Hyde Park United Methodist

We are called to offer our fullest commitment to Jesus, regardless of the cultural pressures that would beckon otherwise.HydeParkUMC.org/NextStepsReflection Questions:1. How do you normally greet someone whom you have invited to your home for dinner?2. In what ways is your spiritual life “perfunctory”? 3. How will you make repentance and confession a more regular part of your spiritual practices?

Jesus calls us to love the ones whom society has deemed unredeemable and unworthy.HydeParkUMC.org/NextStepsReflection Questions:1. When did you attend a dinner party and encounter interesting people you weren’t expecting to meet? 2. How is a dinner table a good metaphor for God’s love and generosity? 3. What will you do to help welcome new people and make room for their place at God’s table?

The grace of Jesus Christ is enough to satisfy our deepest hunger, even as we are called to meet the needs of physically hungry people in the world.Reflection Questions:1. What are your favorite memories involving meal or a table? 2. When have you had an experience of physical, emotional, or spiritual scarcity? 3. How will you participate in a miracle of abundance for the sake of someone else? What do you need to turn over to Jesus?

Despite the original goodness of God’s creation, human sin has corrupted the world. Our mortality is a reminder of our utter dependence on God.

God models for us the principle of rest and renewal. Creation is incomplete if it does not allow for rebirth and rejuvenation. We should pattern our lives in the same way.Reflection Questions:1. What is your preferred way to enjoy Sabbath rest?2. What makes it hard to carve out time for practicing Sabbath in your life?3. What would help you be more faithful in your Sabbath practices?

We are made in God’s image, which means we are meant to be in connection and relationship with God and one another. We are therefore called to acts of reconciliation and love.Reflection Questions:1. How do you witness human beings’ capacity for goodness? For evil?2. Where do you need to experience the grace of God in your life?3. To whom or where can you extend grace this week?

One of the first commands that God gave to humans was to take dominion of the animals. But what does that mean exactly? St. Francis of Assisi modeled for us a care and concern for all life, especially animals. We should live at peace with all creatures.REFLECTION QUESTIONS:1. What are your favorite memories involving a pet or other animals?2. What do you think it means for humans to have “dominion” over animals?3. How will you work to help animals fulfill their potential to add more richness and beauty to the world?

Looking into the vastness of the universe both humbles us and fills us with awe and reverence for God. The rev. Magrey deVega describes how infinite, intimate, and incarnate space can be when showing us how God is working in both the universe and our lives. Reflection Questions1. What is a vivid memory you have involving space? 2. How does thinking about the universe give you a sense of awe and wonder about God? 3. When you remember that everything is created out of the same material, by the same God, how does that change your relationship with creation and other people?

There is a plethora of discourse about how to take care of the Earth these days. The Bible is clear in that we are called to appreciate and preserve the planet, restoring it to the goodness of God’s original intention.Reflection Questions: 1.  Can you remember when you first noticed and were overcome by the beauty of the earth? What was that like?2.  What are you most concerned about with regards to Climate Change?3.  What is one thing you could start doing to help better care for the creation?  When will you start?

 The Bible tells us that the sky declares the glory of God; their voice ringing out throughout all of the Earth. If you are feeling lost or lonely, look up. Sense God’s presence in the vastness of the sky.Reflection Questions:1. What song connects you to the sky?2. How do you answer Einstein’s question?3. In what ways will you look for God’s work this week? How will you look for Jesus?

The creation story is an iconic part of the Bible, yet it is often misunderstood and underappreciated. We don’t have to ascribe to a literal understanding of creation (i.e., a literal seven days of creation) in order to marvel at its living truth. For the ancient Israelites, the creation story was less about explaining how the universe came into being, and more about who did the creating, and how we are to relate to the Creator and all creation.Reflection Questions: 1. How do you think God is still creating and bringing order out of chaos? 2. What is your favorite or most vivid memory of a baptism? 3. How would you like God to open your eyes and strengthen your faith?

