lilly's pad

where would jesus sit?

as thanksgiving approaches, and you are heading out to join family and friends or you're cooking for folks at your own home...consider jesus at your table.

he's already there, but is he really invited?

what conversation would you like to have with him there?

who needs jesus to sit by them this thanksgiving? why?

maybe you need jesus to sit with you this holiday..

what would that be like?

talk to jesus as you prepare your table.

today i am thankful that someone else bakes pumpkin pie.
that i'm able to share my abundance.
that mac and hudson are here.
that jesus heals broken hearts.

lemonjellos..

my favorite spot to hang out in holland, MI is lemonjellos.
it's got the perfect vibe, within walking distance to campus (hope college and western seminary)
it's fair trade, organic, and artsy.. and has the perfect vibe. while it's perfect because it is not
a dreaded chain coffee store...i'd love to clone it across the street from UC.

i'm off for one more trip to the grocery store before turkey day.
then i drive down to culver, IN to pick up the guys after they finish class and practice.

it's a blustery day in MI and the forecast is for snow on thanksgiving... we're actually having the
big meal on wednesday so we can eat leftovers and watch football on thursday...
this strategy is due to the fact that we're shutting down the cottage for the season on friday and
heading back to cincy so the guys can hang out with friends and fred before they have to be back at
school on monday night.

hope your monday is going great. sorry that i haven't down loaded photos yet, but i did get
the thumbs up for worship last night from randy's 5 year old. jaden asked when they were going
to do that worship stuff again?

so it just proves that experiential worship works with grandmothers as well as grandchildren...all ages get to "play"!

today i'm thankful for kids and those with childlike hearts! for mac and hudson. for my friends at water's edge, for having coffee at lemonjellos with my buddy denise and for late fall in the great state of michigan!.

and while i'm meditating on tables and conversations around tables...here's a favorite table from the glorietta gathering in oct.

wifi from the car

just got back from water'sedge! great time of worship and great food with my michigan"family."
i designed a worship service around the tables where jesus sat and had everyone consider the conversations that took place around those tables.

one woman told me she will never look at tables the same way again~!
now that's why i do experiential worship!

i also chose to worship this way because i always learn something new, even when i'm re-imagining a worship experience i've done before...and i had just curated this one last sunday at western seminary!

i realized tonight that jesus wasn't always the "best" guest at the  table. he, more often than not, caused the other folks at the meal to feel uncomfortable, or he changed the rules, or he sat down with the wrong people. not to mention the fact that he didn't wash his hands properly (according to some : )

so take some time tonight, tomorrow, to think about the tables where you sit each day, each week.
with whom do you sit?
what are the conversations about?
who are you inviting to sit with you?
are you changing the rules, eating with the wrong people or making people uncomfortable in a jesus way?

i'll continue this tomorrow and hopefully have some photos, but the sidewalks are rolled up in douglas and
i'm in my car using the wifi outside the closed coffee shop!

tonight i'm thankful for great friends...cold weather and the opportunity to keep learning about my jesus!si

water's edge tomorrow night

curating worship at watersedge in hudsonville, MI
5pm tomorrow night!
call me/email for more info

thanksgiving remembered

an idea i've shared before, seems appropriate to share again.
it's the THANK YOU box. take a shoe box and decorate it (kids will love to help do this)
or find a nice decorative box around your house or at the craft store.
place the box, some small index cards, or pieces of paper and a pen on your dining table for the next week.
each time you walk by the table, or at least once a day : ) take time to stop and write down something that you are thankful for and place it in the THANK YOU box.
then during your thanksgiving meal, open the box and share the thank you's inside.
if you are having other folks over or going over to someone else's place for turkey day,
let them play too. pass around cards and pens for everyone to share their thank yous
and then read them during the meal.

today i am thankful for guitar music and good coffee and free wifi in douglas : )
have a great weekend!

happy fall, happy week til thanksgiving, and happy advent!
celtic advent that is! celtic advent begins today and in honor of preparation for the coming of jesus, i am going to blog for the next 40 days! well, at least i'm going to be more faithful than i have been in the last 40 weeks!

i'm up in michigan at the cottage, in between events. over the weekend thru wednesday i participated in the journey group showcase conference at western seminary in holland, mi.

my emergent/emerging church journey group has been traveling and learning together for the past three years and this was our final "official" time together. it also provided an opportunity for the other 5 journey groups to share what they've been learning over the last 3 years.
the LILLY foundation granted western an endowment for pastors to continue learning together over a three year period and i was blessed to be a part of the pilot program.

i'll post more on the conference tomorrow.

for today. find a candle or two and begin to slow down.
consider today what  you need to do /or rather not do in order to prepare for jesus to come into your world.
what do you want advent to look like this year?
dream today about what the next 40 days might be like
and allow yourself to be made new...to do new things, to do less things, to rest , to reflect....

and in honor of thanksgiving...the forgotten holiday in the usa.

today i am thankful for the blustery day, for the hope of snow, the hope of family getting together next week, and the beautiful adventure that i've been on with my journey group friends.

off to st. louis...NYWC!

so i get the major hobo blogger award!
so much for re-starting the blog again.
it's been quite a summer, quite a year...amazing how much can happen in a mere 365 days.

today i'm off to the National Youth Worker's Convention in St.Louis.
hope to see some of you there!
2 workshops tomorrow!