Do you have a tendency to freak out?

Do you have a good reason to do so? You might, I suppose. Earthquakes, falling in love, unexpected victories (or losses), or anxiety over a family member, or just being human--any of these might cause it.

It's OK until it becomes the way of life for us.

There's a story in the Bible about Jesus healing a boy who was demon possessed. We would probably just say he was prone to seizures, but when it hit him he couldn't speak, he couldn't hear, he lost control of his body and sometimes fell into the fire, then became as rigid as a board. When Jesus touched him he passed out and seemed to have died. But then he came to life.

It's a pretty good metaphor for our lives. Sometimes we can't hear, we can't speak, we freak out, we hurt ourselves, and we avoid being healed because we think it might kill us. But we can live again.

That's our conversation for this week. I hope you will be there to hear this story and think about the healing process of faith. It may be Memorial Day weekend, but if you are around it will make for a better holiday if you take some time to pray and think and sing and remember who God is.

See you Sunday night.

Where Are We Going?

A Sacred Conversation about Direction

I read this quote a while ago, and once I figured out what it meant, I thought it was profound: "Without a destination, there is no favorable wind." In other words, you can't get to where you are going if you don't know where that is.

The time has come for The Open House to have a serious and sacred conversation about where we are headed, and how we plan to get there. The Leaders Circle has recognized the need to get some clarity about our direction. We may assume we know, and that we are all on board, but that is probably unlikely at this point. We opened this conversation at our annual meeting in January, but we didn't follow up on it. Now is the time to do so. It's time for us to sit and talk seriously about what God is calling The Open House to do and to be and how to get there.

So, it's going to happen on June 8. Our theme for that Sunday will be this very question. We will have prayer and a song, and then plunge into this talk. We want to have lots of people to join in, and do the serious work thinking about it. I will be away, which is a good thing, because Open House will survive and thrive only through the work of you who care about it. The future of The Open House rests on you. Join us then, on June 8, for a second sacred conversation.

Now back to our usual stuff.

As you probably know, there's been too much water in a lot of places, including northern Maine. Our sister church, Fort Kent Christ Congregational Church, was flooded, along with the homes of many of its members. We are told that the most pressing situation right now is the need for hygiene materials. Churches around Maine are gathering materials, and we are going to do this too. If you would like to contribute, bring something along to church on Sunday. There are drivers who will take everything up there; all you have to do is bring it Sunday evening.

 Here's a list of what's needed.

Toothpaste

Hand Soap

Soap

Toothbrushes

Shampoo

Dental Floss

Deodorant

Tampons/ feminine napkins

Combs/brushes

Diapers - all sizes

Washcloths

Towels

Stephen Carnahan

Portland, Maine

May 22, 2008