Worship and Faith Practices
Worship is central to the life of our church, including the importance of preaching, but also prayer and meditation, and dedicated retreats in places of natural beauty to inspire and energize our faith.
John 4:24 ESV
God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.
“When every hope is gone, 'when helpers fail and comforts flee,' I find that help arrives somehow, from I know not where. Supplication, worship, prayer are no superstition; they are acts more real than the acts of eating, drinking, sitting or walking. It is no exaggeration to say that they alone are real, all else is unreal.” ― Mahatma Gandhi, The Story of My Experiments With Truth
Do not let Sunday be taken from you If your soul has no Sunday, it becomes
an orphan. - Albert Schweitzer
God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.
“When every hope is gone, 'when helpers fail and comforts flee,' I find that help arrives somehow, from I know not where. Supplication, worship, prayer are no superstition; they are acts more real than the acts of eating, drinking, sitting or walking. It is no exaggeration to say that they alone are real, all else is unreal.” ― Mahatma Gandhi, The Story of My Experiments With Truth
Do not let Sunday be taken from you If your soul has no Sunday, it becomes
an orphan. - Albert Schweitzer
Worship
We have two worship services.
Our 8:30am contemplative service is in our sanctuary every Sunday between September and May
Our 10:00am celebration is in our sanctuary every Sunday year round.
"Jean and I note and are continually surprised how much we receive from the 'just one hour' of our time on Sunday mornings. The combination of the intimate sanctuary, the music, the readings, the friendly people, and the sermon provide peace, reflection, inspiration, and energy for us." -Charlie & Jean Golden
Our 8:30am contemplative service is in our sanctuary every Sunday between September and May
Our 10:00am celebration is in our sanctuary every Sunday year round.
"Jean and I note and are continually surprised how much we receive from the 'just one hour' of our time on Sunday mornings. The combination of the intimate sanctuary, the music, the readings, the friendly people, and the sermon provide peace, reflection, inspiration, and energy for us." -Charlie & Jean Golden
Retreats
A spiritual retreat is like a prayer or meditation. When we pray or meditate we focus our attention on God, the source of being, in a way that connects us to all things. One essential element of prayer and meditation is focused attention. In our daily lives we are exposed to so many sounds, sights, smells, textures, and messages that it can be difficult to focus on any one thing. When we retreat, we pull away from stimuli in order to connect with and listen to the One. At its best, a retreat centers us in what is most essential to our lives and allows us to be more wise about how we navigate the stimuli we encounter.
Foothills Congregational Church has three adult retreats each year, The Fall Retreat, The Advent Retreat, and the Spring Retreat.
Click here to find out which retreat is coming up soon
Foothills Congregational Church has three adult retreats each year, The Fall Retreat, The Advent Retreat, and the Spring Retreat.
Click here to find out which retreat is coming up soon
Prayer and Meditation
Explore this section to learn about specific types of prayer and meditation.
Feel invited to try out one or more of these practices.
Feel invited to try out one or more of these practices.
prayer 1 (prâr)n.
from thefreedictionary.com
1. a. A reverent petition made to God, a god, or another object of worship. b. The act of making a reverent petition to God, a god, or another object of worship.
2. An act of communion with God, a god, or another object of worship, such as in devotion, confession, praise, or thanksgiving: One evening a week, the family would join together in prayer.
3. A specially worded form used to address God, a god, or another object of worship.
4. prayers A religious observance in which praying predominates: morning prayers.
Click here for 20 ways to integrate more prayer into your life
from thefreedictionary.com
1. a. A reverent petition made to God, a god, or another object of worship. b. The act of making a reverent petition to God, a god, or another object of worship.
2. An act of communion with God, a god, or another object of worship, such as in devotion, confession, praise, or thanksgiving: One evening a week, the family would join together in prayer.
3. A specially worded form used to address God, a god, or another object of worship.
4. prayers A religious observance in which praying predominates: morning prayers.
