On the Way

by Tom Howarth If a person existed on a steady diet of hamburgers and was suddenly switched to a diet of only fish, the chances are pretty good that he or she would not like it very much. Fish, like other things, can be an acquired taste. Similarly, churches, by and large, are not providing us with a diet of true Christianity but one homogenized with the values of our culture so as to be … Read More

by N. Gordon Cosby Jesus breathed on his disciples and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit” (John 20:23). From that moment they were in the stream of inexhaustible life. One receives the Holy Spirit by surrendering the ego to Jesus, who is then discovered deep within. He who surrenders that narrow ego, who loses his life, is the one who will find it. Creativity is a function of the inner imagination, not of the ego. The … Read More

by Kayla McClurg For each of us there comes a moment, or a slow series of moments, when we sense the Great Love of the Universe, the One Who Is Beyond–God–as a personally felt presence. Something cold in us warms, something stiff in us loosens, and we sense a turning, an allowing, a yes. “Yes, I am ready to hear you, God. I am ready to deepen my connection to you and to your family. I am ready to be completely … Read More

by Dixcy Bosley-Smith About a year ago I had a spiritual crisis. A wilderness experience right in the middle of the GOP debate on religion and reproductive rights. It was related to a very special invitation to accompany an elderly friend to an event honoring him. Strangely enough, this great privilege thrust me into a place where I felt very alone. As a helplessly pathetic extrovert, I don’t do loneliness well. Don had been my spiritual director and sponsor for entering membership … Read More

by N. Gordon Cosby There are some things we can’t hear until we know we have a problem. We hear what we are ready to hear. I am familiar with a problem which I have to work with in my own life, and I expect some of you have to work with it as well, that has been with me a good part of my life. Is there an answer to this problem, or is it just … Read More

by Kayla McClurg “I didn’t know what was so near, or that it was mine. This perfect sweetness blossoming in the depths of my heart.” – Tagore In community we begin to discover a desire for what we didn’t know was so near, or that it was ours. Traveling into the depths proves to be a lifelong journey, and happens best in community. One of the benefits of being in a church that strives to be on … Read More

by Susan Morley “There is an urge among us to birth a different world.” – Paul Hawken Birthing a baby is more than enough challenge, but a new world! Yikes! Advent is upon us and I am keenly aware of the craving for a different world. The Prayer Hut in Primavera Center is waiting for a symbol worthy of the inner work needed this season. Yet inner movements remain subtle. Clues often are all that … Read More

by Jim Knight This morning during my prayer time, I read these words of Henri Nouwen in his book Making All Things New: “Our first task is to dispel the vague, murky feelings of discontent and to look critically at how we are living our lives. This requires honesty, courage and trust. We must honestly unmask and courageously confront our many self-deceptive games. We must trust that our honesty and courage will lead us not to despair, … Read More