Beloved: We are in the midst of our sermon series on “Bearing Fruit.” As many of you know, this is grounded in the writings of Bishop Robert Schnase, who wrote the “Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations.” In each section, Bishop Schnase highlights on practice that is at the core of our practice as followers of Jesus. He then tries to rev up the adjectives we use to describe these practices–So, hospitality becomes “radical” hospitality; worship becomes “passionate” worship; faith development becomes “intentional;” mission and service becomes “risk-taking;” and generosity becomes “extravagant.”
I have worked with this concept for a long time, so I decided to tweak things one step farther, and take the adjectives back out. I love the strong words Schnase uses, but because I just received them, rather than wrestling with them myself, I began to wonder what adjectives I would have used. So, each week I am asking each of us “fill in the blank.”
What kind of hospitality am I willing to extend–today?
What kind of worship am I coming prepared to participate in? what do I bring in the door with me? What do I take outside our doors when I leave?
This week, we are on faith development. There are many words for what we mean when we talk about this, but the long and short of it is PRACTICE. What time do we set aside to practice the art, craft, life of disciples, so that we become more like the Jesus who has called us? How are we intentionally creating a culture of maturing discipleship? How do we get from “beginning” to “advanced.” And perhaps most important of all–How do I create space in my life for becoming? See you Sunday. Pastor Nancy
Madras United Methodist Chrch 