Click here for 20 ways to integrate more prayer into your life
Practice Prayer with us
Mondays 10am in the Redwood (Maple) Room
Intercessory Prayer
(Picture is from Fall retreat 2009)
Dietrich Bonhoeffer on Intercessory Prayer
A Christian community either lives by the intercessory prayers of its members for one another, or the community will be destroyed. I can no longer condemn or hate other Christians for whom I pray, no matter how much trouble they cause me. In intercessory prayer the face that may have been strange and intolerable to me is transformed into the face of one for whom Christ died, the face of a pardoned sinner. That is a blessed discovery for the Christian who is beginning to offer intercessory prayer for others. As far as we are concerned, there is no dislike, no personal tension, no disunity or strife that cannot be overcome by intercessory prayer. Intercessory prayer is the purifying bath into which the individual and the community must enter every day. — Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Questions to Consider:
Reflect on your prayer life. Have you ever prayed for the good of anyone you
were in a conflict with?
If so, what happened as a result of your prayer? Did it change the way you
thought about that person?
Read More...
Click here to access "A 40 Day Journey with Dietrich Bonhoeffer," including suggestions for intercessory prayers for each day.
(Picture is from Fall retreat 2009)
Dietrich Bonhoeffer on Intercessory Prayer
A Christian community either lives by the intercessory prayers of its members for one another, or the community will be destroyed. I can no longer condemn or hate other Christians for whom I pray, no matter how much trouble they cause me. In intercessory prayer the face that may have been strange and intolerable to me is transformed into the face of one for whom Christ died, the face of a pardoned sinner. That is a blessed discovery for the Christian who is beginning to offer intercessory prayer for others. As far as we are concerned, there is no dislike, no personal tension, no disunity or strife that cannot be overcome by intercessory prayer. Intercessory prayer is the purifying bath into which the individual and the community must enter every day. — Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Questions to Consider:
Reflect on your prayer life. Have you ever prayed for the good of anyone you
were in a conflict with?
If so, what happened as a result of your prayer? Did it change the way you
thought about that person?
Read More...
Click here to access "A 40 Day Journey with Dietrich Bonhoeffer," including suggestions for intercessory prayers for each day.
Centering Prayer
FROM http://www.wikihow.com/Do-Centering-Prayer
Centering Prayer is a method of prayer, which prepares us to receive the gift of God's presence, traditionally called contemplative prayer. It consists of responding to the Spirit of Christ by consenting to God’s presence and action within. It furthers the development of contemplative prayer by quieting our faculties to cooperate with the gift of God’s presence.
Centering Prayer facilitates the movement from more active modes of prayer — verbal, mental or affective prayer — into a receptive prayer of resting in God. It emphasizes prayer as a personal relationship with God. At the same time,
it is a discipline to foster and serve this relationship by a regular, daily practice of prayer. It is Trinitarian in its source, Christ-centered in its focus, and ecclesial in its effects; that is, it builds communities of faith.
Centering Prayer is drawn from ancient prayer practices of the Christian contemplative heritage, notably the Fathers and Mothers of the Desert, Lectio Divina, (praying the scriptures), The Cloud of Unknowing, St. John of the Cross and St. Teresa of Avila.. It was distilled into a simple method of prayer in the 1970’s by three Trappist monks, Fr. William Meninger, Fr. Basil Pennington and Abbot
FROM http://www.wikihow.com/Do-Centering-Prayer
Centering Prayer is a method of prayer, which prepares us to receive the gift of God's presence, traditionally called contemplative prayer. It consists of responding to the Spirit of Christ by consenting to God’s presence and action within. It furthers the development of contemplative prayer by quieting our faculties to cooperate with the gift of God’s presence.
Centering Prayer facilitates the movement from more active modes of prayer — verbal, mental or affective prayer — into a receptive prayer of resting in God. It emphasizes prayer as a personal relationship with God. At the same time,
it is a discipline to foster and serve this relationship by a regular, daily practice of prayer. It is Trinitarian in its source, Christ-centered in its focus, and ecclesial in its effects; that is, it builds communities of faith.
