Remember the Poor

I've had a lot of people comment on how I've slowed down on my blog - except for the make-you-jealous-I'm-in-Hawai'i-posts, of course! Actually, it's the slower pace of life on holidays that allows the muse in me to unleash.

It's nice when people notice you are gone. It's always nice to be remembered.

Paul the apostle said he was eager to "remember the poor."

The poor are a forgotten people. Part of our job at the Mission is to remind people that there are less fortunate folks in our very own city that need help: a hot, nutritious meal, a warm bed, a roof over their head, a set of clean clothing for school.

The Soup Kitchen at the Gerri Carroll Hope Centre reopens after it's July hiatus to help men, women and children have a good meal, a safe place to enjoy some company, and some clothes for growing kids!

If you've been meaning to come out and help, make this year the one to do it! Call your local Soup Kitchen and ask to serve a meal and help clean up one day. If you can, make it a monthly commitment to remember the poor.

Emergence is not Revival

I like old things. Older men. Antique dishes and jewellery. Quilts. Classics like pearls and linen. If you follow me on facebook, you'll see that my tastes are being mocked and classified as "old lady-ish."

I've been known to wear a broach or two. In my early teens I even had an original wagon wheel decorating my bedroom. Merci, Pepere! I love fancy hats on women. My Christmas tree, when I bother putting one up, is the gaudiest one you'll ever find. Bright and bold and shiny!

Most people prefer the modern. Modern neutrals such as beige and grey to decorate their home and office. The latest fashions. The newest technology. How many people have ditched their perfectly good 36 inch tv's for a flat screen?

Melanie and I were discussing how we tend to throw the baby out with the bathwater. Tastes aside, there are old things that are new again. Hymns are coming back into fashion. There is a following of young people who have never heard them, and they are unearthing them like hidden treasures! Check out The Hymn Project.

I understand the angst of those who are embracing the emergent church philosophy. Frustrated with a lack of devotion and service, they have perceived the church as pew warmers, listening to the Gospel week after week, and not being moved to action. But to cast aside doctrine and theology as irrelevant makes all who do good deeds equal.

When we make doctrine and theology secondary, Christian faith becomes subject to our own interpretation, instead of Scriptural authority. When works become more important than these Words, we lose balance, and focus.

Oh for a day when churches are so revived that their lip service reaches their heart and hands!