Work Laughter and Prayer

Morning tea devotion 4/5/10

I have been reading from “Grace Notes” (Phillip Yancey) each morning… one of the notes said “humans are distinct in 3 ways – they work, laugh and pray”.

“Work” – the only thing that is really a sanctioned addiction; we go to work, work at home, churches are organised so they work, we even have to schedule God into our day.

“Pray” – Biblical prayers are acts of worship; prayer can be a never-ending conversation.

“Laughter” – surveys have shown Christians trail behind the rest of the world in their ability to laugh; we know we’re fallen so have the best excuse to laugh at ourselves.

Laughter and prayer tend to unite us.

Fusion’s heresy is to “do whatever it takes”… however the goal statement says “we will take whatever initiatives are necessary to see the Kingdom of God come”.  Doesn’t mean we have to work harder or longer.  Kingdom of God… is also enjoying each other.

The word “Shalom” means everything having its right place… not necessarily peace or quiet, but can happen in a riot.

Have a choice – live life by the spirit or live life by the law…

In Galatians 5 (The Message) it says:  “Christ has set us free to live a free life… Never again let anyone put a harness of slavery on you… don’t use this freedom as an excuse to do whatever you want to do and destroy your freedom… Rather, use your freedom to serve one another in love; that’s how freedom grows… Love others as you love yourself… That’s an act of true freedom. If you bite and ravage each other, watch out—in no time at all you will be annihilating each other, and where will your precious freedom be then?   …live freely, animated and motivated by God’s Spirit. …there is a root of sinful self-interest in us that is at odds with a free spirit, just as the free spirit is incompatible with selfishness. “

The Village’s motto – “the way life was meant to be”.  ..that doesn’t mean trying to organise others around you.
What does it mean to be free?  …to use your freedom to serve others.

Had a discussion with a leader of youth in Germany, and he found it unusual to comprehend how we can have young people live alongside us.

The only way you can have community is if you have to give your life for others.

Fusion’s goal in simple terms is:  love each other, love community and love God.

Loving others is hard work though, stressful.  However we’re not called to live in the stress… we’re meant to be free.

Willing to lose life to gain life.

Enjoyed working bee the other month – scrubbing out the fish pond, learning how to use a hedge trimmer – a moment of community.

Even though we are tripping up all the time, we are called to be free.  Only way freedom grows is by being willing to give our lives for each other and God.

Working is probably the easiest thing.

Now we can work on prayer and laughter, and take ourselves less seriously.