The nice thing about being in a conference is the rhythm of a schedule. I don’t need to worry what is going to happen next.
The conversations during the meal times are usually unexpected and interesting. So far, I found myself engaged in topics such as young adults today, the ups and downs of secondary schools, the issue of land and church buildings, and of course, the regular toppings on politics and the current climate we are in.
Good to be reminded that God not only worked in the past, and revealed himself in the past, he continues to do so today in the life experience and history of today. I’m listening to a series of examples in a community like what we read in Exodus, and also in a person like Job. This is also found in the New Testament, and the scripture reading for today included the letter to the Ephesians.
Oh yes, I need to spend some time on Ephesians. I’m a little overdue for my proper “solitude” day.
So I wonder how does God manifest himself in our day to day life today? How does God show himself even through people whom we consider “unable” to perceive God or not the “chosen people”?
Obviously, there are examples to clearly in the scriptures that God showed up in the lives of the non-privileged groups. “God’s revelation is not frozen” has been one phrase repeated thus far.
back to some random thoughts.
It’s always nice to see the variety of church leaders in a context like this. Bishops in their purple, Salvation Army leaders in their uniform, those from the Orthodox tradition with their cassocks, some in batik, and me? I’m happy with jeans and I’ll put on a collar later (it’s comfortable)! 🙂
I realized so often while we may not like it, we tend towards what Luther calls “the Law” – what we should or shouldn’t do, what we have or have not done. A lot of our discourse also can be captured by the phrase the “paralysis of analysis”. The tendency towards raising questions (which is great) but I wonder whether so much of it, it’s actually disempowering.
The seeds of transformation to me seems to be sown and later will grow in the midst of discourse which is “creative” and even “playful”. Break out of our polarities a bit, or come out of our boxes, and a surge of energy oozes out. But of course, there’s also the ground experience is that we won’t see transformation happen speedily. I do think however, that this “experimental” and “open” space is crucial because if not we’ll be bogged down by “analysis”.
I’m learning more and more the need for deep analysis, as well as more detailed thinking. But only when it’s backed by more free wheeling explorations of possibilities, that we can break free from the past.
Since, the Bible study is about God still manifesting himself himself past and present. So, he shows up as we analyze the past and present, and he also shows up from the future helping us to relook at the past and present.
I think the coffee is finally kicking in. The Bible study is probably coming to an end. And we’ll have another long day.