This is the weekly bulletin insert from Sermons That Work.
Explore the Way of Love – Learn
As humans, we often think of our lives in terms of stories. So much of the input of our senses, what we hear and what we read – and even what we feel – is processed in terms of story. We are the protagonist, the heroine or hero on a journey, pursuing our goal, facing conflict along the way, and each day is another chapter in our story.
When we look to the example of Jesus, we see a life in which God was incorporated in a very real way as part of that story. As we embark on the Way of Love, the practice that leads us in the footsteps of Jesus and those who have followed him for generations, we can invite God into our own stories.
The Way of Love calls us to the practice of learning. As the Psalmist prays, “Show me your ways, Lord, teach me your paths.”
By reading the scriptures, taking time to study, listen, and absorb what they say, we are entering into the long, deep, stream of humankind’s experiences with God. By taking time daily to engage with the Scriptures, particularly the stories of the life of Jesus, we move beyond pop culture interpretations and quick one-line verses and immerse ourselves into the character, will, and story of God. And by internalizing what we read—meditating and allowing even the most mysterious words to flow over us and work inside of us—we are allowing God to work in our story, too.
Diving into the Scriptures can be daunting for some. The Bible is not a rulebook or instruction manual to be easily digested and applied on first reading. Instead, it is a library of different experiences with God, written or told by many different people in different places for different reasons over generations of time.
Beginning to understand and know the Scriptures is a lifelong practice, and calls for patience, openness, and a willingness not to know every answer. But as we continually study, and discuss with other people who accompany us on our journey, and reflect upon the ideas on the page, sometimes wrestling with them, and sometimes just letting them flow by like a spring breeze, we will grow in understanding, and we will get to know God better, as God becomes more and more intertwined with our own story.
Are you willing to commit to the practice of learning? Are there those around you who can support and join you as you learn?
Learn more about the Way of Love at episcopalchurch.org/wayoflove. You can find suggestions on getting started and going deeper with Turning at iam.ec/ewol.
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For more than 20 years, Sermons That Work, a ministry of The Episcopal Church’s Office of Communication, has provided free sermons, Bible studies, bulletin inserts, and other resources that speak to congregations across the Church. Our writers and readers come from numerous and varied backgrounds, and the resources we provide are used in small house churches, sprawling cathedrals, and everything between.
Church of the Redeemer
Church of the Redeemer: Worshiping God, living in community, and reaching out to the world around us. We are an Episcopal Church serving north King County and south Snohomish County, Washington. As you travel your road, go with friends walking the way of Jesus at Redeemer.
Church of the Redeemer is at 6220 Northeast 181st Street in Kenmore, Washington. The campus is a short distance north of Bothell Way, near the Burke-Gilman Trail. The entrance looks like a gravel driveway. The campus is larger on the inside than it is on the outside. And we managed to hide a large building on the side of a hill that is not easily seen from the street.
The Episcopal Church welcomes you.