Lisa Colón DeLay

I’ve decided to learn a lot more about the road termed “The Mother Road”…Route 66.

Along the way, I’ll post interesting sights from my findings, and I’ll also parallel this excursion to the one we take in our heart, toward God.

You see, no one needs to take Route 66. Faster, smoother, and bigger interstate highways make this route outmoded. No, folks get their kicks on Route 66 for the journey itself…to experience the epic route that is America’s most famous and alluring roadway westward.

Route 66, Chicago, IL

The picturesque course was established in 1926, and originally ran from Chicago, Illinois, through Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California, before ending at Los Angeles. It covered a total of 2,448 miles (3,940 km).

During the Dust Bowl days, in the early 1930s, people packed up and took this road to make a better life for themselves. In the 1950s, a trip on route 66 was a common family vacation, filled with plenty of sights, shops, roadside attractions, eating establishments, camping grounds, gas stations, and lodging choices. A virtual monument to Americana and campy kitsch. Now the trail ends in Santa Monica, CA, and parts of the old route have been long abandon or fallen into disrepair.

Still the mystique and history of the open road west continues to excite travelers to venture on various portions of the legendary Route 66.

Starting April 3, 2011, I will be teaching a class fashioned after this type of adventure, at Bethesda EC Church, called: Route 66: Adventures in Spiritual Formation. Part I will include getting familiar with the route and its ways: the epic trail God has in store for each of us. Part II will involve the experience of traveling it for ourselves. Two 6-week bursts. I hope you can come.

Various postings here will serve as a companion to the weekly excursions we will take…like postcards and journal entries from highlights and stops on the road.

So, Hop in. During April, May, and June, get hip to this timely tip, and we’ll find some kicks on route 6-6.

Now a question for you: What’s the best road trip you’ve ever taken?

Route 66, gas station, 1929

Beautiful Bellegrove church, near Anneville, Pa

Pastor Dave Alderson and I invite you to learn and experience 4 classes on Spiritual Formation topics, at the Bellegrove church a bit north of Anneville, PA.

Going southbound down Rte 943, this beautiful stone church building is located on the left, just north of the small village of Bellegrove. It is 5 miles from I-78 exit South from the Annville/Ft. Indiantown Gap exit for [South] Route 934 heading toward Lebanon Valley College, Anneville (Anneville @ Rtes 422 & 943).
(Get custom directions here.)

I will prepare 4 interactive sessions for the 10 a.m. time slot, for this January 16, 23, 30 and Feb 6, 2011. If you plan to come, please leave a comment below, or call the church (717) 867-7460, so I can prepare materials for your use.

Topics will include prayer, spiritual growth, devotional practices, fasting, and related subjects. Brief and engaging explanations will precede class discussion and involvement. This time is sure to bring added vitality to your prayer and worship experiences with God, and promote spiritual growth and intimacy with our Savior, both collectively and individually.

We really look forward to seeing you!

Please-DON’T Forget! Here is the book I’m giving away (to one “lucky” reader this January) to make Bible reading WAY more interesting and effective.

Can’t make it? Contact me and we’ll come up with something. :)

From The Book of Common Prayer, 1662

O God, who wonderfully created, and yet more wonderfully restored, the dignity of human nature: Grant that we may share the divine life of him who humbled himself to share our humanity, your Son Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit , one God, for ever and ever. -Amen.

Taken from page 70, Epiphany, Week 4,

“Holy Bible: Mosaic” (Tyndale 2009)

I present these two passages to you, from my own meditation time today, for your own reflection. Either one is a good choice for meditative prayer (Lectio Divina) which I have written about in previous posts. (You can do a search, or click on the appropriate category at the bottom of the page, for the 4 movements typical to this prayer form.) I have taken these two passages from the material offered in the Holy Bible: Mosaic by Tyndale, pages 58-59.

After reading these, please share your reflections.

Psalm 29:3-4

The voice of the LORD echoes above the sea.

The God of glory thunders.

The LORD thunders over the mighty sea.

The voice of the LORD is powerful;

the voice of the LORD is majestic.

O Love, How Deep

O Love, how deep, how broad, how high,

it fills the heart with ecstasy,

that God, the Son of God, should take

our mortal form for mortal’s sake.

For us he was baptized, and bore

his holy fast, and hungered sore;

for us temptation sharp he knew,

for us the tempter overthrew.

For us he prayed, for us he taught,

for us his daily works he wrought;

by words and signs and actions thus

still seeking not himself, but us.

For us to wicked men betrayed,

scourged, mocked, in purple arrayed,

he bore the shameful cross and death,

for us at length gave up his breath.

For us he rose from death again;

for us he went on high to reign;

for us he sent his Spirit here,

to guide, to strengthen, and to cheer.

