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Jan
12

What does God dream about?

Posted by jklossner    0 Comment(s)    Add a Comment  comment-icon.png

Dear child of God, what do you dream about in your loveliest of dreams? Do you dream about flying high, or rainbows reaching across the sky? Do you dream about being free to do what your heart desires? Or being treated like a full person?
Do you know what God dreams about? If you closed your eyes and looked within your heart, I’m sure, dear child, that you will find out.
-God’s Dream by Desmund Tutu

Last week in Access we started a new sermon series called “Dream on” where we began to talk about the dreams that God has for our individual lives and for this community. We believe God has big dreams in store for our community and in the coming weeks, we are going to dive into these dreams that were shared.

We believe that God dreams for this community to be:
-One of deep faith (who seeks to have a ‘more than Sunday’ kind of faith)
-One that is radical invitational and hospitable
-One that works to be the church that Richardson needs

If you would do me a favor, could you send me an and tell me what your dreams are for our Access community?

I whole-heartedly believe that these dreams are not just individual, but communal; they are for each of us and they are for all us. And when we live into God’s dreams, we draw close to God, and we are able to see God more fully active and present in our lives.  For this to happen, I know that it will take all of us not only dreaming together, but working toward these dreams; to act in the present in order to work toward the future God has for us.

Henri Nouwen said it like this: “God is a God of the present and reveals to those who are willing to listen carefully to the moment in which they live the steps they are to make toward the future.”

Join us in this dream, tell us about your hopes and dreams, and let’s see together where God is taking us! Have I told you I’m excited?? :-) 

See you Sunday!

-Julie 

Jan
05

New Years Reclamations

Posted by jklossner    0 Comment(s)    Add a Comment  comment-icon.png

There’s a few pieces of wood from my family farm in East Texas that have found new life as my coffee table. We tore down the barn years ago, but decided to keep the wood to reclaim and reuse it for something different. It has occurred to me as I rack my brain for 2018 resolutions that maybe what I need is not to take on something new, but to reclaim what is already there - regardless of how worn out, distressed or too-far-gone it might seem.

Reclaiming the wood from the barn was a process with many steps and stages. The barn was close to 100 years old, and the wood did not look like it was even usable. We first had to power wash each board to get off the dirt, bugs and grim. Watching the dirt run out of the wood was mesmerizing. The process washed away the things that were unwanted and unneeded, but left the stains, lines and jagged edges that told a family story of a place that was built to take on tough storms, dry spells and difficult seasons.

In reclaiming this old wood, we saw the potential for something old; not just to be made new, but to be made purposeful, persistent and strong once again. Reclaiming can help us to see how God is never really done with the parts of our life that seem damaged, worn out, or tossed aside. When we resolve to reclaim these pieces of our lives, we are able to regain the purpose, persistence and power that God has given to us.

As I turned the calendar to January and faced the first week of 2018, my mind was brought back to that powerful scripture from Isaiah 43: “Be alert, be present. I’m about to do something new. It’s bursting out! Don’t you see it?”  (vs. 18) That question of what is ‘seen’ reminded me of Thomas, who is often referred to as ‘doubting Thomas’ in Scripture. After the resurrection, when Jesus appears to the disciples, it is not enough for Thomas to see Jesus; he wants to see his scars from death. It was not enough to see something brand new; Thomas needed to know that it was still the same Jesus who walked through pain and suffering and had the scars to prove it.

Jesus’ story in and of itself is a story of reclaiming; reclaiming hope, identity and a different way for our faith to be made present and purposeful not in spite of, but out of and even in the midst of the struggles and suffering that life can bring.

In 2018, can you make a resolution to reclaim something in your life? Something you think is lost, broken, jagged, splintered, or even beyond repair? In the reclaiming, may we draw closer to the God that will never toss us aside, and cling to an active faith that find its purpose, persistence and strength in the love and hope of Jesus, the sacred and risen Christ.

I am so eager to begin this new year with each of you. We are starting a new sermon series this Sunday called Dream On, where we will talk about the vision that God has for our lives and for the Access Community. Join me as we get below the surface and eagerly work toward the dreams that God has in store for all of us in 2018.

See you Sunday! 

-Julie 

Dec
29

Blessing of the Toys

Posted by jklossner    0 Comment(s)    Add a Comment  comment-icon.png

From gifts, to leftover food, to extra wrapping paper and supplies- I have no idea how to start cleaning my house from the Christmas explosion that happened just a few days ago. This Sunday as part of worship, we will be doing something a little different. We are asking all our children to bring one toy with them to worship. This may seem odd, but we are going to take some time in worship to bless these toys, and here’s why-

We call this the “Blessing of the Toys.” All the kids will come up and remember the joy that received in being given this gift, but then we will ask how they can use this gift to bless someone else this coming year. This seems like a good question for all of us, not just our kids. With what we have been given, how will we use it to be a blessing this next year. In some faith communities the celebrate and sing “Te Deum” on December 31: it is a day to thank God for all the days, a moment to bless all the moments of mind and heart, breath and sight; a time to “see” and savor.  This doesn’t sound far from what we will be doing through Blessing of the Toys on Sunday. We will reflect on the year, look tangibly at our blessings, and allow what we see to challenge us to see others who need the gifts we have been given this year.

Blessing of the toys might sound odd, but I don’t know of a better way for us to be grateful for our gifts, and in doing so, be grateful for the most important gift of all in Jesus, our hope and salvation. May God bless our moments in 2018- and may these moments be a reflection of the gift of hope that has been given to us.

Whether this year was amazing, heartbreaking or a mixture of both, come worship with us on Sunday and know how God makes all things new once again, and in this new year, a new blessing waits for you as well.

This Sunday we have the great privilege of hearing one of our Associate Pastors, JB Bryant, preach in Access! Don’t forget to remind your kids (and your kids at hearts :-) ) to bring a toy with them to worship!

See you Sunday!

-Julie 

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