Reconcile | The Violence of Waiting pt. 5

The Lord's Prayer

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,

your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.

And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

Amen.

Conversation Series | The Violence of Waiting

Martin Luther King Jr was one of America's preeminent theologians. We often miss hearing MLK's deep drive towards justice amongst the many quotes popularized on social media posts. In this series, we will explore MLK's Letter from a Birmingham Jail together to listen for the prophetic echoes of Amos.

Message | Reconcile

This week Megan will lead us in a conversation about reconciliation. We are continuing to explore Marthin Luther King Jr’s famous letter from a Birmingham Jail. What is reconciliation? What does it look like when enacted?

Formational Learning:

As we explored the step of reconciliation, what stood out to you?

Were there any points of curiosity, clarity, confusion, conviction, or conflict that emerged as you walked through these stories?

(Head)

How do we imagine reconciliation from unjust systems while living in them? What does this look like?

How does the sacred and secular divide limit or hinder the church’s calling as against reconciliation?

(Heart)

When have you witnessed deconstruction as an act of reconciliation? What did it look like?

Where have you experienced performative reconciliation, and what would change it into an authentic expression of reconciliation?

(Hands)

We want to take time to practice what we preach for this series. The Examen is a practice of reflection and prayer that helps us introspectively look at ourselves. This week as we practice the Examen, I want us to ask ourselves four questions every day.

• Where did I see the need for reconciliation today?

• Where did I see reconciliation take place today?

• What do I need to reconcile today?

• How did I participate in the act of reconciliation today?

After spending a moment, ask God to help you work for justice in your life and the lives of those around you. 

Announcements 

• We have a SOAP group that meets online at 9:30am PST every Thursday. Also, if you want to follow along with SOAP, you can find the daily reading plan, an explanation of SOAP, and a link to our Thursday Morning online group https://zoom.us/j/502434122

• Every week we try to get to know our community better, and others who are connected to FōS, through our Shared Story segment in our liturgy. If you have a creative gift or something that you found meaningful to you that you would like to share with the community, please send us an email at hello@fos.church

• Last, one of the ways we invest in the future of FōS is through tithes and offering, generous giving. You can give online at www.fos.church/partner. Make sure to follow the instructions.

Our Benediction

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you;

may he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm;

may he bring you home rejoicing: at the wonders he has shown you;

may he bring you home rejoicing: once again into our doors.*

*Claiborne, Shane. Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals (p. 52). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.

And Again I Say Repent | The Violence of Waiting pt. 4

The Lord's Prayer

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,

your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.

And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

Amen.

Conversation Series | The Violence of Waiting

Martin Luther King Jr was one of America's preeminent theologians. We often miss hearing MLK's deep drive towards justice amongst the many quotes popularized on social media posts. In this series, we will explore MLK's Letter from a Birmingham Jail together to listen for the prophetic echoes of Amos.

Message | Name

This week we will take a second look at the third step of our series, repent. We are continuing to explore Marthin Luther King Jr’s famous letter from a Birmingham Jail. What is repentance? What does it look like when enacted?

Formational Learning:

As we explored the step of repentance, what stood out to you?

Were there any points of curiosity, clarity, confusion, conviction, or conflict that emerged as you walked through these stories?

(Head)

How does social location affect the way we understand the act of repentance on a societal and communal level?

(Heart)

Have you witnessed a community work out or work towards repentance? What did it look like? How did it affect you?

(Hands)

We want to take time to practice what we preach for this series. The Examen is a practice of reflection and prayer that helps us introspectively look at ourselves. This week as we practice the Examen, I want us to ask ourselves four questions every day.

• Where did I see the need for repentance today?

• Where did I see repentance take place today?

• What do I need to repent for today?

• How did I participate in the act of repentance today?

After spending a moment, ask God to help you work for justice in your life and the lives of those around you. 