Centering Prayer is drawn from ancient prayer practices of the Christian contemplative heritage, notably the Fathers and Mothers of the Desert, Lectio Divina, (praying the scriptures), The Cloud of Unknowing, St. John of the Cross and St. Teresa of Avila.. It was distilled into a simple method of prayer in the 1970’s by three Trappist monks, Fr. William Meninger, Fr. Basil Pennington and Abbot
"Lectio Divina"
a Latin term, means "divine reading" and describes a way of reading the Scriptures whereby we gradually let go of our own agenda and open ourselves to what God wants to say to us. In the 12th century, a Carthusian monk called Guigo, described the stages which he saw as essential to the practice of Lectio Divina. There are various ways of practicing Lectio Divina either individually or in groups but Guigo's
description remains fundamental.
He said that the first stage is lectio (reading) where we read the Word of God, slowly and reflectively so that it sinks into us. Any passage of Scripture can be used for this way of prayer but the passage should not be too long.
The second stage is meditation (reflection) where we think about the text we have chosen and ruminate upon it so that we take from it what God wants to give us.
The third stage is oratio (response) where we leave our thinking aside and simply let our hearts speak to God. This response is inspired by our reflection on the Word of God.
The final stage of Lectio Divina is contemplatio (rest) where we let go not only of our own ideas, plans and meditations but also of our holy words and thoughts. We simply rest in the Word of God. We listen at the deepest level of our being to God who speaks within us with a still small voice. As we listen, we are gradually transformed from within. Obviously this transformation will have a profound effect on the way we actually live and the way we live is the test of the authenticity of our prayer. We must take what we read in the Word of God into our daily lives.
These stages of Lectio Divina are not fixed rules of procedure but simply guidelines as to how the prayer normally develops. Its natural movement is towards greater simplicity, with less and less talking and more listening. Gradually the words of Scripture begin to
dissolve and the Word is revealed before the eyes of our heart. How much time should be given to each stage depends very much on whether it is used individually or in a group. If Lectio Divina is used for group prayer, obviously more structure is needed than for individual use. In group prayer, much will depend on the type of group. Lectio Divina may involve discussing the implications of the Word of God for daily life but it cannot be reduced to this. The movement of the prayer is towards silence. If the group is comfortable with silence, more time could be spent resting in the Word.
The practice of Lectio Divina as a way of praying the Scriptures has been a fruitful source of growing in relationship with Christ for many centuries and in our own day is being rediscovered by many individuals and groups. The Word of God is alive and active and will transform each of us if we open ourselves to receive what God wants to give us.
a Latin term, means "divine reading" and describes a way of reading the Scriptures whereby we gradually let go of our own agenda and open ourselves to what God wants to say to us. In the 12th century, a Carthusian monk called Guigo, described the stages which he saw as essential to the practice of Lectio Divina. There are various ways of practicing Lectio Divina either individually or in groups but Guigo's
description remains fundamental.
He said that the first stage is lectio (reading) where we read the Word of God, slowly and reflectively so that it sinks into us. Any passage of Scripture can be used for this way of prayer but the passage should not be too long.
The second stage is meditation (reflection) where we think about the text we have chosen and ruminate upon it so that we take from it what God wants to give us.
The third stage is oratio (response) where we leave our thinking aside and simply let our hearts speak to God. This response is inspired by our reflection on the Word of God.
The final stage of Lectio Divina is contemplatio (rest) where we let go not only of our own ideas, plans and meditations but also of our holy words and thoughts. We simply rest in the Word of God. We listen at the deepest level of our being to God who speaks within us with a still small voice. As we listen, we are gradually transformed from within. Obviously this transformation will have a profound effect on the way we actually live and the way we live is the test of the authenticity of our prayer. We must take what we read in the Word of God into our daily lives.
These stages of Lectio Divina are not fixed rules of procedure but simply guidelines as to how the prayer normally develops. Its natural movement is towards greater simplicity, with less and less talking and more listening. Gradually the words of Scripture begin to
dissolve and the Word is revealed before the eyes of our heart. How much time should be given to each stage depends very much on whether it is used individually or in a group. If Lectio Divina is used for group prayer, obviously more structure is needed than for individual use. In group prayer, much will depend on the type of group. Lectio Divina may involve discussing the implications of the Word of God for daily life but it cannot be reduced to this. The movement of the prayer is towards silence. If the group is comfortable with silence, more time could be spent resting in the Word.
