When I stay at LCLC I have my own unique set up, I have a hammock in the woods that I stay in. I have a hammock tarp that keeps me dry and I do go inside if there is lightning but as I said it's generally pretty rustic. Most every night I build a campfire. That of course requires gathering the wood, building it into a fire, lighting it and then getting it to a stable situation where you just need to add wood as desired. I did set one rule, whatever I gather I burn that night, meaning that every day I start back from Square one. Perhaps it’s my own version of God’s Command in Exodus 16
Then the Lord said to Moses, “I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test them and see whether they will follow my instructions. On the sixth day they are to prepare what they bring in, and that is to be twice as much as they gather on the other days.”
For the Israelites it was to be a reminder that God will provide. A reminder that each new day will bring new blessings from God. What I found was that I made sure to carve out time in the day to gather the wood, as a result I always had time of quiet and respite, moments with God away from the hustle and bustle of the day. Then again at the end of the day as I took time to build the fire and get it going I had more quiet time of quiet contemplation. I found the visual of the fire helpful in contemplating the way God grows in us like a fire, casting off light into the world through the power of the Holy Spirit. Perhaps the most important thing was simply compelling myself to do this self made ritual daily, only if it was raining too hard to light a fire did I take a day off. What I noticed was I truly missed that time with God.
What I have found is that by doing this daily while at LCLC I made sure I had quiet time to reflect, was reminded that God provides daily, I took time with no distractions to pray and find God’s presence in my life. I was experiencing what the Prophet Jeremiah Wrote in the 29th chapter
Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.
The phrase that oftentimes gets used to talk about this practice is “Spiritual disciple”. I like that term particularly the understanding of discipline to mean training or self control, not punishment. We should seek opportunities to have the self control to develop our Spirituality. Time that we set aside to grow in our relationship with God and our understanding of who God is in the world.
Lent is almost upon us as I write and I share this story of me building a fire to encourage you to find your own spiritual discipline. It can be something that fits into your day to day life. You could turn the radio off on your morning commute, or when you are preparing meals in quiet. You could quilt, craft, build or tinker. Just pick something that you do or plan to do and make it a quiet time where you can think about who God is in your life. The challenge is having the discipline to do it daily. But I assure you that when you do you will be like the People of Israel in Exodus learning that God truly provides and you will experience the words that Jeremiah wrote God will find you.
Peace, Pastor Jamie
Then the Lord said to Moses, “I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test them and see whether they will follow my instructions. On the sixth day they are to prepare what they bring in, and that is to be twice as much as they gather on the other days.”
For the Israelites it was to be a reminder that God will provide. A reminder that each new day will bring new blessings from God. What I found was that I made sure to carve out time in the day to gather the wood, as a result I always had time of quiet and respite, moments with God away from the hustle and bustle of the day. Then again at the end of the day as I took time to build the fire and get it going I had more quiet time of quiet contemplation. I found the visual of the fire helpful in contemplating the way God grows in us like a fire, casting off light into the world through the power of the Holy Spirit. Perhaps the most important thing was simply compelling myself to do this self made ritual daily, only if it was raining too hard to light a fire did I take a day off. What I noticed was I truly missed that time with God.
What I have found is that by doing this daily while at LCLC I made sure I had quiet time to reflect, was reminded that God provides daily, I took time with no distractions to pray and find God’s presence in my life. I was experiencing what the Prophet Jeremiah Wrote in the 29th chapter
Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.
The phrase that oftentimes gets used to talk about this practice is “Spiritual disciple”. I like that term particularly the understanding of discipline to mean training or self control, not punishment. We should seek opportunities to have the self control to develop our Spirituality. Time that we set aside to grow in our relationship with God and our understanding of who God is in the world.
Lent is almost upon us as I write and I share this story of me building a fire to encourage you to find your own spiritual discipline. It can be something that fits into your day to day life. You could turn the radio off on your morning commute, or when you are preparing meals in quiet. You could quilt, craft, build or tinker. Just pick something that you do or plan to do and make it a quiet time where you can think about who God is in your life. The challenge is having the discipline to do it daily. But I assure you that when you do you will be like the People of Israel in Exodus learning that God truly provides and you will experience the words that Jeremiah wrote God will find you.
Peace, Pastor Jamie
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