Announcements 

• We have a SOAP group that meets online at 9:30am PST every Thursday. Also, if you want to follow along with SOAP, you can find the daily reading plan, an explanation of SOAP, and a link to our Thursday Morning online group https://zoom.us/j/502434122

• Every week we try to get to know our community better, and others who are connected to FōS, through our Shared Story segment in our liturgy. If you have a creative gift or something that you found meaningful to you that you would like to share with the community, please send us an email at hello@fos.church

• Last, one of the ways we invest in the future of FōS is through tithes and offering, generous giving. You can give online at www.fos.church/partner. Make sure to follow the instructions.

Our Benediction

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you;

may he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm;

may he bring you home rejoicing: at the wonders he has shown you;

may he bring you home rejoicing: once again into our doors.*

*Claiborne, Shane. Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals (p. 52). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.

Repent | The Violence of Waiting pt. 3

The Lord's Prayer

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,

your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.

And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

Amen.

Conversation Series | The Violence of Waiting

Martin Luther King Jr was one of America's preeminent theologians. We often miss hearing MLK's deep drive towards justice amongst the many quotes popularized on social media posts. In this series, we will explore MLK's Letter from a Birmingham Jail together to listen for the prophetic echoes of Amos.

Message | Name

This week we will begin to look at the third step of our series, repent. We are continuing to explore Marthin Luther King Jr’s famous letter from a Birmingham Jail. What is repentance? What does it look like when enacted?

Formational Learning:

As we explored the step of repentance, what stood out to you?

Were there any points of curiosity, clarity, confusion, conviction, or conflict that emerged as you walked through these stories?

(Head)

What has to be present for repentance to be truthful and authentic?

(Heart)

how are we called as Christians to respond when there is a lack of repentance toward injustice?

(Hands)

We want to take time to practice what we preach for this series. The Examen is a practice of reflection and prayer that helps us introspectively look at ourselves. This week as we practice the Examen, I want us to ask ourselves four questions every day.

• Where did I see the need for repentance today?

• Where did I see repentance take place today?

• What do I need to repent for today?

• How did I participate in the act of repentance today?

After spending a moment, ask God to help you work for justice in your life and the lives of those around you. 

Announcements 

• We have a SOAP group that meets online at 9:30am PST every Thursday. Also, if you want to follow along with SOAP, you can find the daily reading plan, an explanation of SOAP, and a link to our Thursday Morning online group https://zoom.us/j/502434122

• Every week we try to get to know our community better, and others who are connected to FōS, through our Shared Story segment in our liturgy. If you have a creative gift or something that you found meaningful to you that you would like to share with the community, please send us an email at hello@fos.church

• Last, one of the ways we invest in the future of FōS is through tithes and offering, generous giving. You can give online at www.fos.church/partner. Make sure to follow the instructions.

Our Benediction

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you;

may he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm;

may he bring you home rejoicing: at the wonders he has shown you;

may he bring you home rejoicing: once again into our doors.*

*Claiborne, Shane. Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals (p. 52). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.

Liberate | The Violence of Waiting pt. 2

The Lord's Prayer

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,

your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.

And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

Amen.

Conversation Series | The Violence of Waiting

Martin Luther King Jr was one of America's preeminent theologians. We often miss hearing MLK's deep drive towards justice amongst the many quotes popularized on social media posts. In this series, we will explore MLK's Letter from a Birmingham Jail together to listen for the prophetic echoes of Amos.

Message | Name

This week Carl will lead us in the second step of our series, liberate. We are continuing to explore Marthin Luther King Jr’s famous letter from a Birmingham Jail. It’s not hard to imagine how liberation and oppression interact, but how do we participate in both?

Formational Learning:

As we explored the idea of liberation, what stood out to you?

Were there any points of curiosity, clarity, confusion, conviction, or conflict that emerged as you walked through these stories?

(Head)

Our liberation is bound up together; what changes when we see freedom from injustice as a new world of justice that we all get to create together?