The practice of Lectio Divina as a way of praying the Scriptures has been a fruitful source of growing in relationship with Christ for many centuries and in our own day is being rediscovered by many individuals and groups. The Word of God is alive and active and will transform each of us if we open ourselves to receive what God wants to give us.
The Lord's Prayer
The Lord's Prayer and Its Relevance in Today's Context
St. Augustine says, "Pray as if everything depends on God, and work as if everything depends on you."
Prayer is the most important aspect of any religion and culture. It is something that brings the believers of God to the state of humility and dependency, signifying the negation of self-pride while recognizing God's sovereignty and wisdom. Typically, prayer is an essential part of Christianity, as well and the Lord's Prayer is regarded to be both important and significant in almost every tradition of Christianity. The Lord's Prayer signifies different things to different people.
In a Bible study on the Lord's Prayer, I asked the group to tell me what they think of the Lord's Prayer and what it signifies to them. The responses I received were interestingly quite subjective and varied. The various responses were: "I like the Lord's prayer, because I think it's a good tradition that came from Jesus himself;" "Honestly, I like that prayer, sometimes I don't know what to pray, so I say the Lord's prayer;" "Well, I like it because it is the shortest prayer that I can think of" and so on.
Surprisingly, no one mentioned anything about its meaning or its significance. Therefore, as a minister and a biblical scholar I see the need for us not only to seek and understand meaning of the Lord's Prayer but also to reflect upon how it might be understood in different cultures.
I come from a family tradition where the Lord's Prayer is always said at the end of day to day family prayer. Culturally, it is understood in India that the Lord's Prayer sums up all petitions to God, in case certain things are forgotten. In other words, the Lord's Prayer creates safety and security for the believers. If we take a close look at the words that Jesus taught the disciples, in prayer it also contains a message.
In the Lord's Prayer, Jesus teaches the disciples, first, to address God, with a relationship, "Our Father, who art in heaven," a relationship with an everlasting bonding. The privilege of relationship, the need for bonding is expressed in the very first sentence. Jesus then moves on with the words of praise and adoration by saying "Holy is your name." There is a misunderstanding of prayer, that is, prayer as a simple task of asking God for stuff so God will perform.
read more...
The Lord's Prayer and Its Relevance in Today's Context
St. Augustine says, "Pray as if everything depends on God, and work as if everything depends on you."
Prayer is the most important aspect of any religion and culture. It is something that brings the believers of God to the state of humility and dependency, signifying the negation of self-pride while recognizing God's sovereignty and wisdom. Typically, prayer is an essential part of Christianity, as well and the Lord's Prayer is regarded to be both important and significant in almost every tradition of Christianity. The Lord's Prayer signifies different things to different people.
In a Bible study on the Lord's Prayer, I asked the group to tell me what they think of the Lord's Prayer and what it signifies to them. The responses I received were interestingly quite subjective and varied. The various responses were: "I like the Lord's prayer, because I think it's a good tradition that came from Jesus himself;" "Honestly, I like that prayer, sometimes I don't know what to pray, so I say the Lord's prayer;" "Well, I like it because it is the shortest prayer that I can think of" and so on.
Surprisingly, no one mentioned anything about its meaning or its significance. Therefore, as a minister and a biblical scholar I see the need for us not only to seek and understand meaning of the Lord's Prayer but also to reflect upon how it might be understood in different cultures.
I come from a family tradition where the Lord's Prayer is always said at the end of day to day family prayer. Culturally, it is understood in India that the Lord's Prayer sums up all petitions to God, in case certain things are forgotten. In other words, the Lord's Prayer creates safety and security for the believers. If we take a close look at the words that Jesus taught the disciples, in prayer it also contains a message.
In the Lord's Prayer, Jesus teaches the disciples, first, to address God, with a relationship, "Our Father, who art in heaven," a relationship with an everlasting bonding. The privilege of relationship, the need for bonding is expressed in the very first sentence. Jesus then moves on with the words of praise and adoration by saying "Holy is your name." There is a misunderstanding of prayer, that is, prayer as a simple task of asking God for stuff so God will perform.
read more...
Click here to see more in this series about the Lord's Prayer
This series is based on the book When You Pray.