To him whose boundless love has won

salvation for us through his Son,

to God the Father, glory be

both now and through eternity.

-Thomas Á Kempis (Germany/ c. 1380-1471) 

The passage of Scripture I am sharing is featured this week in the NLT version of Tyndale’s new Bible called, Holy Bible: Mosaic. Weekly meditations, placed in the beginning of the publication before the Scriptures, take the reader through the seasons of the Christian calendar year, starting at Advent. This year Advent starts on November 29, and lasts four weeks.

A passage I will call you to reflect on today is written by church father, Paul. In this portion he offers the church in the city of Corinth words of hope concerning the Reality of their situation, despite the troubling circumstances, and internal strife. He clears through the smog of human weakness to reveal the power of God, and the strength and hope that resides in having confidence in the message, promises, and Spirit from God that have already transformed them.

If you are struggling this season, take hope  in the God who is everywhere always, who wants the best for you, who will not give up on you, or stop his transforming work in you. Have hope beyond your troubles, and place that hope outside yourself, in One who will be faithful, and carry you through to the end.

(thank you to biblegateway.com for Scripture version: link included)
1 Corinthians 1:4-9
View commentary related to this passage

Paul Gives Thanks to God

I Corinthians 1:4-9

“4 I always thank my God for you and for the gracious gifts he has given you, now that you belong to Christ Jesus. 5 Through him, God has enriched your church in every way—with all of your eloquent words and all of your knowledge. 6 This confirms that what I told you about Christ is true. 7 Now you have every spiritual gift you need as you eagerly wait for the return of our Lord Jesus Christ. 8 He will keep you strong to the end so that you will be free from all blame on the day when our Lord Jesus Christ returns. 9 God will do this, for he is faithful to do what he says, and he has invited you into partnership with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.”

(emphasis mine)

Friend, concentrate please on verses 7-9 especially, and take in the hope offered here. This hope isn’t just for the Christmas season, but for all year long, and all life long.

I invite you-right now-t0 re-read the passage slowly, roll it over in your mind and heart, and then pray to God about it, or some portion or  aspect that personally connects with you. Then, please share one or more of your reflections, thoughts, or feelings.

Thank you.

Blessings to you this season.

I wish all of you a very special holiday season. Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. This has always been my favorite holiday.

The other holiday I will celebrate lasts four weeks. It is called Advent. I will be focusing on the features of expectancy, waiting, hope, and longing as a precursor to joy, which culminates in the Nativity of Jesus. I’ll be going reflecting on the passages in the bible with respect to these themes. I’ll be praying about these elements in my own life, and their meaning personally and spiritually, and societally. 

The new Tyndale publication called Holy Bible: Mosaic, is a New Living Translation Bible with weekly reflections, and verses for the whole Christian calendar year, starting this Sunday, November 29th. To follow the community moving through these reflections together, and encountering God and this season of Advent, return here again to read more, and check out the Tyndale Mosaic site.

It was great to read the new rave review today at Mary’s World.

I’ve decided to do my final Missiology paper on Neo-Monasticism. It is a fascinating, and devoted way of life that centers on loving God, loving others, and belonging. 

There are distinct reasons way this lifestyle, or off shoots of it are springing up all over America right now, and all over the world. The tradition of Christian, in Catholic and Evangelical/Protestant circles, has always had a stream of followers who lived, played, and worked near each other in a common, and mutually agreed on life. And, I’m not talking about wearing robes, taking vows of silence, or celibacy.

To get us started, check this Seattle-area Monkfish Abbey, a community living life together. They may surprise you as far more appealing than you would first imagine. I’m considering forming a sort of group in this area, with other like minds/hearts.

One of the most influential voices in new monasticism right now is Shane Claiborne in Philadelphia, at the Simple Way Community. Here’s a short article by Josh Casper about meeting up with Shane.

As some of you know, I have been involved in the Tyndale Publishing, New living Translation, project: Holy Bible: Mosaic, through contributing a meditation on the Trinity called, Anointing Oil (pg. 264).

We are soon approaching the Season of Advent. Many of us in the Evangelical tradition have not experienced the richness of joining with so many Christians around the world who worship and enjoy God by observing the Christian calendar year. This begins at Advent, the first week in December, and in 2009, begins Nov. 29th. This is a time when we focus on God’s redemptive plan for us, and anticipate the birth of the Incarnation, the coming King, Jesus the Christ. (This calendar continues to other major events in God’s redemptive plan–including Epiphany, Lent, Holy Week, and Pentecost.)

The Holy Bible: Mosaic begins weekly thought-provoking meditations at Advent, but Tyndale also provides a special Advent sampler of the first four mediations from the Mosaic Bible that make a thoughtful early Christmas card or gift, (and are small enough to fit in a envelope.) Another nice thing is that this Advent sampler it’s only $1.99!

