Pilgrimage 3

Pilgrimage 3

Pilgrimage part 1 is here and part 2 here.

Almost a month ago the last gathering I attended before Coronavirus stopped our world was our church service. The day before that I spoke at our women's ministry brunch. I was asked to speak to the women about what outreach is from a biblical and a practical perspective. And what I shared there seems to connect with the pilgrimage theme I've shared over my past two blog posts as I have shared the journal I made last summer.

How might the theme of outreach connect with the theme of pilgrimage, you may be thinking. First, let's remember what the definition of pilgrimage is. A pilgrimage is a journey to a sacred place; a spiritual journey; a holy expedition. It is often used as a metaphor for viewing our life in Christ as a spiritual journey, a journey of transformation. Our spiritual journey is to follow the ways of Christ.

In the New Testament we are reminded that "our citizenship is in heaven, And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ" (Philippians 3:20). So throughout the New Testament we are reminded that we are strangers, foreigners in this world, exiles. We are on a journey through this life, pilgrims on their way home. 

And so, I ended my last post this way: Living life as a pilgrim calls us to view all of our life as one who is on mission, on a journey, making us all missionaries, whether we travel abroad or stay in our home towns. It's a way of seeing this life through the eyes of an exile in a foreign land. Author Elliot Clark, in his book Evangelism as Exiles, puts it this way:

"In my experience, many missionaries - even volunteers on short-term ministry trips - tend to consciously approach every moment in relation to mission. They saturate their days in prayer. They consider the intended or unintended consequences of their mannerisms and behavior, being careful how they spend their money, how they dress, and how they interact with others. They demonstrate the utmost respect and honor for locals, even to people drastically different from them. They also view random encounters as God-ordained opportunities, so they purposefully speak with just about anyone about their faith."

God had a specific call on how His people were to live while in exile. Speaking to the Israelites in exile in Babylon, God spoke to them through the prophet Jeremiah:

 "This is what the Lord Almighty. the God of Israel, says to all those carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce. Marry and have sons and daughters; find wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too may have sons ad daughters. Increase n number there; do not decrease. Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper." Jeremiah 29:4-7

 While in exile they are to do the things that create a life: make homes, produce food, marry, bear children, etc. But they are also called to seek the peace and prosperity (both words in Hebrew are shalom) of the city in which they live. They are to pray for it, for it to prosper (again shalom), and if the city prospers, then they will also prosper (shalom). 

So then, how are we as Christ-followers to live while we are in exile -while we are pilgrims in this world? We can use God's words to the Israelites as an example along with the words and life of Christ. We can follow in His ways and love our neighbors. On our pilgrimage we imitate the life and character of Christ. This is what growing in Christ's likeness is all about. Outreach is simply about reaching out to others, imitating Christ's incarnation. How do we imitate Jesus' life?

We go, we serve, we love. 

This was my message at the women's brunch:

We go because that is what Jesus did and that is what He called us to do. The incarnation is about Jesus coming into the world in human form. In John 6:38 Jesus tells us “I came down from heaven.”  He willingly left heaven and came to earth. The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. (John 1:14) He left his rightful place beside the Father, with its comforts and privileges, and He came to earth, becoming a human, taking on the nature of a servant. We see this in Philippians 2:6-7 as well as other places throughout the New Testament. Why did He leave heaven and become a human? To reveal God to us. To show us in the flesh what God is like. And to bring redemption and salvation to the world. And He calls us to go and reveal God and show the world what God is like, revealing redemption and salvation through Him. Jesus’ great commission to His people begins with the word “Go”. As the Father sent the Son into the world, He then sends His followers into the world to continue His mission. We go, because Jesus did.