You can get this book by following one of these links
http://www.amazon.com/When-You-Pray-Joanna-Collicutt/dp/0857460897
http://www.barnabasinchurches.org.uk/DOWN0899Z/
This series is based on the book When You Pray.
You can get this book by following one of these links
http://www.amazon.com/When-You-Pray-Joanna-Collicutt/dp/0857460897
http://www.barnabasinchurches.org.uk/DOWN0899Z/
Meditation
is a holistic discipline
by which the practitioner attempts to get beyond the reflexive, "thinking" mind
into a deeper state of relaxation or awareness. (wikepedia)
is a holistic discipline
by which the practitioner attempts to get beyond the reflexive, "thinking" mind
into a deeper state of relaxation or awareness. (wikepedia)
Mindful Breathing
Breathing is more than a physical act. Breathing is a process that awakens us to the present moment - and a single deep breath can change the texture of your day.
Buddhist teacher Thich Nhat Hanh describes breathing as a bridge that connects the body and the soul. When we inhale, we become aware of our true spirituality - to be conscious of breath is to be conscious of existence. When we inhale, we return to our physical selves, remembering the need to nurture our bodies and minds.
Deep breathing can be a challenge whenever we feel rushed or stressed. Yet the potential for tranquility rests within every deep breath you take. Start slow, and think of each breath as a tiny meditation. After a short while, you may begin to see this practice for what it really is - the chance for you to connect with something greater than the outside world. The chance to connect with what lies within. (Copied from BuddhaGrove.com)
Breathing is more than a physical act. Breathing is a process that awakens us to the present moment - and a single deep breath can change the texture of your day.
Buddhist teacher Thich Nhat Hanh describes breathing as a bridge that connects the body and the soul. When we inhale, we become aware of our true spirituality - to be conscious of breath is to be conscious of existence. When we inhale, we return to our physical selves, remembering the need to nurture our bodies and minds.
Deep breathing can be a challenge whenever we feel rushed or stressed. Yet the potential for tranquility rests within every deep breath you take. Start slow, and think of each breath as a tiny meditation. After a short while, you may begin to see this practice for what it really is - the chance for you to connect with something greater than the outside world. The chance to connect with what lies within. (Copied from BuddhaGrove.com)
Thich Nhat Hanh style Walking Meditation
http://taoism.about.com/od/meditation/ht/walking.htm
1. Now, simply stand with your spine upright and your shoulders relaxed, letting your arms hang naturally by your sides. Take a couple of long, slow and deep breaths. As you exhale, let go of any unnecessary tension, smile gently, and let your attention flow deep into your belly, hips, legs and feet. Relax your pelvis, as though you had just mounted a horse. Feel your connection to the earth.
2. Next, begin to coordinate your breathing with taking small steps: as you inhale, step forward with your left foot; as you exhale, step forward with your right foot; and continue in this way. Let your gaze be focused gently on the ground in front of you. You can also experiment with taking several steps with the inhale, and several with the exhale. But keep the pace quite slow
(slower than your habitual walking) and relaxed.
3. As you become comfortable coordinating breath with walking, try adding this beautiful visualization: Each time you place one of your feet down, imagine that you are kissing the earth, through the sole of your foot. Each time you pick up one of your feet, imagine that a beautiful pink/white lotus is now blossoming in the place that your foot just was. In this way, our walking
becomes a way of expressing our love for the earth, and of creating beauty with each step.
4. Walk this way - slowly, enjoying each step, with no thought of "getting somewhere" other than right where you are, here and now - for ten minutes or longer. Notice how you feel.
http://taoism.about.com/od/meditation/ht/walking.htm
1. Now, simply stand with your spine upright and your shoulders relaxed, letting your arms hang naturally by your sides. Take a couple of long, slow and deep breaths. As you exhale, let go of any unnecessary tension, smile gently, and let your attention flow deep into your belly, hips, legs and feet. Relax your pelvis, as though you had just mounted a horse. Feel your connection to the earth.
2. Next, begin to coordinate your breathing with taking small steps: as you inhale, step forward with your left foot; as you exhale, step forward with your right foot; and continue in this way. Let your gaze be focused gently on the ground in front of you. You can also experiment with taking several steps with the inhale, and several with the exhale. But keep the pace quite slow
(slower than your habitual walking) and relaxed.
