From the Pastors Desk:
In a world of electronics and digital relationships, it is hard to imagine real, authentic fellowship where we are face to face instead of face book to face book. Some of us have so many “friends” that we have lost our grip on what the word “friend” really means. A friend is someone that we desire to be face to face with. It is someone that we share life and experiences with, good and bad. Those vulnerable moments when we allow others to see deeper into ourselves at the risk of being rejected or ridiculed for the sake of growing relationship.
God created us for community, for fellowship, a sharing of our lives with one another, where we can actually see the face of the one we are communicating with. According to the Spiritual Disciplines Handbook, Practices That Transform Us by Adele Ahlberg Calhoun, the face is a portal to the soul. She says that through our faces we express the wholeness of our being and receive the wholeness of another’s being. The Hebrew word for face is panim, which means not only “face” but the presence and “wholeness of my being.” She says that looking in your face reveals things that your words don’t.
How many of us have conveyed the wrong meaning to a conversation because it was a text message instead of a face to face conversation? I know that I have. There is a time for texting, but for real connection, real relationship building, let’s try face to face fellowship as a priority for those in whom we value.
The Lord bless you and keep you;
The Lord make His FACE shine upon you
And be gracious to you;
The Lord turn His FACE toward you
And give you peace. Numbers 6:24-26
Be Encouraged,
Pastor Cheryl
In a world of electronics and digital relationships, it is hard to imagine real, authentic fellowship where we are face to face instead of face book to face book. Some of us have so many “friends” that we have lost our grip on what the word “friend” really means. A friend is someone that we desire to be face to face with. It is someone that we share life and experiences with, good and bad. Those vulnerable moments when we allow others to see deeper into ourselves at the risk of being rejected or ridiculed for the sake of growing relationship.
God created us for community, for fellowship, a sharing of our lives with one another, where we can actually see the face of the one we are communicating with. According to the Spiritual Disciplines Handbook, Practices That Transform Us by Adele Ahlberg Calhoun, the face is a portal to the soul. She says that through our faces we express the wholeness of our being and receive the wholeness of another’s being. The Hebrew word for face is panim, which means not only “face” but the presence and “wholeness of my being.” She says that looking in your face reveals things that your words don’t.
How many of us have conveyed the wrong meaning to a conversation because it was a text message instead of a face to face conversation? I know that I have. There is a time for texting, but for real connection, real relationship building, let’s try face to face fellowship as a priority for those in whom we value.
The Lord bless you and keep you;
The Lord make His FACE shine upon you
And be gracious to you;
The Lord turn His FACE toward you
And give you peace. Numbers 6:24-26
Be Encouraged,
Pastor Cheryl