We then serve, because Jesus served. Jesus says in Mark 10:45, “Even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Jesus was called to serve and His life shows many examples of this. He met people’s needs both physical and spiritual, all with the purpose of bringing glory to the Father. He served because it was the Father’s will. He served obediently, humbly, and sacrificially. And He calls us to the same kind of service.  Philippians 2:5 says we are to have the same attitude as Christ, then the rest of the passage shows us his humility, his obedience and servanthood. Earlier in the same passage Paul calls us to “consider others as better than ourselves” and to “look to others interests” as well as our own. These are Christ’s sacrificial, servant-like characteristics that we are called to imitate.

Finally, we love, because Jesus loved. Paul tells us in Ephesians 5 “Be imitators of god, therefore as dearly loved children, and live a life of love just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” John continues Paul’s message in 1 John 4, “This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.”

Love is sacrificial. Love is practical and active. Throughout the Bible we see God described as loving and compassionate, and then he acts toward His people according to this nature. Throughout the gospels it is recorded that Jesus had compassion on people, and that this compassion would move him to act -  healing, feeding, serving, meeting people’s needs. (See for example Matthew 9:36, 14:14, 15:32, 20:34)

Who are we called to love? Again we imitate Jesus. The scope of who we are called to love ranges from the world, who God so loved that he gave his son, to one another in the God’s family, our neighbors, and even our enemies. There are no exceptions to our call to love.

Imitating Jesus in reaching out to the world around us seems intimidating. But it is a call that we are given together, we have each other. And where God guides, He provides. We are a people of faith. We have to believe that when we faithfully care for what and who He calls us to, that He will then meet our needs. Just like with tithing, we serve trusting that He will take care of our needs. Returning to Mark 10:45 where Jesus tells us that He came to serve. This is not simply a call for us to imitate Him in serving, it is also a promise that He will serve us as well. God empowers us with His Spirit to do His will and to act according to His good purpose (Philippians 2:13).

Thank you for joining me as I have explored the theme of Pilgrimage.

Pilgrimage 2

Pilgrimage 2

As I mentioned in my last post, I spent time this past summer studying the theme of pilgrimage in order to make some art for a magazine that Kris Camealy was compiling to coincide with a retreat she had planned for March of this year. Unfortunately the retreat has been cancelled, like so much of life in these days of the coronavirus pandemic. 

As promised in that previous post, today I'm going to share some of what I studied on the topic of pilgrimage, as well as more photos from the journal I made to accompany this study.

By definition, a pilgrimage is a journey to a sacred place; a spiritual journey; a holy expedition. Often when we think of this word we think of long ago times when people would travel to go to a religious place for observance of a holy holiday. We see the start of this tradition in the Old Testament, where God spoke of his covenant with his people. Part of that covenant was to include pilgrimage:

"Three times a year all your men are to appear before the Sovereign Lord, the God of Israel." Exodus 34:23

We then see throughout the Old Testament stories and Psalms reference to the annual pilgrimages made to the temple, to Jerusalem. But there is a different use of the term pilgrimage that uses it as a metaphor for viewing our life in Christ as a spiritual journey; a journey of transformation.

A journey implies that a leaving takes place and that we travel with a destination in mind. We see this type of language as we read God's Word, where Christ-followers are on a journey of leaving their former way of life, of living a new life, of traveling on a journey with the destination being that of becoming Christ-like, and with our eyes on our true home. And so we read Bible verses and passages that use terms such as path, road, way:

"You have made know to me the path of life." Psalm 16:11

:...Lead me in the way everlasting." Psalm 139:24

"And a highway will be there; it will be called the way of holiness...it will be for those who walk in that way." Isaiah 35:8

"But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to Life, and only a few find it." Matthew 7:14

"Blessed are those whose strength is in You, who have set their hearts on pilgrimage." Psalm 84:5

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"Jesus said, 'I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." John 14:6

In fact, in the book of Acts we see many references to early Christians being called "The Way" since they followed the way of Jesus and shared with others the way to be saved. (Acts 9:2; 16:17; 18:25-26; 19:9,23; 22:4; 24:14,22)

With the call throughout the New Testament to keep our eyes on our true home, Christians are often reminded that in this world we are aliens and strangers - pilgrims - who, while we make this place our home, we are merely passing through on the way to our eternal home. And while we have our final destination in view, our focus is on the journey, the process of becoming more and more like the One who redeemed us and called us to this new life.

