Help support the vision of Woodland Hills Community Church!

Help support the vision of Woodland Hills Community Church!
For those of you who would like to support the vision & ministry of Woodland Hills Community Church (the faith community I serve that continues to encourage me to minister outside the box), please click on the link just above.

Wednesday, March 26

Today’s Lectionary Readings: Psalm 97; Micah 7:7-15; Luke 24:28-35; 1 Corinthians 15:30-41; Psalm 99

Growing up as a child in the mainline church, I didn’t experience a whole lot of ritual. We basically had just two rituals that we observed; we had a monthly Communion service and an occasional baptism. Outside those two events, we rarely incorporated ritual into our spiritual lives. Needless to say, when I use to experience this morning’s story about the two who recognized Jesus in the breaking of the bread it was difficult for me to relate to the story since Communion wasn’t really an experience for me. Instead, it was something we did on the first Sunday of the month that usually made church run 15 minutes longer than usual. As I’ve gotten older, however, I’ve realized the importance of ritual in our spiritual lives. Rituals help move us to a different place in our spiritual lives – a place dominated not by just one dimension of our being (i.e. the head) but a place where all three dimensions meet (i.e. the head, heart, and spirit). The growing importance of ritual in my life has really helped me unpack today’s story. For encountering the living presence of Christ requires one to move from a one-dimensional approach to our spiritual life into a three-dimensional approach to our spiritual life. Today I invite you to consider what role ritual plays in your own spiritual life. Think about what insights into God you’ve gained through your participation in ritual. (When I say ritual, I don’t mean Communion & Baptism – I mean every sacred act created intentionally to facilitate an experience of God). And as you perhaps consider expanding the role of ritual in your life, remember you don’t need an ordained clergyperson to help you establish and carry out a ritual. All you need is an open heart and a willing spirit. If you pursue those things you might just have an unexpected encounter with God on a level you never knew existed! Til next time…

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