I hope you will consider the celebration of Advent in your worship this year, especially if you haven’t in the past.

More interesting, in-depth info on Advent available here.

Thank you to Rick Warren (Ministry Toolbox), and to New Testament scholar, and author of The Jesus Creed, Scot McKnight who have been so positive in their support of this NLT Bible–a new tool to dive deeper toward the heart of God through this special presentation of God’s Word–adjacent to weekly God-centered meditations.

I will be doing a weekly reflection on the Holy Bible: Mosaic meditation of the week here, as we journey together.

Thanks for reading.

Feel free to leave your comments.

Do you Pray like a Consumerist, and don’t know it? Many of us have slipped into a consumer mindset, and don’t realize it. (It’s a North AMerican speciality!) It could be hurting our spiritual growth.

Here are 5 questions to ask yourself to see if you may need some kind of revision in your communication with God.

You may be praying like a consumerist if…

1. Your praying resembles window-shopping, or a trip to the superstore with a credit card.

2. If you imagine God a bit like a waiter, or butler in the sky.

3. If bargaining or haggling seeps into your communication to God.

4. If waiting for answers to your prayer requests is just as awful, or feels eerily similar, to waiting in a long checkout line.

5. If your prayers tend to be mainly focused on you, and your concerns, and often do not include worship, praise, gratitude, or…and this is a big one…listening (because communication doesn’t consist of just talking).

If you answered “yes” to 2 or more of these questions, consider revising how you view and engage in prayer, and communication with your God: Creator and Redeemer.

The Takeaway- Prayer is communication.

It changes us because through it we may become more like our God, if we yield to God and allow him to work in our hearts. When God is the primary focus of our prayer life, more growth is possible. And like I mentioned, this involves both speaking and listening to him.

(For a new way to engage in prayer using Scripture, and a focus on listening to God, do a search here for Lectio Divina.)

Thanks for reading!

Leave your responses. Was there ever a time when you prayed like a consumerist?

Delta asks:

I brought up the subject of Lectio Divina to my friend, thinking that we could use it together. Once a week we meet as prayer partners, and I thought this practice could be a really neat way to begin our time together. When I mentioned it, she hesitated and said it sounded like “New Age” stuff to her, not Christian, and it wasn’t in the Bible. She seemed really reluctant to give it a chance. What should I say to her, or should I let it go?

Lisa’s response:

The name “Lectio Divina” might do some of the scaring for your friend, but really the “Our Daily Bread” devotional is set up quite similarly to the basic movements of L.D. read, meditate, pray, rest/listen (or dwell/abide/apply) If it was just called “Reading with focused prayer”, maybe no one would care. The tradition of L. D. goes back to very early church times when the first manuscripts of scripture were made available, and Christians could read them out loud and ponder them, pray on them to God, and rest in God.

The nice fit for Evangelicals, for instance, as the major focus is on the Scripture, which Evangelicals LOVE. It puts the Bible in prominence for prayer, worship, and hearing from God. Meditation is Christian (of Yahweh). Personally, as someone in the Christian tradition, I refuse to let other religious/or spiritual sects rob me of what God has given us to grow, and adore and worship him. I think we are cheated to section off practices, used by other groups for other purposes, when they are there to use for our own loving of God. He is the object of our praise. He is our glory. The Christian tradition is rich with meaningful spiritual practices that may be less than cut and dry, or formulaic, but it doesn’t mean God hasn’t and doesn’t use them powerfully to change us into his likeness. The unfamiliar here is only unfamiliar to some, in our current culture and time. 

To be clear, I don’t submit that L.D. and contemplative ways, are a WAY to God, only one of many tools, or vehicles, available to ready our hearts for His good work.

The Contemplative part (movement 4) may be the hardest to understand for your friend, (i.e. most unfamiliar) because it’s more common in the Catholic tradition. Again, some like to think, and reason all spiritual actions out, and figure out the formula of it all. If it’s just being, and resting, enjoying God and listening…how can it be “working”? Where’s the doing part? What good could it REALLY be? So, I like to explain it as resting, and yielding to God. We learn our place. He is God, we are not. We are dependent on Him. We don’t have to *do*. That is the whole point. When we complete this discipline this way, the reorientation can be quite beneficial.

Should you bring it up again? Probably not if it’s a big stumbling block for her. I suggest you enjoy God privately with this enriching practice, and if you would really like to engage L. D. with another, send them here to learn about it, (do a search here for more on the topic) or explain it in terms that they might be more comfortable with, such as “Scripture Reading and Focused Prayer.” May God Bless you as you strive to walk closer to him.