Friday, February 18, 2011

Church Notes | Gathering

This weeks study was titled, "Why we gather..." It was a study on Community and the importance of being in fellowship with one another. The pastor presented a really interesting point. Today we can be fed the Word of God in many different venues, all of which are isolated affairs. Books, PodCasts, and a myriad of different options that the internet can provide. There is even a MMO that provides virtual churches to go to, I think that game is still around. There is nothing wrong with these convenience in and of themselves. These convinces become dangerous when we allow them to take a higher seat in our hearts than they were designed for. What I mean to say is that when we allow a PodCast to replace church, or allow a book to replace The Book. When we allow them to stop being supplement that they should be and become the soul source of our Spiritual food. Much like fast food, it should be a treat or occasional indulgence but like for many people when it becomes the soul source of our food our health reflects that. One of the biggest dangers of not gathering together in fellowship with the intent on seeking God, is missing out on each-other. We can not allow a tool for communication to become a weapon of isolation. We can operate under the lie that each week at church is the same as the previous week. We must remember that each gathering is unique and different. It's alive! We are all gifted differently! We all need to guard our hearts and not allow the enemy to take something good out of context and pervert it into a distraction. He tends to use these little lies twisted with a half-truth the most.

3 comments:

Unknown said...

Looks great bud!

Aine said...

Hi Frak! My comment is not really related to your post (although it is related to your line "We are all gifted differently!") But I've been mulling over a connection between the sorting hat and a real-life, neuropsychology-based method of sorting for quite awhile now. And, as a longterm Pottercast listener (since episode 1), I know that you have a strong interest in sorting.

Are you familiar with the Myers-Briggs personality types? David Keirsey pulled the types into 4 "temperaments" : artisans, guardians, idealists, and rationals. Interestingly, Helen Fisher (a biological anthropologist) has identified 4 brain "types" based on neurochemistry (she scanned a whole bunch of people's brains to identify their chemistry profile, such as dopamine-predominant, serotonin-predominant, etc.) She identified behaviors/traits that are associated with each type of brain. And-- wow-- they coincide perfectly with Keirsey's 4 temperaments.

The point of all of this is that I think the 4 houses of Hogwarts also coincide with these types. And it would make for a fascinating discussion among Potter fans (an idea for Pottercast?!). If nothing else, here is a real world, psychology-tested way of figuring out which house we all belong in!

I'm trying (and failing!) to keep this comment short. So, if you have any interest in learning more about this, I'd love to tell you more. You can email me (obsessed_hp@yahoo.com) if you'd like to hear more.

--Barb (an experienced (erm... "old") occupational therapist, mom, and Potter super-fan, who cheered when you joined Pottercast because of how/what your personality added to the group)

DoodlesFromSara said...

That's an amazing drawing!