#40ways40days |

‘Live your lives openly, reflecting God brightly, so that everyone can bask in the light of your integrity and generous love and give due credit to God who conceived you in heaven…’ (Laughingbird.net)

Today we join together as ecumenical communities for world day of prayer. Entitled ‘streams in the desert’ our eyes turn to Egypt as a focus for prayers for and of the people of God. Associated with stories of Pharaoh’s who treated the Israelites as slaves, we see the figure of Moses emerging with liberation and freedom for a people of God.

But I wonder what does letting your light shine have to do with freedom? Is living your life openly and reflecting God brightly about being the best disciple possible in order to reveal a God that is Lord of our days?

I suspect that in order to let our light shine as described here in Matthew we need to enter into costly discipleship that follows an authentic understanding of what Matthew describes as ‘integrity and generous love’.

These qualities call us to be radical people who challenge social and political stagnation wanting to call into the light the injustice and inequality in the world so that we may be people in community with others who offer God in our hospitality to the stranger, the lost, the hungry…

Let your light shine in Lent invites us into freedom as a calling forth from darkness into light, where all our wounds and scars (self inflicted and not) are revealed with integrity as we reflect the true God within all of us. The God, who has travelled with us during good and bad, continually calls us back into the light in order to welcome us with the greatest gift of love and freedom.

PRACTICE

Candles for me always speak of light in darks places and I still remember the very first time I sat in Whitley college in 2006, when we used to have prayer on a Wednesday after morning classes, lead by Dr. Keith Dyer he coined a phrase I use to this day when lighting a candle “May the darkness never over come the light…”

Perhaps as a practice today it’s worth lighting a candle in the darkness tonight, either alone or with someone, to see what the light brings forth.

A candles flames dances upon the faces and walls around us and invites silence and reflection, something we earnestly look for on our Lenten journey towards Easter.

Peace,

Luke Bowen

Greetings,

This coming week, (at the end of the summer season, when the grasses and our gardens are brown and dry) will see ‘Ash Wednesday’ mark the sacred time of Lent.

In the tradition of Christ followers, the 40 days of Lent, leading up to Easter, has been a time of spiritual self examination. It was also a time of learning. For those who were new in their experience of Jesus, the forty days of Lent mirrored Jesus’ own journey of forty days in the wilderness, testing his own identity and call to baptism and ministry. This process would prepare people for the initiation rite of water baptism on the morning of Easter Sunday where people would symbolically be ‘born again’, rising from the waters of death with the risen Christ.

As inner-city Baptist churches we are seeking to renew these wilderness traditions and ourselves in our own Lenten journey of discovery of what it means to follow Jesus today. We are calling it 40 ways in 40 days.(#40ways40days) It’s a mix of of reading and doing; eating and sharing. It combines self led readings and practical daily exercises for spiritual growth alongside a social media campaign and the common gatherings of our churches.

We are inviting our Partners, Volunteers and Friends to consider taking up a topic or two from the list below, to think about it and share a short paragraph about how it may connect with you, remind you of a story, initiate action or reflection or simply offer some words of wisdom. You may want to share a photo, a link, some art or a poem that reflects the theme/command of Jesus and your own personal joy or struggle. You can choose a theme by simply replying to this email as suggested below.

The emails/facebook group will commence on Wednesday the 5th of March and Marcus or Luke can contact you a few days before to remind you to write or share something.

STORY

#40ways40days involves immersing ourselves in Matthew’s story of Jesus (the gospel read across the world in churches during 2014). Matthew presents Jesus as ‘The Human One’, the great teacher about how to be more fully human and how we might know our reality as the ‘kingdom /economy of heaven’. We believe this story is not just ancient words on a page but a powerful living reality whose rhythms and themes invite connection and transformation of our own stories. As a way of connecting you will be invited to read and reflect upon part of the story each day, progressing through the whole gospel.

PRACTICES

#40ways40days is also an invitation to practice. We have focused Matthew’s story around forty basic commands and questions of Jesus. One for each day. We will be considering what followers of Jesus are asked to do and seeking to give it a try, considering what issues arise and how it looks and feels to ‘follow’ in our bodies and shared lives?

COMMUNITY

Because Jesus is ‘the human one’ we believe following Jesus is for everyone and anyone no matter your background or belief. Over Lent we will host various open gatherings and discussion in cafe’s, homes and churches about our unique joys and struggles that come as a result of this journey.

FORTY WAYS IN MATTHEW’S STORY

1. Repent & Follow 4:17-19

2. Rejoice in Persecution 5:12

3. Shine! 5:16 (10.32)

4. Respect the Law 5:17-18

5. Reconcile/Forgive : 5:24-25, (4:12,10.32,18:15-35)

6. Cut it Out: Deformity before Conformity 5:29-30

7. Keep Your Word: No Oaths! 5:37

8. Practice Non Violence 5:38-48

9. Give 6:1-4, (10:8,19:16-22)

10. Pray like… 6:5-6 (5:7-8, 5:44)

11. Store up treasure 6:19-20,33

12. Don’t worry 6: 25-34, (10:19)

13. Don’t judge 7:1-3

14. Value the pearls 7:6

15. Do unto others…7:12

16. Take Alternate Route 7:13-14

17. Be On Guard 7:15,(Matthew 16:6;15:6, 23:23, 24:4-6)

18. Leave the dead 8:22,15:4

19. Seek Work/ers 9:38

20. Start at Home 10:6

21. Listen and Tell 10:7 (4:24,7:16-23,13:18-23,43)

22. Heal & Exorcise 10:8

23. Travel Light 10:9

24. Seek People of Peace 10:11

25. Shake the Dust 10:14

26. Be Shrewd & Innocent 10:16

27. Be not Afraid 10:26-31 (1:20, 14:27, 17:7 28:5-10)

28. Rethink Peace 10:34 (5:9, 10:13)

29. Take My Yoke 11:29-30

30. Feed Them 14:16

31. Pay Tax 17:23-25 (11:19, 22:15-22)

32. Value Children 18:10, (19:13)

33. Serve 20:20-28

34. Love God and Neighbour 22:34-40

35. Flee/Seek Asylum 24:16

36. Read the Signs 24:32-35, (24:3-8, 21:18-22)

37. Keep Watch 26:36-44

38. Share Eucharist 26:26-30

39. Go 28:19

40. Baptise 28:19

JOIN THE JOURNEY

You can sign up via Email: marcus.curnow@gmail.com or luke.bowen@hotmail.comIn your reply feel free to nominate one of the ‘ways’ you feel you would be willing to offer a contribution on and indicate if you would like to…1. Follow Facebook Group2. Receive a Daily Email over the 40 days

3. Receive a Weekly Email Summary over the 40 days of Lent

4. Like to attend Moreland / Newmarket Baptist Church during Lent/Easter

5. Like to attend a #40ways40days local meal/discussion.

Much Grace and Peace

Marcus Curnow & Luke Bowen

Tag Archives: #40ways40days

40 ways 40 days #3: Shine

40 ways in 40 days… following Matthew’s Jesus in Lent 2014