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May 17
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The First Step in Listening to God…STOP

Posted on Sunday, May 17, 2009 in Male Spirituality

“Remember the Sabbath Day and keep it HOLY…on the seventh day I [the Lord] rested.  That is why I, the Lord, blessed the Sabbath Day and made it holy.” – God (Exodus 20: 8 & 11)

Evidently even God needs to rest, which is a pretty profound thought to ponder.  So, if God needs a little rest, a snooze, and some time off on a regular basis, isn’t it great that the Lord God Almighty thought it would be pretty neat if we’d do the same.  Maybe Yahweh knows that we need rest more than we will admit?  

“Shabbat” literally means to STOP.  

Stopping is something we resent and try to disregard any chance we get.  We run stop signs and stop lights.  And, oh, don’t we love getting stopped in traffic!  Stopping is a sign of weakness, failure even.  ”Don’t stop thinking about tomorrow, don’t stop, it’ll soon be here,” or so the song goes.  I hate to stop.  Just give me some more coffee and I’ll keep going.

But if we don’t stop, we will never find rest, the kind of rest that God needs and wants to share with us.  It also turns out that the first step to listening to God is to stop.  Perhaps finding rest in God and truly listening to God are close to the same thing.  Staring later this week, and for the duration of this gift and blessing of sabbatical time, I hope to find out for myself.  I’ll keep you posted.

May 8
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Read Along with PK

Posted on Friday, May 8, 2009 in Male Spirituality, Young Adults

Pick a Book

Need a little light reading, or something a little more challenging while at the cabin, camping, or on vacation this summer?  Have I got the deal for you!

Here are three books to choose from that I will be reading over the summer, under the overall theme of “passing on the faith.”  When I get back I will be meeting with each group that read a book to discuss what we learned and how that might impact our ministries at church.  You can find and order these books online at Amazon.com, Augsburg Fortress, Male Spirituality, or Barnes and Noble.

3 to choose from

“Frogs Without Legs Can’t Hear,” is written by David Anderson and Paul Hill, from the cutting edge Youth and Family Institute, here in the Twin Cities.  For too many years people have thought that spiritual growth and faith development happened primarily at a church, taught by professionals.  Over the last 50 years or so, this has led to the many bad habits and attitudes that in fact inhibit growing faith in children, youth, and young adults.  The critically missing piece is that faith is formed primarily during the other  167 hours spent outside and away from the church – with the family as the FIRST CHURCH!

At the end of June I will be participating in the Male Rites of Passage in northern Minnesota.  This spiritual retreat for me was developed by Father Richard Rohr and the Men as Learners and Elders (M.A.L.E.S.) program that is part of the Center for Action and Contemplation.  In the book “Adam’s Return: The Five Promises of Male Initiation,” Father Rohr describes the many reasons why men need to reclaim and experience initiation in the 21st century, and the lessons and promises that are gained and learned through male initiation.

For the past year I have been meeting monthly with a spiritual director in a group setting with other clergy.  This has helped me in my own spiritual journey and growth, by helping me listen to God.  Pastor, professor, and author Eugene Peterson has written about this subject in his book, “The Contemplative Pastor: Returning to the Art of Spiritual Direction.”  Peterson challenges pastors and congregations to reclaim the spiritual basics and core role of pastors as spiritual directors in the midst of the busyness and demands of “running a church.”

If any of these books is of interest to you, search for them on the websites I’ve provide, order your copy and start reading.  I really look forward to hearing what others think about the issues brought up in these books next fall!

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