PrayerMay the Lord extend His infinite love and assistance to all people affected by Hurricane Michael and its aftermath.
LCMC 2018 GatheringDiscussion
Presentation
Meditation Practices
Inhale Courage
Exhale Fear
Sugar added to our diets
Americans seem susceptible to anything with sugar added. Steve Darland, see Feature article about Balsamic Vinegar
Vitamin Deficiency
Spinach Greens Blend Salad
Meal
Salad
Greens, Spinach, Mizuna, Chard, Kale
Goat cheese
Hearts of Palm
Artichoke Hearts
Garden Red Cherry Tomato
Hemp Hearts, raw, shelled, hemp seeds
CRaisins, infused with Cherry juice
Salad Dressing, Balsamic Vinegar,
NB: check your Balsam! see https://www.forbes.com/sites/bradjaphe/2018/08/20/everything-you-never-knew-you-needed-to-know-about-balsamic-vinegar/#40b0812e49b3
Meat
Fresh Tuna
Vegetable
Spaghetti Squash
Spaghetti Squash
Beverage
Blueberry Passion Smoothie
1 cup Homemade Greek yogurt
1 cup Fresh Garden Blueberries
1 Garden Delicious Apple
1 Organic Orange Citrus, fruit, rind, no peel
add Ice to suit
Double blended
Dessert
Red Table Grapes
Closing PrayerKindness
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law,” Galatians 5: 22-23.
Pray that you and your community will be filled with and known for kindness and compassion.
Father, I desire to display the fruit of kindness, yet sometimes I don’t know how to do so. Through Your Holy Spirit, please grow this fruit in me until it overflows into the lives around me. Prompt me with practical ideas to reach out and offer Your loving-kindness to those around me every day. When I am the one in need, help me to humbly open the door and allow the kindness of others into my life. Begin a movement of kindness in my community that catches and spreads. May we show kindness, not for recognition or a good feeling, but quietly, out of love and appreciation for the kindness You have shown us. Show us this week who needs a smile, a gesture, or a helping hand. Give us courage to act and not to expect anything in return. Amen.
Loving God, bless all those gathered here today as we come together in friendship and fellowship.
Thank you for the blessings of our individual and collective God-given gifts.
Place in our hearts the desire to make a difference to our families, to our community, to our country, and to the many cultures and peoples worldwide.
Give us balance in times of distraction and uncertainty.
Help us move towards our goals with determination and always with an abundant sense of humor.
Thank you for food in a world where many know only hunger; For our faith in a world where many know fear; For friends in a world where many know only loneliness.
Please bless this food we are about to share, those who prepared it, those who serve it, and those who have worked to make today the special occasion that it is.
A woman struggles to keep her faith and family intact after her husband is diagnosed with stage three brain cancer.
This Day Forward (2018)
Come visit with Pastor Michael as he leads us on an “mmm” movie meet-up, meal and mingling adventure in the missional community. This meet-up will take us to a special showing of a movie release prior to its west coast premier scheduled for this upcoming November. We will have a live opportunity to meet members of the cast and family story the movie was written about.
Pastor Michael invites youth and adults to accompany him to movie theaters in the community for movie viewing, light meals, fellowship and lively discussion.
Dinner and a Movie at the Theater
“MMM”s: movie meet-ups, meals and mingling are a great way to enjoy the passing of time, energize our spirits and enjoy life.
If you have an interest in this activity in the missional community, please contact us at: Spirit.Peace@outlook.com
We may fear that being in touch with our feelings will trigger an overwhelming chain reaction of pain and panic. Page 279.
No Fear
Basic Text, p.30. A common complaint about the Fourth Step is that it makes us painfully conscious of our defects of character. We may be tempted to falter in our program of recovery. Through surrender and acceptance, we can find the resources we need to keep working the steps.
It is not the awareness of our defects that causes the most agony, it is the defects themselves. When we were using, all we felt was the drugs; we could ignore the suffering our defects were causing us. Now that the drugs are gone, we feel that pain. Refusing to acknowledge the source of our anguish does not make it go away; denial protects the pain and makes it stronger. The Twelve Steps help us deal with the misery caused by our defects by dealing directly with the defects themselves.
If we hurt from the pain of our defects, we can remind ourselves of the nightmare of addiction, a nightmare from which we now awaken. We can recall the hope for release the Second Step gave us. We can again turn our will and our lives over, through the Third Step, to the care of the God of our understanding. Our Higher Power cares for us by giving us the help we need to work the rest of the Twelve Steps. We do not have to fear our feelings. Just for today, we can continue in our recovery.
Just for Today: I will not be afraid of my feelings. With the help of my Higher Power, I will continue in my recovery. – (c) 2018. NA World Services.
Step Two. We came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.
Step Three. We made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him.
Step Four. We made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.
Fear
Blue October
All my life
Been running from a pain in me
A feeling I don’t understand
Holding me down
So rain on me
Underwater
All I am, getting harder
A heavy weight
I carry around
Today
I don’t have to fall apart
I don’t have to be afraid
I don’t have to let the damage
Consume me,
My shadow see through me.
FIRST THINGS FIRST
Some of us have taken very hard knocks to learn this truth: Job or no job, wife or no wife, we simply do not stop drinking so long as we place dependence upon other people ahead of dependence on God. – ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 98.
Read AA Big Book Chapter 7. Working with Others.
Mature life is More than just a social hour in a room.