3. As you become comfortable coordinating breath with walking, try adding this beautiful visualization: Each time you place one of your feet down, imagine that you are kissing the earth, through the sole of your foot. Each time you pick up one of your feet, imagine that a beautiful pink/white lotus is now blossoming in the place that your foot just was. In this way, our walking
becomes a way of expressing our love for the earth, and of creating beauty with each step.
4. Walk this way - slowly, enjoying each step, with no thought of "getting somewhere" other than right where you are, here and now - for ten minutes or longer. Notice how you feel.
Devotionals
A devotional is a brief piece of writing that prompts you to contemplate something, like the one below from the UCC daily devotionals, October 12, 2013
Quinn G. Caldwell
"[Jesus said to the man with leprosy] 'Be made clean!...go,' he said, 'show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.'" - Matthew 8:1-4
I like this version of the story. Matthew, Mark, and Luke all have versions, but in Mark and Luke's tellings, they say that disease the man had (which was almost certainly not modern Hansen's disease) was cured, and that's why he was allowed to approach the priest.
In Matthew, it's a little less clear. It says that the man's leprosy was "cleansed." Of course that might mean he was cured, but I prefer to think it means that Jesus declared that the guy was no longer unclean, no longer to be isolated socially and ritually, regardless of whether the disease was still there or not.
As we head into Access Sunday and Disabilities Awareness Week, I prefer to think of that man marching up to the priest with Jesus right behind him, demanding his rightful place in the life of the community. I prefer to think of him like all those sisters and brothers driving up to the steps of our churches and hollering until somebody built a ramp. Like the ones who walk into church offices, worship bulletins full of blocks of tiny text in hand, and tell somebody to hit the "enlarge" button on the copier. Like the ones who demand hearing assistive devices, or ASL interpreters, or grab bars in the bathrooms, or automatic door openers so they can take their place in the assembly.
Maybe Jesus cured the man that day, but I think the real lesson here is that everybody ought to have a place in the temple, no matter what's going on with their bodies.
Prayer
God, thank you for not gathering a church full of people just like me. Thank you for all the prophets you send to remind us that everybody—the disabled, the (temporarily) able, the sick, the well—is clean in your sight and everybody ought to have a place at your table. Amen.
Click here to read more of the UCC Daily Devotionals
Click here to subscribe to the UCC Daily Devotional
A devotional is a brief piece of writing that prompts you to contemplate something, like the one below from the UCC daily devotionals, October 12, 2013
Quinn G. Caldwell
"[Jesus said to the man with leprosy] 'Be made clean!...go,' he said, 'show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.'" - Matthew 8:1-4
I like this version of the story. Matthew, Mark, and Luke all have versions, but in Mark and Luke's tellings, they say that disease the man had (which was almost certainly not modern Hansen's disease) was cured, and that's why he was allowed to approach the priest.
In Matthew, it's a little less clear. It says that the man's leprosy was "cleansed." Of course that might mean he was cured, but I prefer to think it means that Jesus declared that the guy was no longer unclean, no longer to be isolated socially and ritually, regardless of whether the disease was still there or not.
As we head into Access Sunday and Disabilities Awareness Week, I prefer to think of that man marching up to the priest with Jesus right behind him, demanding his rightful place in the life of the community. I prefer to think of him like all those sisters and brothers driving up to the steps of our churches and hollering until somebody built a ramp. Like the ones who walk into church offices, worship bulletins full of blocks of tiny text in hand, and tell somebody to hit the "enlarge" button on the copier. Like the ones who demand hearing assistive devices, or ASL interpreters, or grab bars in the bathrooms, or automatic door openers so they can take their place in the assembly.
Maybe Jesus cured the man that day, but I think the real lesson here is that everybody ought to have a place in the temple, no matter what's going on with their bodies.
Prayer
God, thank you for not gathering a church full of people just like me. Thank you for all the prophets you send to remind us that everybody—the disabled, the (temporarily) able, the sick, the well—is clean in your sight and everybody ought to have a place at your table. Amen.
Click here to read more of the UCC Daily Devotionals
Click here to subscribe to the UCC Daily Devotional