BridgeWorks bridge
March 2011   
BridgeWorks
Building Bridges of Understanding

 
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Leaving Rawlins  

wilderness 

It must have been 20 years ago when I first drove through Wyoming.

 

"Look! You can see for 100 miles," exulted my friend Rachel who was driving the car.   

 

"My point exactly," I grumbled.  "There's nothing here." I was referencing the undulating brown mountains that sported no vegetation, no trees, no nothing.  It looked like a moonscape.  Read on... 



BridgeWorks bridgeNow in our 5th year, BridgeWorks builds bridges of understanding through the 5 Ps:  programs, presentations, projects, publications, and pilgrimanges.  Check us out online.


Attention UMWs:  

 

The Green Church books have been approved by the Women's Division to appear on the UMW Reading List!

 

You may order your copies on sale here!  

Seven Simple Steps to Green Your Church

  Green Church book cover

 

Shake It Up CafeSHAKE IT UP CAFE!
VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL MATERIALS

Cokesbury has come out with a very interesting VBS that explores the Jewish Roots of Christianity.  It's called the Shake It Up Cafe.  It is set against the backdrop of Jewish holidays.  I was asked to review the materials; I believe they are creative and appropriate.   

Strengthen the impact of VBS this summer by also offering a program geared toward adults:  Feasts and Holy Days, the newest Jewish Roots program from BridgeWorks.  

Greetings!

Rebekah Simon-Peter 

It wasn't until I was sitting in the Ash Wednesday Service a week ago that I remembered the practice of giving up or taking on something for Lent.    

 

What to do?   

 

It came to me:  lift my self-imposed silence and speak out daily on behalf of the integrity of Creation. 

 

So, over the last week, I have uttered prayers of gratitude for the beauty of Creation.  I have wept and prayed for the Japanese and the devastation their land has experienced.  I have signed petitions to allow the EPA to regulate greenhouse gases.  And collaborated with colleagues to get out the word about Gods Renewed Creation. 

 

This season of repentance is a perfect time to stand for Creation, in thought, word and deed. After all, faith without works is dead.

 

 Here are 10 specific actions you can take this Lent to be an advocate for Creation within your congregation.  

 

1.  Lift up specific prayers for the Creation during joys and concerns.

    

2.  Offer a spoken or written testimony in worship that includes experiencing God through nature.  

   

3.  Read the Psalms outside and praise God in nature.

 

4.  Offer to design or create a worship service that highlights the needs of Creation.  Our hymnals, prayer books, psalms, and scriptures are full of appropriate references. 

 

5.  Lead a Bible study on faith and the environment.  Use resources like Green Church, the Green Bible, God's Renewed Creation, or the Social Principles in the Book of Discipline to do so.   

 

6.  Speak words of gratitude for clean air, clean water, healthy trees, and beautiful vistas.   

 

7.  Give a children's message that highlights our dependence on the Earth.

 

8.  Create a worship banner or parament that highlights the interconnectedness of all creatures and Creation.    

 

9.  Write a litany, blessing, lament or prayer of repentance in honor of Creation.  Then, lead it in worship.  

 

10.  Share this list with your small group, Bible study, class, prayer partner or congregational leader.  Together, take on one of the above actions this Lent. 

 

I invite you to post your actions on the  Green Church Facebook page.  Let's encourage each other this Lent! 

  

Blessings,

Rebekah

 

Rev. Rebekah Simon-Peter,

Director of BridgeWorks

rspeter1@msn.com

(307) 320-6779


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Donate here towards relief efforts for the Japanese through the United Methodist Committee on Relief.  100% of UMCOR donations go to direct aid.