(Heart)

It is often easier to name how we have felt oppressed and harder to name the ways that we have oppressed others. How have you participated in someone else's oppression, and how can you bring liberation instead?

(Hands)

We want to take time to practice what we preach for this series. The Examen is a practice of reflection and prayer that helps us introspectively look at ourselves. This week as we practice the Examen, I want us to ask ourselves four questions every day.

• Where did I see injustice?

• Where did I see liberation today?

• How did I participate in injustice today?

• How did I work for liberation today?

After spending a moment, ask God to help you work for justice in your life and the lives of those around you. 

Announcements 

• We have a SOAP group that meets online at 9:30am PST every Thursday. Also, if you want to follow along with SOAP, you can find the daily reading plan, an explanation of SOAP, and a link to our Thursday Morning online group https://zoom.us/j/502434122

• Every week we try to get to know our community better, and others who are connected to FōS, through our Shared Story segment in our liturgy. If you have a creative gift or something that you found meaningful to you that you would like to share with the community, please send us an email at hello@fos.church

• We want to have another games night soon. What does the last Friday of February, Feb. 26, work for everyone?

• Last, one of the ways we invest in the future of FōS is through tithes and offering, generous giving. You can give online at www.fos.church/partner. Make sure to follow the instructions.

Our Benediction

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you;

may he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm;

may he bring you home rejoicing: at the wonders he has shown you;

may he bring you home rejoicing: once again into our doors.*

*Claiborne, Shane. Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals (p. 52). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.

Name | The Violence of Waiting pt. 1

The Lord's Prayer

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,

your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.

And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

Amen.

Conversation Series | The Violence of Waiting

Martin Luther King Jr was one of America's preeminent theologians. We often miss hearing MLK's deep drive towards justice amongst the many quotes popularized on social media posts. In this series, we will explore MLK's Letter from a Birmingham Jail together to listen for the prophetic echoes of Amos.

Message | Name

This week Glenn will lead us in exploring how Martin Luther King Jr names the injustice that he is asking his reader to confront. What does it look like to name the injustice as a first step?

Formational Learning:

As we explored the idea of naming injustice, what stood out to you?

Were there any points of curiosity, clarity, confusion, conviction, or conflict that emerged as you walked through these stories?

(Head)

What changes when the church intentionally listen to the marginalized to discover where "Justice and righteousness" do not flow?

(Heart)

How has systemic comfort closed your ears to injustice, what voices does your comfort make it hard to hear?

(Hands)

This week sit in and read MLK JR's letter from a Birmingham Jail. Maybe try using the SOAP reflection as a way of engaging the letter. Also, pledge to read a book from a marginalized community to hear how they name reality over the next four weeks. Reflect on how where you affected by the voices you read?

Recommendations for Canada:

• 21 things you didn’t know about the Indian act

• Policing black lives

Recommendations for the US:

• Strength to love By MLK

• After whiteness by Willie Jennings 

Announcements 

• We have a SOAP group that meets online at 9:30am PST every Thursday. Also, if you want to follow along with SOAP, you can find the daily reading plan, an explanation of SOAP, and a link to our Thursday Morning online group https://zoom.us/j/502434122

• Every week we try to get to know our community better, and others who are connected to FōS, through our Shared Story segment in our liturgy. If you have a creative gift or something that you found meaningful to you that you would like to share with the community, please send us an email at hello@fos.church

• We want to have another games night soon. What are does the last Friday of February, Feb. 26, work for everyone?

• Last, one of the ways we invest in the future of FōS is through tithes and offering, generous giving. You can give online at www.fos.church/partner. Make sure to follow the instructions.

Our Benediction

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you;

may he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm;

may he bring you home rejoicing: at the wonders he has shown you;

may he bring you home rejoicing: once again into our doors.*

*Claiborne, Shane. Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals (p. 52). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.

Forgiveness | The Art of Being Basic pt. 5

The Lord's Prayer

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,

your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.

And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

Amen.

