Building Bridges: Next Steps

As we come to the end of our current teaching series, Building Bridges, can we really call it an end? As we look at what it means to be reconciled people reconciling the world, the series conclusion seems much more like the beginning of a new chapter for our church. Which begs the question, “where do we go from here?”

To guide us in our discerning, we want to make available some potential next steps to help us lean into how we can be active in pursuing reconciliation with God, with the Earth, with each other and with ourselves.

RECONCILED TO GOD

• We grow in our relationship with God when we spend time with Him, but sometimes we need help with consistency. Here are some apps that could help (you can search for them in your respective app stores):
  • The Bible Project
  • Lectio 365
  • Pray As You Go
  • Reimagining the Examen
  • Bible in One Year

RECONCILED TO THE EARTH:

• Join Redwood’s Green Team! Have ideas to help care for our Earth? Want to help our community seek reconciliation between humans and the earth? Come on out to our Green Team Meet & Greet to see what this ministry is all about, and what differences you can make.

RECONCILED TO OTHERS:

• Books to Read
• • Roadmap to Reconciliation 2.0, by Brenda Salter McNeil
  • Making Peace: A Guide to Overcoming Church Conflict, by Jim Van Yperin
  • Unsettling Truths: The Ongoing Dehumanizing Legacy of the Doctrine of Discovery, by Mark Charles and Soong-Chan Rah.
• New sermon series, “The UpsideDown Life” (based on Nathan Weselake’s book of the same name), begins next week. All proceeds from the sales of the book go to “Mitakuye Oyasin”; a reconciliation initiative of Prairie Alliance Church.
• We often host the KAIROS Blanket Exercise. Developed in response to the 1996 Report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples—which recommended education on Canadian-Indigenous history as one of the key steps to reconciliation, the Blanket Exercise covers over 500 years of history in a 90 minute participatory workshop. Join us the next time we offer it.
• Prayerfully consider if there are broken relationships in your life and if God is inviting you to take steps towards reconciliation. Is God calling you to ask for forgiveness or to forgive someone? Ask for the Holy Spirit to lead and empower you.
• Sign up for the Emotionally Healthy Relationships course, which is usually offered at Redwood in the fall.

RECONCILED TO SELF:

• Pick up either of these great books to prayerfully read over the summer as you work towards reclaiming your identity in Christ and move towards healing:
  • Who Am I? A Devotional Journey for You to Soar in Your Identity in Christ, by Sharon Simmonds.
  • The Soul of Shame: Retelling the Stories We Believe About Ourselves, by Curt Thompson, MD.
• Check out Sanctuary Mental Health Ministries for free resources at sanctuarymentalhealth.org
• Consider if this is a season for extra help in moving towards health. Email our Pastor of Spiritual Formation (jay@redwoodpark.ca) if you’d like help connecting with a counsellor or spiritual director.