Extending hospitality

Last week, I was thinking about putting things off. You know, "I'll fold those towels tomorrow, or I will put those sheets on the bed later" (maybe that's not the case for some who read this -- you know, deadline oriented people). Nonetheless, it started me thinking about how would we be changed if we were always ready to extend hospitality? How would that affect how we live our lives, and how would it impact others? Just fodder for conversation. I posed the question on Facebook, and I wanted to share a few responses here. I have removed names, but these are comments from my Facebook page:

* "The other half of that thought is how would it change others. The world would have to be a better place."

* "If I was always ready to extend hospitality, I wouldn't be so self-centered. Unfortunately, it is a hard thing to not think about how things relate to me. I strive to have a more Christ-centered life."

* "I always used to get a good feeling putting up my fellow swing dancers for an evening after a dance in Baltimore so they didn't have to drive to DC that night...and then feeding them a full breakfast w/eggs, toast and coffee. Though I (we) can't do that very much anymore with kinder in the house, I still have the hospitality chip in my brain. May I never lose it."

* "Yes, the hospitality chip for home is in my brain. Imagine if everyone was polite and followed the golden rules. As someone else wrote, it would make "the world a better place" if we had world hospitality, kind of like the movie "Pay it Forward". Great movie if you haven't seen it.

* "An amazingly profound question!"

What would you add to this? How would your life be changed if you lived in such a way that you were always ready to extend hospitality? How do we respond to hospitality shown to us?

Jimmy

One day til relaunch

Well, we are one day away from relaunching Crossroads on Sunday evenings! We are excited to share our vision as we seek to build community with each other and communion with God. I hope you can join us at 5 PM tomorrow at the St. Luke's Mission Center (3655 Calvert St. NW). If you can't make it, then please pray for us! metrocrossroads.org.

Changes coming to Crossroads

After much prayer and discussion, we have decided to move Crossroads from Saturdays to Sundays at 5 PM. We hope that this will better serve the Glover Park as we seek to engage our community to extend radical hospitality, transform lives, and pursue justice. We will switch to Sundays beginning Sunday, September 12. We will NOT have worship on Saturday, September 4. Also, after worship on September 12, we will gather in the courtyard for dinner. For more information, visit our website at www.metrocrossroads.org

Figuring It Out

Where do we see God? In what ways do we encounter the divine? What is the struggle that we have with God? Is it in the tension between the evil in this world and the divine goodness? Is it in how one community interprets scripture versus another? The prophet Elijah was face to face with his own struggle --- that God had abandoned him and he was going to die at the hands of his enemies. In this moment, Elijah struggles to figure out what he's supposed to do next. Elijah goes through a struggle at Mt. Horeb, where he meets God...not in the earthquake...not in the fire...but in the silence. The point here is not that one only meets God in silence. Even though Elijah hears God, he comes out of this encounter unchanged. Yet, in his struggle he goes to great depths of faith.

So we may ask: What am I doing? What is the point? What is my purpose? The point here is that God was doing something special. Even in the midst of struggle and in the midst of figuring it out...God was using Elijah. In the midst of this, Elijah chooses to engage God rather than disengage. He wasn't changed immediately. His hopeless disposition remained for the moment, but God uses Elijah.

How do we engage God? How do we open ourselves up to be used by God to care and love for our neighbors? How do we figure it out?

Change the World

Sounds unrealistic, huh? Well, maybe. Maybe God is the one who can really change the world. Yet, maybe not. God uses us to do great things. During the weekend of April 23-25, you are invited to do something in the name of Jesus. You are invited to step out into your community and be the hands and feet of Jesus. In our parish, you are invited to join us for Rebuilding Together on April 24. Whatever it may be, step out and be a part of Changing the World. Watch this video!

Crossroads in Mission: Rebuilding Together

April 24 is the annual "Rebuilding Together" day (formerly Christmas in April). We are putting together service teams who will help repair a home in the DC area. We need people who are willing to help prep on April 17 and work on April 24. There are two shifts available on April 24. The service team needs folks for three work crews that will do the following: Dining Room painting crew - 3-4 people;Upstairs Bedroom painting crew - 3-4 people; and bathroom painting and caulking, 2 people. Given this, we probably need the most people early Saturday a.m. to clean out the rooms, prep for painting, and then prime. If we could get that done by lunch, that gives us the afternoon for the finish coat. The house is located in Northeast DC near Bladensburg Rd. If you think you would like to be a part of these teams, please contact Lee Crockett (leecrockett@verizon.net) or Rev. Kate Murphey (kmurphey@mmumc-dc.org).

The very FIRST Easter Service

After Holy Thursday and Good Friday but before Easter morning, there is Holy Saturday. On this day, at Crossroads, we celebrate the FIRST Easter service of the weekend. We walk from darkness into light. We remember God's deliverance, covenant and promise of salvation. We hear the glorious Easter story of resurrection. We proclaim the Good News once again that God loves us so much. We remember our baptism and that we are raised to newness of life through the power of the Holy Spirit. Join us at Crossroads on Saturday, April 3 as we will share and participate together in the ancient ritual of the Easter Vigil. Through word, song, and Communion, we will share this time together. I hope we will see you at 5 PM at Crossroads this week.