Well, you are probably thinking one of two things right about now.
And they are probably both right.
I have not been as disciplined in my evangelism in this second week of Lent.
I had a big first week of Lent, and frankly, I took some time to reflect. I have made contact with a number of evangelical ministries in the NYC area. This is a bit more difficult than I thought. There is some unwillingness, on both sides, to engage each other in deep conversation. We each have our theological perspectives, now I am not saying one is right and one wrong, of course I have my biases. But our differences are complicated to navigate.
Yet this entire experience, to is to try to shed off the asinine and find common ground. It is an endeavor to seek a centrality of the Truth.
So I have needed some time to reflect, and see what my trajectory may be.
I have been meditating much more lately. I must tell you that I am in a class on the art of Christian meditation, so there is a requirement. Although I had tried meditation before, learning and practicing multiple techniques, from the traditions of both Eastern and Western Christianity, has been extremely fruitful both in Lenten reflection and most certainly in preaching preparation.
I gave a sermon in my preaching class today, in which I was assigned the proper (readings) from the Book of Common Prayer for the Unity of the Church. Those readings include Ephesians 4:1-6 & John 17:15-23.
We hear of Paul’s reminder that we are all of ‘one body, one Spirit…one hope…one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God”(para. Eph 4:4-5) In John 17, Jesus, the Christ, prays himself that we may be one, as He and the Father are one.
One.
The body is a complicated organism. How much more complicated an organism is the body of Christ?
And yet, it is one.
I am sorry that I have not kept the discipline well as I had hoped. Please forgive me. Join me in praying for Christ to ever make manifest his presence in our lives, so that our disciplines are but joys in the service of Him who loved us first.
In the Light of Christ,
striving for Unity
(more to come)
mac
40 Days of Evangelism 