Mardi Gras

As I sit on my quiet couch watching highlights of New Orleans' Mardi Gras celebration and reel a little in my own Fat Tuesday over-indulgence in chocolate, I begin my transformation to Lent with a face lift on the blog. For some reason I love Lent. (I don't actually know if there is a liturgical season I don't love, hmmm) I will again enter my ritual time of giving up chocolate for 40 days tomorrow. But I struggle with what to take on. (Yes, this blog will get back around to liturgy) In Jesus' time in the desert he not only sacrificed but he took on a period of total seclusion and devotion to my understanding. In a life that is jam packed and no matter how many times I say, just till August, then I'll have more time. I won't. My life, like so many others will always be jam packed. I thrive this way. So how do we 'take on' something else? How do we better serve our God, especially in this time of Lent as we prepare ourselves for the emotional, spiritual climax of the Christian year in 40 days? I send you to my dear friend's blog on sabbath for one idea.

to be or not to be perfect

that is the question for me most often of late. When I prepare a theatre production I prepare it for perfection. No two shows are ever the same, but people are rehearsed, transitions are practiced and tweaked, sound, lights and set are designed specifically for the production at hand. The director has the final say and responsibility for perfection. Church is not like this. Sunday morning worship led and designed by the people is not like this. My instinct wants it to be. I want people to be rehearsed, transitions to be practices, sets, lights and sound to be designed specifically for each Sunday. But its not. Is this why there is more grace in church then in the theatre? Should worship be perfect or should worship be the constant reminder that it tends to be that we are all still human. And all the glory we bring to God in our spotlight hour each week is beautiful and perfect in God's knowing even if its not up to my aesthetic standards. What exactly are we offering on Sunday morning? 1 hour of flawless entertainment with a message that hopefully moves you? 1 hour of imperfect praise for a perfect God who loves us in our imperfection? 1 hour of already over rehearsed, over analyzed, over scheduled sabbath time that could happen even more powerfully where 2 or more are gathered in God's name with no agenda?

green

We're back to green. It is once again ordinary time as the cycle of the church calendar gears up for the next high holy series. The church calendar follows a pattern that cycles twice. preparation, celebration, enlightenment, pause. Advent prepares for Christmas reflected by Epiphany. Lent prepares for Easter reflected by Pentecost. Ordinary time fills the 'in betweens'. Winter ordinary time is significantly shorter then the summer round. Though to many it seems odd that we seem to jump so quickly from Jesus is gunna be born, Jesus is born, Jesus is gunna die, Jesus' is alive. Ordinary time is the seasons in which we can really focus on the daily life and ministry of Jesus. Particularly those 3 years that felt like 30. Those years between when Mary rode in on a donkey and when Jesus rode in on a donkey. I attempted to capture ordinary time in a human sculpture and dear friend one time. From the exhibit "Altared Bodies":

advent

colors

I love color. As our liturgical season changes so does that of our worship blog. We move to blue and purple. I prefer to accentuate blue in this season as purple is a dominant color for lent. (and I like blue. and if not in my favorite season, then never does it show up in the liturgical calendar) Blue for hope. Purple for royalty. Use them. Teach others why.

Quotables

Henry Sloane Coffin - "If there is one characteristic more than others that contemporary public worship needs to recapture it is this awe before the surpassingly great and gracious God." Andrew W. Blackwood - "The time has come for a revival of public worship as the finest of the fine arts...While there is a call for strong preaching there is even a greater need for uplifting worship."

Canticle of Remembrance

As our Worship Leader read the names a child brought a white rose forward and put it in the vase. The single rose on the altar and tallest rose in the vase is for those who remain unnamed in our hearts.