Stripped

Over the next four weeks we'll take a journey during our midweek New Community service at Granger Community Church, exploring spiritual practices. We'll worship through singing, studying the Scriptures, practicing quiet, and engaging the arts. These four weeks can be transformational - if we want transformation.

It will require more than participating in the services, although that experience will be God-centered. When we gather during the midweek service, we'll do so corporately - as a large gathering. But the four disciplines of abstinence we'll talk about will be best experienced personally. Alone.

Our lives are filled with noise. Some of the sound is good. Kid's laughing, music playing, chatter at a ballgame, a great movie, an office filled with conversation. Some of the noise is just noise. Clutter. We always have the radio on, the ipod in our ears, the TV on. Our schedules are full. We can't imagine squeezing anything else into our already fast-paced day. The challenge over the next month will be to strip away the noise. Create space to practice solitude, fasting, meditation, and simplicity. This quiet space allows us to connect with God, to practice the presence of Jesus.

If you're a part of GCC will you commit to the following during this journey?

• Attend all four weeks of the New Community service on Thursdays at 7 pm.
• Practice the discipline we examine. We'll look at four, one each week. For the next seven days, following each service, practice that particular discipline. It may require you to step out of your comfort zone. It may not feel natural. It may not even feel productive. It's practice. Practice generally assumes whatever we're practicing is new. We're learning. We aren't used to it. It's practice.
• Share your experiences. Find someone - ideally, someone you can meet with face to face or by phone. Touch base. This isn't a test. No grades here. But, if you'll tell the story of your experiences (highlights, blahs, questions, confusion) with someone, you'll instantly begin to overlap God's story with your story with their story. When God shows up, life change happens.
• Visit this blog site every few days. We'll post at least a couple articles a week, feeding off the previous week's message, fielding questions that may come from comments, and offering ideas for practicing the disciplines of abstinence.

The journey begins now.

Over the next four weeks we'll take a journey during our midweek New Community service at Granger Community Church, exploring spiritual practices. We'll worship through singing, studying the Scriptures, practicing quiet, and engaging the arts. These four weeks can be transformational - if we want transformation.

It will require more than participating in the services, although that experience will be God-centered. When we gather during the midweek service, we'll do so corporately - as a large gathering. But the four disciplines of abstinence we'll talk about will be best experienced personally. Alone.

Our lives are filled with noise. Some of the sound is good. Kid's laughing, music playing, chatter at a ballgame, a great movie, an office filled with conversation. Some of the noise is just noise. Clutter. We always have the radio on, the ipod in our ears, the TV on. Our schedules are full. We can't imagine squeezing anything else into our already fast-paced day. The challenge over the next month will be to strip away the noise. Create space to practice solitude, fasting, meditation, and simplicity. This quiet space allows us to connect with God, to practice the presence of Jesus.

If you're a part of GCC will you commit to the following during this journey?

• Attend all four weeks of the New Community service on Thursdays at 7 pm.
• Practice the discipline we examine. We'll look at four, one each week. For the next seven days, following each service, practice that particular discipline. It may require you to step out of your comfort zone. It may not feel natural. It may not even feel productive. It's practice. Practice generally assumes whatever we're practicing is new. We're learning. We aren't used to it. It's practice.
• Share your experiences. Find someone - ideally, someone you can meet with face to face or by phone. Touch base. This isn't a test. No grades here. But, if you'll tell the story of your experiences (highlights, blahs, questions, confusion) with someone, you'll instantly begin to overlap God's story with your story with their story. When God shows up, life change happens.
• Visit this blog site every few days. We'll post at least a couple articles a week, feeding off the previous week's message, fielding questions that may come from comments, and offering ideas for practicing the disciplines of abstinence.

The journey begins now.