We all know that nothing spectacular happens when the clock strikes midnight, ushering in the new year. I'm sure many of us would like for that to happen, though. The thing is, God is the only one that can see your life in the broadest sense there is. He has his timing and plans for you already laid out. While we may not see, or even see it coming, God wants us to be faithful to him as he is faithful to us. This new year, God wants to write a new covenant with you on your heart. Reflection Questions:1. What is your favorite New Year’s memory? 2. How have you seen God’s transformation and provision in your life, but only in retrospect? 3. How will you recommit your life to Jesus over the coming year?HydeParkUMC.org/NextSteps

It has been noted that you life changes significantly about every 5 years. Some of us read that and think that that is a long amount of time for change to occur. It's the same way when we expect something from God. While His plan can change everything rapidly, almost like flipping on a light switch, many of those other times it takes a while. But like how the sun rises gradually each morning, so too will the Light of Christ penetrate the darkness from the world and banish it from out lives. Reflection Questions:1. In what areas of your life do you need the light of Jesus today? 2. When have you seen God’s power in your life, but only in retrospect? 3. How will you live out the hope and joy of Christmas moving forward?

On this Christmas Eve, we are reminded about how grandiose and extravagant the season wants to be. Especially when it comes to presents. However, Rev. Magrey would like to remind us about the smaller, more impactful moments this holiday. Remember to slow down and don't miss how God can work in your life, even in the small things. Reflection Questions:1. What is your favorite Christmas memory? What is your most difficult Christmas memory? 2. How will you look more diligently for the blessings of God in your life? 3. How will you look to be a blessing for others in the coming days and weeks?

In the final week of Advent, we explore the unexpected way God came to us as a king. Most stories depict the scene of a returning king with violence and a triumphant, exuberant return to the throne. However, that is not how Jesus came to us. He took the idea of a conquering, warrior-king and flipped it upside down. He did not come to be served, but rather to serve others and to show the world what true love is through justice and self-sacrifice. 

In our 3rd week of Advent, we discover something a bit...odd. This weeks' song, along with our scripture reading, have a common theme. God is relaying instructions for how to conduct a celebration for an event that hasn't even happened yet. As with the first set of instructions given to the Israelites for Passover, Advent is a time of preparing and focusing on something that is yet to come: The coming of Jesus into our lives. 

“But I believe that the desire to please You does in fact pleases You.”- Thomas MertonIn the 2nd week of our advent series, we discuss the song "I Want to Walk as a Child of the Light." How does one exactly become a Child of the Light and what does that mean for us and how we effect those around us? The world we live in is filled with suffering, despair, and darkness. But just as Jesus came to Earth to be a light to the world, so to can we who the love of God to others. 

During Advent we are so fixated on the Christmas Carols and texts that we don’t spend a lot of time thinking about Advent Carols and how powerful their meanings can be. "O Come, O Come Emmanuel" is such a remarkable and classic hymn that dates back over 1000 years. But what you may not know is the hidden meaning placed cleverly amongst the words. This hidden meaning is a wonderful reminder of what the real reason for the season is.

Gratitude on a communal level means joining our resources to meet the greatest needs of our community and world. Diana Butler Bass describes this fourth quadrant in this way: “If you emphasize we and ethics, you might define gratitude as social responsibility that demands action through public commitments to charity, stewardship, volunteerism, and social institutions. You believe that gratitude is an essential foundation of civic life, taking pride in doing good."

 Living with Gratitude means orienting our individual actions toward the benefit of others, including the surrender of our personal finances to God. Gratitude is not just an emotional attenuation of the heart. It has an impact on our actions and ethical choices. Diana Butler Bass called this third quadrant the “Personal/Ethical, and described it in this way: “If you emphasize me and ethics, you might experience gratitude as a moral or ritual response to a favor extended to you. Returning dinner invitations, writing thank-you notes, and repaying personal obligations come naturally. You think of gratitude in terms of individual responsibility and reciprocity.”