Conversation Series | The Art of Being Basic

Sometimes we just need to get back to the basics. In this series we are exploring some of the basic practices of community.

Message | Gratitude

This week Megan leads us through the community practice of forgiveness. Why does forgiveness matter in the life of the community?

Formational Learning:

As we explored the practice of forgiveness, what stood out to you?

Were there any points of curiosity, clarity, confusion, conviction, or conflict that emerged as you walked through these stories?

(Head)

Forgive and forget is a phrase that most of us have heard, but in the message we challenged this idea. Forgetting can be a way of avoiding the truth, and we need to face the truth to forgive. If this is true, what is the relationship between forgiveness and memory?

(Heart)

Whether you were the giver or receiver, how have you personally experienced the process of forgiveness?

(Hands)

Where or from whom does the church need to ask/seek forgiveness?

Announcements 

• We have a SOAP group that meets online at 9:30am PST every Thursday. Also, if you want to follow along with SOAP, you can find the daily reading plan, an explanation of SOAP, and a link to our Thursday Morning online group https://zoom.us/j/502434122

• Every week we try to get to know our community better, and others who are connected to FōS, through our Shared Story segment in our liturgy. If you have a creative gift or something that you found meaningful to you that you would like to share with the community, please send us an email at hello@fos.church

• Super Bowl Sunday | On Sunday February 7th @ 3:30pm we will log on Zoom to watch the Super Bowl together. Even if you are not the biggest football fan, Glenn’s commentary on the game will still be entertaining.

• Last, one of the ways we invest in the future of FōS is through tithes and offering, generous giving. You can give online at www.fos.church/partner. Make sure to follow the instructions.

Our Benediction

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you;

may he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm;

may he bring you home rejoicing: at the wonders he has shown you;

may he bring you home rejoicing: once again into our doors.*

*Claiborne, Shane. Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals (p. 52). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.

Gratitude | The Art of Being Basic pt. 4

The Lord's Prayer

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,

your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.

And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

Amen.

Conversation Series | The Art of Being Basic

Sometimes we just need to get back to the basics. In this series we are exploring some of the basic practices of community.

Message | Gratitude

This week Sabeth leads us through the community practice of Gratitude. How do we learn to live a life of gratitude?

Formational Learning:

As we explored the practice of gratitude, what stood out to you?

Were there any points of curiosity, clarity, confusion, conviction, or conflict that emerged as you walked through these stories?

(Head)

The Apostle Paul, one of the earliest followers of Jesus, writes about giving thanks in all things, a theme we see throughout his letters. In 1 Thessalonians, Paul includes this phrase in a benediction list of encouragement towards social obligations in community based on faith in Christ:

Don’t repay evil for evil

Encourage the faint hearted

Be patient

Do good to one another

Pray without ceasing

Give thanks in all things

How would our engagement with families, churches, and communities be different if we considered a lifestyle of gratitude to be a social obligation rather than a feeling or an immediate emotional response?

(Heart)

What is killing gratitude in our hearts?

How can we transition to a posture of gratitude for the hard parts of daily communal life?

(Hands)

Who needs a practical (financial, relational, gratitude) gift which demonstrates gratefulness over charity?

Announcements 

• We have a SOAP group that meets online at 9:30am PST every Thursday. Also, if you want to follow along with SOAP, you can find the daily reading plan, an explanation of SOAP, and a link to our Thursday Morning online group https://zoom.us/j/502434122

• Every week we try to get to know our community better, and others who are connected to FōS, through our Shared Story segment in our liturgy. If you have a creative gift or something that you found meaningful to you that you would like to share with the community, please send us an email at hello@fos.church

• Last, one of the ways we invest in the future of FōS is through tithes and offering, generous giving. You can give online at www.fos.church/partner. Make sure to follow the instructions.

Our Benediction

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you;

may he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm;

may he bring you home rejoicing: at the wonders he has shown you;

may he bring you home rejoicing: once again into our doors.*

*Claiborne, Shane. Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals (p. 52). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.

