Claimed, gathered and sent

What We Feel Is Not Who We Are Our emotional lives move up and down constantly. Sometimes we experience great mood swings: from excitement to depression, from joy to sorrow, from inner harmony to inner chaos. A little event, a word from someone, a disappointment in work, many things can trigger such mood swings. Mostly we have little control over these changes. It seems that they happen to us rather than being created by us. Thus it is important to know that our emotional life is not the same as our spiritual life. Our spiritual life is the life of the Spirit of God within us. As we feel our emotions shift we must connect our spirits with the Spirit of God and remind ourselves that what we feel is not who we are. We are and remain, whatever our moods, God's beloved children. Share your thoughts on this reflection. These reflections are taken from Henri J.M. Nouwen's Bread for the Journey. Visit HenriNouwen....

What do you think about this? This is something I've been giving more and more thought to as internship approaches in a matter of weeks. Chris has made some excellent points. Pastoral Identity and Authenticity Online - The Lutheran Zephyr : "- Sent using Google Toolbar"

Although I was unable to find a link to all the address, here is a synopsis with some quotations. It's quite thought provoking. Enjoy! LWB : "- Sent using Google Toolbar"

Bridging the Gap Between People To become neighbours is to bridge the gap between people. As long as there is distance between us and we cannot look in each other's eyes, all sorts of false ideas and images arise. We give them names, make jokes about them, cover them with our prejudices, and avoid direct contact. We think of them as enemies. We forget that they love as we love, care for their children as we care for ours, become sick and die as we do. We forget that they are our brothers and sisters and treat them as objects that can be destroyed at will. Only when we have the courage to cross the street and look in one another's eyes can we see there that we are children of the same God and members of the same human family. Share your thoughts on this reflection. These reflections are taken from Henri J.M. Nouwen's Bread for the Journey. Visit HenriNouwen.org for more inspiration! For...

It has been a very difficult and emotional week for us as a family. Ray's retired Seeing Eye dog, Abby, was put to sleep on Monday. All the animals in our family knew it was time, including Abby. She was just done--tired of the pain of arthritis and her body not working like it used to. All of us miss her very much. Amity has been looking especially melancholy, while Pokey, the cat continues to look around for his buddy. The doctors and staff at Emmitsburg Veterinary Hospital   were so wonderfully compassionate. The vet was crying with us as Abby was put to sleep. They care so deeply at that place. Even when we saw the folks at the main desk on our way out, they were crying with us. In the midst of all of this, the community at LTSG carried us with their love and thoughtfulness. From classmates that are still here to those already on internship, from the Dean to the President to Pr. Vickie Brown, who put together and conducted a burial service for Abby, the community of God...

Merriam-Webster defines transition as,  " a: passage from one state, stage, subject, or place to another : change b : a movement , development, or evolution from one form, stage, or style to another." Basically, I've finished the semester's projects, traveled to New England for Synod Assembly, and returned from visiting with friends and family in Rochester  in time to...move the very next day. We are living in that time called transition. Mon. the movers came and took our stuff off to storage for a month.. After that, we moved across the quad to a furnished efficiency apartment.The critters, Abby, Amity, and Pokey are enjoying their vacation with us at the Baughman Hall Motel (seminary housing). We will be here until internship begins next month. We were unsure size-wise how things would work out for 2 dogs, a cat, and 2 adults in an efficiency, but all is well. Pokey, the cat, especially loves the large second floor windowsill which offers him a better vie...

One of the joys of this past Spring Semester has been the number of professors and courses that have invited us to reflect upon past and anticipated experiences in light of the cross. Below is what I wrote regarding Palestinian liberation theology and the cross, especially from Bishop Munib Younan's book, Witnessing in Jerusalem , as well as in the light of my own experiences in the Holy Land. Introduction The situation in the Holy Land seems bleak at best these days. For the residents on all sides, life is a daily roller coaster ride. Hopes for peace rise at the prospect of each negotiation and are then crushed by violence. The people want to have hope. It is a land that should be a place of hope considering the biblical events that unfolded there. Luther’s words in the Heidelberg Disputation still speak today to those who are willing to hear in that volatile place: 20. He deserves to be called a theologian… who comprehends the visible and manifest things of God seen through suffe...