Step Three. We made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him.
Establish priorities
Habituation transformation from bad, alcohol, to good, Higher Power.
Allegiance to God as we understand Him.
Replace the AA We term with I
Dependance on God
Manage life on life’s terms
First Thing First
Neon Trees
You are never gonna get
Everything you want in this world
First things first
Get what you deserve
It began when I was twenty-one years old
And my mom and dad were begging me to go
So I left a note and we went and hit the road
Me and Chris and all the stuff I own
I went out to find my soul and left the only comfort that I’d known
It wasn’t ’bout a girl or even California bleeding
It was all about me choosing where to go.
Servant Celebration
for the Community.
Modern Song Focus on Contemporary Church Artists performing hymns of traditional foundation.
Everyone is Welcome!
Servant Leader characteristics
Introduction:
Solomon brings us traditional wisdom in Proverbs, teaching us, “a capable wife who can find? She is far more precious than jewels.” There is so much greatness we can learn from a servants heart and example. Proverbs 31 is an alphabetical acrostic, a literary work of art. We have an example of an ideal woman for every man should be blessed.
David is speaking admirably to God in Psalm 54, despite the fact that others are speaking vile words.
Today’s teaching and wisdom from James describes how people interact with one another. Wise leadership contrasts behaviors that defeats community strength. Are we equipped to behave as godly leaders?
In the gospel of Mark today, Jesus is back in Galilee with His disciples looking for quality time to teach. True greatness among us comes with being servant of all. Let us revel in the radical Grace of God that many people then and now simply can not understand. Dear God we are grateful your son Jesus shows us the way to navigate life and died for our sins so we may share eternity with you despite our human nature. Amen.
Opening Hymn
Come Holy Spirit
Vertical Worship
Scripture:
Old Testament: Proverbs 31:10-31.
Psalm: Psalm 54.
New Testament: James 3:7-8; James 3:13-4:3.
Gospel: Mark 9:30-37.
Prayer: O God, Wisdom of the universe,
you bear the pain of your people.
Grant us the gift of wisdom,
that we may discern your way
and live justly and graciously
amid the struggles of this world. Amen.
Prayer Intentions:
Friends in Christ,
God invites us to hold the needs of our sisters and brothers
as dear to us as our own needs.
Loving our neighbors as ourselves,
we offer our thanksgivings and our petitions
on behalf of the church and the world.
Prayers of the People;
Hear our prayers, God of power,
and through the ministry of your Son
free us from the grip of the tomb,
that we may desire you as the fullness of life
and proclaim your saving deeds to all the world. Amen.
Apostles Creed
I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth. And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord; who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary; suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and buried; He descended into hell; the third day He rose again from the dead; He ascended into heaven, and sits on the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from there He shall come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit; the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting. Amen. (Book of Concord).
Our Father
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen. (Book of Concord). (Matthew 6:9-13).
Liturgy of the Eucharist
Handshake of Peace
Confession
The Apostle John proclaims, If we confess our sins He who is faithful and just will forgive our sins, and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9.
Most merciful God, we confess that we are by nature sinful and unclean. We have sinned against You in thought, word and deed, by what we have done and by what we have left undone. We have not loved You with our whole heart. We have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. For the sake of Your Son, Jesus Christ, have mercy on us. Forgive us, renew us, and lead us so that we may delight in Your will and walk in Your ways to the glory of Your holy name. Amen.
Communion Hymn
Bless the Lord O My Soul
Matt Redman
Institution of the Lord’s Supper
26 Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” 27 And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you, 28 for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. – Matthew 26:26-28(ESV).
Communion
Prayer:
O God, our teacher and guide,
you draw us to yourself
and welcome us a beloved children.
Help us to lay aside our envy and selfish ambition,
that we may walk in your ways of wisdom and understanding
as servant of your peace. Amen.
Closing Hymn.
Servant Song
Maranatha Praise Band
The Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; The Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Numbers 6:24-26.
The Service has ended. Go in Peace.
Thanks be to God.
Life takes on a new meaning when we open ourselves to this gift. Page 276.
Gift
Basic Text, p.107. Neglecting our recovery is like neglecting any other gift we are given. Suppose someone gave you a new car. Would you let it sit in the driveway until the tires rotted? Would you just drive it, ignoring routine maintenance, until it expired on the road? Of course not! You would go to great lengths to maintain the condition of such a valuable gift.
Recovery is also a gift, and we have to care for it if we want to keep it. While our recovery doesn’t come with an extended warranty, there is a routine maintenance schedule. This maintenance includes regular meeting attendance and various forms of service. We have to do some daily cleaning-our Tenth Step-and, once in a while, a major Fourth Step overhaul will be required. But if we maintain the gift of recovery, thanking the Giver each day, it will continue.
The gift of recovery is one that grows with the giving. Unless we give it away, we can not keep it. But in sharing our recovery with others, we come to value it all the more.
Just for Today: My recovery is a gift, and I want to keep it. I will do the required maintenance, and I will share my recovery with others. – (c) 2018. NA World Services.
Step Four.
Step Ten.
We continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it.
She was storming through the house that day
And I could tell she was leaving
And I thought, aw, she’ll be back
Till she turned around and pointed at the wall an said
That picture from our honeymoon
That night in Frisco Bay
Just give it away
She said, give it away
And that big four-poster king-size bed
Where so much love was made
Just give it away
She said, just give it away.