Living life as a pilgrim calls us to view all of our life as one who is on mission, on a journey, making us all missionaries, whether we travel abroad or stay in our home towns. It's a way of seeing this life through the eyes of an exile in a foreign land. Author Elliot Clark, in his book Evangelism as Exiles, puts it this way:

"In my experience, many missionaries - even volunteers on short-term ministry trips - tend to consciously approach every moment in relation to mission. They saturate their days in prayer. They consider the intended or unintended consequences of their mannerisms and behavior, being careful how they spend their money, how they dress, and how they interact with others. They demonstrate the utmost respect and honor for locals, even to people drastically different from them. They also view random encounters as God-ordained opportunities, so they purposefully speak with just about anyone about their faith."

But then, this thought now leads me away from the focus of my journal and into a focus on  missional living and outreach.  I spoke on that topic last weekend at our Women's Ministry brunch, but I'll save that for another post, maybe "Pilgrimage 3" if there's an interest. Let me know in the comments. :)

So, this study and journaling was all done back in the summer, but in our current times it feels even more appropriate to remember who we are. And also to remember "whose" we are. In times that feel uncertain and even scary, it's good to remember that this world is not our true home. While we journey through this life, we who are Christ-followers are called to a particular way of life and way to live. In the midst of social-distancing and self-isolation, of no church services, of schools and businesses closing, of job losses and economic crisis, I feel the call even more deeply to be on the journey Jesus has called us to. I feel called, now more than ever, to serve those in need and to care for one another, while at the same time practicing wisdom and taking precautions. We need to find ways to care for those who will struggle with food crises during this time. To take care of the needs of the elderly and those who are immune compromised. To minister to the needs of those who are sick and quarantined. I'm finding ways for those in my church to minister in these times and I encourage you to do the same.

I'll leave you with the last few pages of the quotes I found on pilgrimage:

Pilgrimage

A few years ago I attend a retreat called Refine Retreat with my friend Bernice when she was visiting from England. The retreat was hosted by Kris Camealy. I first connected with Kris way back in 2011 when I joined her pre-launch team for her book "Come, Lord Jesus" and then used her book for my Advent art prompts that year. This past summer, in advance of her annual Refine Retreat, Kris asked former retreat attendees to submit art or writing for the 2020 retreat theme of pilgrimage to be used in her Refine magazine.

It's a great topic, so I decided to spend time last summer studying what God's Word says about pilgrims and pilgrimage. I then made a journal to create art from my study and reading. Kris chose one of the my pages to use in her retreat magazine. It's a great magazine with lots of art and articles from a variety of creatives. 

You can get the Refine Journal here:

I made a concertina book (also known as an accordion journal) to hold my pilgrimage art. It included a little booklet of lined paper on the back inside cover to hold my notes.

The piece that was included in the magazine was taken from this page of my journal.

In my next post I'll dig into what I learned and share more views of my journal.

Unfortunately, with all that is going on in our world with Corona virus, Kris has had to cancel her retreat, which was to be held next weekend.

Around here, we are preparing for 3-4 weeks of social distancing to prevent the spread of Corona Virus which entered our state on Monday. Schools are closed for at least the next three weeks. We are holding our church service this morning, but then will not have a public gathering for worship until Good Friday. At least that's our plan. We'll wait and see how well social distancing keeps the virus from spreading too rapidly. I have not had much time for art in the past few weeks, so I guess this forced slow down could have some advantages in that arena. 

I hope and pray that  all of you who follow my blog are doing well, and that you and your families are safe and healthy. Blessings to all of you on this Sunday morning. :)

A great read for Advent or any time: