Through worship the community seeks to find the spark for action. Continually discovering the will of God helps us to discern creative solutions to disagreements and new ways for meeting human need that sometimes transcend rational decision making. Community offers us
|
the promise that God will continually move
among us and within us, bringing fresh vitalities and
new possibilities to life... if we have eyes to see and
ears to hear, if we are capable of receiving the stranger.
--Parker Palmer, The Company of Strangers, 1981 |
COVENANT RELATIONSHIPS
|
But this is the covenant that I shall make with the house of Israel after these days, says the Lord;
I shall put my law within them, and I shall write
it on their hearts; and I shall be their God, and
they will be my people. No longer will they teach
one another or say to each other, "Know the Lord,"
for they will all know me, from the least of them to
the greatest, says the Lord; for I shall forgive their
iniquity and remember their sin no more.
--Jeremiah 31:33-4 (NRSV) |
The Biblical witness to a covenant with God is also our witness to the precious presence of the living Spirit in us and among us. God is present in our relationships with one other, animating our interactions with extended families, meeting members, friends, and neighbors. All of these relationships are part of God's covenant with us, written in our hearts.
To be faithful to the Spirit in our life together is never more difficult or more rewarding than in family relationships--spousal,