dirt is this remarkable “breath of life” that moves in and out of us. But, one day, that breath will cease, and our bodies will return to the ground.

Yes, our faith is grounded in a belief that death is *not* the last word on our life. But our faith is also grounded in a realistic honesty about our time HERE….our time on earth.

“We are dust, and to dust we shall return.”

I hope you will prayerfully consider joining us next Wednesday night at 6:30 pm, for our Ash Wednesday worship. We’ll be unpacking these truths more fully. And we’ll be considering the real meaning of Lent.

Lent is not *supposed* to be a time for groveling or feeling bad. It’s a time for “turning in a new direction.” Which is what the word “repent” really, literally, means in the Bible.

Whether we have one day, one week, or twenty years, our earthly time is short. We are dust, and all too soon we shall return to the dust. We remember this so that we might be motivated to “turn in a new way” and turn back toward God.

Whatever time we have left, we still have this breath of life. So USE that time. Live fully into your life in God and your relationships with others. LOVE fully too. 

You should know that your staff will have a busy Ash Wednesday. Our plan is to offer “ashes to go” to the parents of the Kessler School and our PDO Program during the morning. Then, we’ll spend some time in Bishop Arts offering folks the ashes there too, if they want.

Then, as we mentioned, join us at 6:30 for our own worship at Kessler Park. 

Ash Wednesday is a truly important point in our yearly worship cycle. Don’t miss the time to hear the message of honesty and hope:

“We are dust, and to dust we shall return.”

See you Sunday,

EF