February 12
Beloved of Good Shepherd Church
Grace to you and peace in Jesus Christ our Lord!
Right after he made his first friends Jesus cast a demon out of a man, then went to Peter’s house and healed his mother-in-law. Word got around pretty quickly after that and before Jesus knew quite what was going on, the whole city was gathered around the door to Peter’s place. He healed everybody he could get his hands on and cast out all the demons he could see, then he went to bed. The next morning before the sun rose and anybody in the house got out of bed, Jesus slipped off a little ways from the house to a deserted spot in the wilderness to pray. All was quiet and dark, and he slid into the silence like it was his true home. He let go of everything that was on his mind and lodged in his heart and rested for a bit as if in the very arms of God.
After a little while his friends got out of bed and went looking for him. When they found him they said, “Come on back, the whole town is at Peter’s house again. They are waiting for you.” Jesus said, “No. It’s time to go. Pack your bags. We’re leaving soon.” And just like that they were off. More healing and helping followed by time away for prayer and silence. This would come to be Jesus' rhythm. Service and prayer.
That is our rhythm at Good Shepherd too. On February 14th, Julie Broderson and our Outreach Team are leading a day of service in Lexington with stops at The Nest, Lexington Rescue Mission, and Arbor Youth Services. You can join them for the whole day or for one or two stops. The following Saturday, February 21st we will have our Lent Silent Retreat. It will be a day of silence and contemplative teaching. We will use the Centering Prayer method of Christian meditation and the teachings will be on select poetry. You can join us for the whole day or for one or more of the two hour blocks. Come join us on the spiritual path as we enter into a rhythm of service and silence to begin Lent.
Remember this always - God loves you, and I love you too!
Love is all,
Hendree+