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Pastor Annette's Blog

"OF ALL THE THINGS GOD HAS SHOWN ME, I CAN SPEAK BUT A LITTLE WORD NOT MORE THAN A HONEYBEE CAN CARRY AWAY ON ITS FOOT FROM AN OVERFLOWING JAR."
~ MECHTHILD OF MAGDEBURG, 13TH CENTURY MYSTIC

September 27, 2011

9/27/2011

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Picture




Beloved:
     The little golden retriever, Rosie Cotton, has learned a new trick and I am sure it holds a lesson about sin.  She is in deep denial about her debilitating addiction to tennis balls.  Convinced there is a tennis ball in the powder room, she searches the room over and over, shutting the door behind her in the process.  Stuck, she sings like a heartsick coyote until someone lets her out.  
At first she’s joyful, but the cravings soon return and she is powerless over them.  If I keep the door shut, she cries to get in.  
     Of course Rosie has no desire to change. She doesn’t know how the door got shut.  She only knows she’s stuck and release requires crying for help. 
Her crying is positively mournful.  
     How many times a day do I find my mind trapped in a web of negative thinking; deprecating to self and others?   Or turning to habits and appetites that numb against the ordinary stresses of living?  Or conversations that edify no one or nothing, but taste so delicious in the moment?   Worse among them, the conviction that by my own will I can break the cycle – that I am not powerless, I don’t need help?  When help is as close as the sound of my turning toward it.  
     Epiphany! The lesson isn’t about sin, but grace.  As our powerlessness grows, so we grow ever nearer to the Loving One who is on pins and needles, delirious with the desire open the door and escort us to the divine reality of our helplessness and God’s grace.   
       I pray this day finds you living fully in the grace of God.  peace & prayers, ~ pastor annette 

       

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    I write a Tuesday morning devotional to members and friends of UBC.  It is also posted here. 
     
    Enjoy!  
    Pastor Annette

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    Everything on this site is licensed under a Creative Commons license, which gives you permission to copy freely, provided that you attribute the work to me, that you use the work for non-commercial purposes, and that you do not produce derivative works.

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3740 East Third Street   Bloomington, IN 47401         812/339-1404                   Life Groups ~ 9:30 am          Worship ~ 10:45 am
Photo used under Creative Commons from TheReptilarium
  • Home
  • Start Here
  • Staff
    • Annette Hill Briggs, Pastor
    • Rob Drummond ~ Music Minister
  • Listen & Read
    • Sermons
    • Pastor's Blog
    • #ITSYOURCHURCHTOO >
      • About >
        • When & Where?
        • Ministries >
          • Worship >
            • Music
            • Worship Arts
            • Worship Resources
          • Fellowship >
            • Wednesday Night Supper
            • Church Recipes
          • Service >
            • MCUM Collections
            • Habitat for Humanity Project
          • Vacation Bible School
        • Our Story >
          • Denomination
          • Who We Are
        • Contact
        • Calendar
    • Social Media Feed
  • Give
  • Newsletter