Our Sabbath series will conclude soon. However, that doesn’t mean Sabbath stops. This gift is available to us anytime we take the time to honor and experience it. To that end, we made a Sabbath Bingo sheet that you can use to help with your Sabbath experience. CLICK HERE  to view the sheet and let us know how it goes by clicking the “Let us know!” tab at the bottom of this page. Blessings to you on your Sabbath journey.

Rev. Dr. Amy Snow had a great conversation with Rev. MaryAnn McKibben Dana about Sabbath and her book “Sabbath in the Suburbs: A Family’s Experiment with Holy Time” CLICK HERE to check it out!

Amy will be experimenting with different practices to cultivate a posture of Sabbath that extends into her daily life. If you are interested in experimenting with Sabbath, join this group to stay connected.

Tina is reading “The Sabbath Way” by Travis West. She invites you to read it with her! Click here to let Tina know if you’ll be reading along.

As part of his Sabbath practice this summer, this month Adam Fronczek will be offering opportunities to begin your week with a time of grounding, mindful prayer, Monday mornings at Knox in the Social Hall from 8:15 a.m. until about 9:00 a.m. Each week we will introduce a prayer practice, pray together, and spend a bit of time in reflection. Adam invites you to join him! If this sounds like something that will support you in your faith life, please come. Stop by one Monday or every Monday and begin your day with the gift of prayer.

I (Kristin Dietsche) would like to offer my weekly Tai Chi Flow class as a Sabbath practice. It’s Tuesdays at 2:00 p.m. in the Social Hall. It’s an opportunity to practice slowing down and building the strength to be still. The class is sponsored by Meals on Wheels. Free and no registration required.

An Idea and Reflection from Laurie Myers

A hike and seek event is just what it says: we hike outside and seek God as we go. We begin each hike and seek gathering with a brief reading directly out of the Bible, a psalm or a passage for the day. From that reading, I choose a word/phrase or ask members of the assembled group to choose something from the passage that stands out to them. Then, with that idea in mind, we journey together along a trail, searching for God’s depiction of that word or phrase as we hike, listening with all our senses. It is a version of the ancient spiritual practice of visio divina (divine seeing), with a work of art as our focal point for prayer, the artist being God, the Creator! Jesus is with us along our paths, whether or not we notice his presence. Hike and seek provides a method for us to witness and acknowledge God’s work in the natural world around us. Indeed, God’s undeniable fingerprints in nature help us to see God’s fingerprints on our life. We indicate evidence of God’s artwork to each other along the path, sometimes interrupting human conversations to show glimpses of God that might have otherwise been overlooked. The journey provides time for building relationships, for generations walking together offer each other pieces of themselves. My children tend to run ahead along a trail, only to circle back and link arms with a grandparent, who then teaches them the name of a spring ephemeral or blesses them with a story. Jesus himself used examples in nature as teaching tools during his ministry years, such as several parables and the Sermon on the Mount (“consider the lilies of the field…”). These natural examples are accessible and God-generated. I have found as we experience nature with a scriptural focus, what what we encounter emerges as a meaningful representation of aspects of our spirituality. The same group of trees can represent hope, resurrection, death, love, rest, peace, brokenness, or strength on different occasions. This is not just mindfulness, but awareness of the God who is present. It is not meant to worship nature, but to worship the King of Creation. Studying creation allows us to know the Creator, and confirms the need for good stewardship with creation care. Hike and seek has had several variations since it began: bike and seek, sit and seek, swat mosquitoes and seek, post natural pics on Facebook and seek, Holy Week nature scavenger hunt and seek, raise butterflies and seek, make eco-friendly hand soap and seek, enjoy the beach and seek, eat Christmas cookies in a park and seek. The primary components remain the same. God is present and acknowledged, nature is utilized as a valuable window into the heart of God, and pathways are shared among friends. May your views be breathtaking And your footsteps sure, Your friendships sweet, And your soul secure. Happy trails!

From David Schlaudecker
Years ago, during a time of great stress; kids, work, aging sick parent… I said to a friend I thought I was losing it. She said “take a baby step”.  I of course, said “what”?  “Give yourself five minutes alone every day; sit in a chair, stand outside and look at the clouds, listen to the birds, do anything alone and let your mind float free. Next week, make a 10 minutes, the week after try for 20 minutes. Before you know it, you will appreciate the incredible benefits of solitude.” I followed her advice and now I practice my solitude/meditation/contemplation every day without fail, and the benefits are extraordinary. As the monastics say, solitude rinses the soul of noise and clutter, frees the heart to sing, and gives life another whole level of worth.

From Alexa Naramore
Jim and I get our exercise at Summit Park in Blue Ash. When he runs, I walk. I usually listen to the news or send a few texts on my phone during my walk. When I left it behind a few weeks ago, my walking experience was entirely different. The sky was blue, spring was blooming, and I felt a sense of relief. Although I didn’t think of it that way at the time, it turned my “must do” walk into a Sabbath experience of renewal.

From Adam Hayden
My aunt gave me a book one year about prayer. There was a concept in there about how all thoughts are a form of prayer since God knows our thoughts. So then the idea that fascinated me was around constant prayer. I am always in prayer. I just have to be mindful of it. I’m wondering if Sabbath is the same way. My body – soul and spirit – are always with God. So then, there is a kind of Sabbath that is always happening if I’m open to it, aware of it. I’m not sure this is true or not. It is an interesting concept to consider though and one that I think can have a meaningful and practical outcome. We’ll see.

Do you have a Sabbath reflection you would like to share? See below!