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Pruning Strengthens: A Botanist's View on Pain
Any experienced gardener has heard of a botanical term called Apical (ah-pick-ul) dominance. In most plants that grow from a central stem, from maple trees to bush peas, whatever branch is at the top ... -
illustration
Joy Awakens from a Smell
On a trip to France during college, I (Cyd) was walking through a historic garden in Paris with my older sister. Rounding one of the reflecting pools, we both caught a familiar scent and stopped dead ... -
Quote
They are only the scent of a flower we have not found, the echo of a tune we have not heard, news from a country we have never yet visited. -
liturgy
Adapted from Psalm 84:1-5
Leader: How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord of hosts! People: My soul longs, yes, faints for the courts of the Lord; my heart and flesh sing for joy to the living God. Leader: Blessed are ... -
illustration
The Prayers of The Psalms
The prayers in the Psalms use words of waiting, watching, listening, tasting and seeing, meditating, and resting. It’s remarkable how inefficient these actions are. They aren’t accomplishing anything.... -
Quote
Make a point of watching quality documentaries: a study by the BBC and the University of California, Berkeley, found that viewing nature programmes increased feelings of awe, amusement and joy while r... -
Quote
Whenever I felt the beauty of the world in song or story, in the material universe around me, or glimpsed it in human love, I wanted to cry out with joy. The Psalms were an outlet for this enthusiasm ... -
illustration
Joy Beacons
Katja, our seven-year-old granddaughter, stepped in it, as they say. She had doggie droppings on the bottom of her tennies. Not just one foot, mind you, but both. Her mother, Maureen, suggested she le... -
Quote
In nothing is the child so righteously childlike, in nothing does he exhibit more accurately the sounder order of simplicity, than in the fact that he sees everything with a simple pleasure, even the ... -
liturgy
Adapted from Psalm 100 (ESV)
Leader: Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth! People: Serve the Lord with gladness! Leader: Come into his presence with singing! People: Know that the Lord, he is God! Leader: It is ... -
liturgy
Adapted from Psalm 126 (ESV)
When the LORD restored the fortunes of Zion, we were like those who dream. Then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with shouts of joy; then it was said among the nations, “The LORD ha... -
Quote
Rise, happy morn, rise, holy morn Draw forth the cheerful day from night; O Father, touch the east, and light The light that shone when Hope was born. -
illustration
Sarah Smith of Golder's Green
One of the most powerful expressions of humble, servant-like caring for others is found in C.S. Lewis’ The Great Divorce , in the character of Sarah Smith of Golders Green. Her quiet life of love tra... -
Quote
The settled happiness and security which we all desire, God withholds from us by the very nature of the world: but joy, pleasure, and merriment He has scattered broadcast. We are never safe, but we ha... -
liturgy
O Giver of every good and perfect gift,
O Giver of every good and perfect gift, we confess that we are poor stewards of your bounty. You give us time, but we waste it. You give us life, but we use it to glorify ourselves. You give us wealth... -
Quote
Grief can take care of itself; but to get the full value of a joy you must have somebody to divide it with. -
lectionary
Ninth Sunday after Pentecost (Guide A)
preaching commentary The context The parables we hear this week are part of a collection of parables of the Kingdom collected by Matthew in chapter 13 of his gospel account. As with the Sermon on t... -
scripture guide
Scripture Guide, Isaiah 1:1, 10-20
The context The parables we hear this week are part of a collection of parables of the Kingdom collected by Matthew in chapter 13 of his gospel account. As with the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7),... -
illustration
When Fire Makes Things Grow
Trivia time! What natural disaster is the most destructive to a forest? Chances are that the first thing that comes to mind is a forest fire. After all, fire is pure destruction to plants. What possib... -
scripture guide
Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52 (Guide A)
The context The parables we hear this week are part of a collection of parables of the Kingdom collected by Matthew in chapter 13 of his gospel account. As with the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7),... -
illustration
God's Joy Moves From Unmarked Box to Unmarked Box
"God's joy," said by the Persian mystic Rumi, "moves from unmarked box to unmarked box, from cell to cell. As rain water down into flower bed. As roses up from ground. Now it looks ... -
Quote
All joy, as distinct from mere pleasure, still more amusement, emphasises our pilgrim status; always reminds, beckons, awakens desire. Out best havings are wantings. -
liturgy
Adapted from Psalm 126
Leader: Come, and worship the Lord, who fills mouths with laughter and tongues with shouts of joy. People: The Lord has done great things for us, and so we rejoice. Leader: May those who sow in te... -
liturgy
Adapted from Psalm 100 (WEB)
LEADER: Shout for joy to the Lord, all you lands! Serve the Lord with gladness. Come before his presence with singing. ALL: Know that the Lord, he is God. It is he who made us, and we are his. We are... -
illustration
Avoiding Bird Poop
A man who worked at an aviary in a bird park went to an outdoor wedding. He kept looking up until a friend finally asked him why. The man replied, “Sorry, I’m used to looking up to avoid falling bird ... -
liturgy
You, oh Christ, are the Kingdom of
You, oh Christ, are the Kingdom of Heaven; You, the land promised to the gentle; You the grazing lands of paradise; You, the hall of the celestial banquet; You, the ineffable marriage chamber; You the... -
liturgy
Adapted from Psalm 66:1-4
Shout for joy to God, all the earth; sing the glory of his name; give to him glorious praise! Say to God: “How awesome are your deeds! All the earth worships you And sings praises to you; Th... -
illustration
Attitude Is Everything
Harry Emerson Fosdick once told how as a child, his mother sent him to pick a quart of raspberries. Reluctantly he dragged himself to the berry patch. His afternoon was ruined for sure. Then a thought... -
illustration
Mistaking Pretty for Beauty
I think the mistake most of us make about beauty is that we expect it to be pretty—to please us with its proportions, its balance, its harmony, its rhyme. If those are your requirements, I doubt I wil... -
liturgy
May you refuse to do battle against
May you refuse to do battle against the parts of yourself that need love the most. Set down your sword. Say hello to every shard. Hello, grief. Hello, sadness. Hello, anger. Hello, madness. ...
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