Storytelling | The Art of Being Basic pt. 3

The Lord's Prayer

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,

your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.

And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

Amen.

Conversation Series | The Art of Being Basic

Sometimes we just need to get back to the basics. In this series we are exploring some of the basic practices of community.

Message | Storytelling

This week Carl leads us through the community practice of storytelling. How do we learn to be better storytellers?

Formational Learning:

As we explored the practice of storytelling, what stood out to you?

Were there any points of curiosity, clarity, confusion, conviction, or conflict that emerged as you walked through these stories?

(Head)

What changes when the stories we tell are not about convincing people to agree with us and becomes about creating space for us to be mutually present?

When we come from within our Christian tradition, the idea of testifying is usually presented as a monologue to convince people with absolute points, such as the four spiritual laws. What changes when we have to listen first and learn how to follow Jesus in embodying their story within our own?

(Heart)

Can you think of a time when you were invited to be present or pressured into something?

What was the difference you noticed between the stories that invited versus stories that pressured?

(Hands)

Invitational storytelling requires that we become vulnerable to create spaces of hospitality. This week, Glenn will lead us in an exercise instead of a question.

Announcements 

• We have a SOAP group that meets online at 9:30am PST every Thursday. Also, if you want to follow along with SOAP, you can find the daily reading plan, an explanation of SOAP, and a link to our Thursday Morning online group https://zoom.us/j/502434122

• Every week we try to get to know our community better, and others who are connected to FōS, through our Shared Story segment in our liturgy. If you have a creative gift or something that you found meaningful to you that you would like to share with the community, please send us an email at hello@fos.church

• Last, one of the ways we invest in the future of FōS is through tithes and offering, generous giving. You can give online at www.fos.church/partner. Make sure to follow the instructions.

Our Benediction

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you;

may he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm;

may he bring you home rejoicing: at the wonders he has shown you;

may he bring you home rejoicing: once again into our doors.*

*Claiborne, Shane. Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals (p. 52). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.

Hospitality | The Art of Being Basic pt. 2

The Lord's Prayer

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,

your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.

And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

Amen.

Conversation Series | The Art of Being Basic

Sometimes we just need to get back to the basics. In this series we are exploring some of the basic practices of community.

Message | Hospitality

This week Glenn leads us through the practice of Hospitality. What does it look like to be a community shaped by and through hospitality?

Formational Learning:

As we explored the practice of hospitality and the story of the Samaritan, what stood out to you?

Were there any points of curiosity, clarity, confusion, conviction, or conflict that emerged as you walked through these stories?

(Head)

Often when we read stories like this one about the benevolent Samaritan, we see ourselves as the Samaritan. We have been taught that it is better to give than to receive, but the kingdom of God seems to expand through the act of receiving. What changes when we see our role within the expanding kingdom as receiving hospitality, learning to be guests, which demands vulnerability and presence?

How does church change when we start from needing to receive hospitality from the Samaritan before “going and doing”?

(Heart)

Who do we have a hard time receiving hospitality from?

What risk is there in naming our Samaritans and recognizing we need them?

(Hands)

How do we create participatory space for the Samaritan? 

Announcements 

• We have a SOAP group that meets online at 9:30am PST every Thursday. Also, if you want to follow along with SOAP, you can find the daily reading plan, an explanation of SOAP, and a link to our Thursday Morning online group https://zoom.us/j/502434122

• Every week we try to get to know our community better, and others who are connected to FōS, through our Shared Story segment in our liturgy. If you have a creative gift or something that you found meaningful to you that you would like to share with the community, please send us an email at hello@fos.church

• Last, one of the ways we invest in the future of FōS is through tithes and offering, generous giving. You can give online at www.fos.church/partner. Make sure to follow the instructions.

Our Benediction

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you;

may he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm;

may he bring you home rejoicing: at the wonders he has shown you;

may he bring you home rejoicing: once again into our doors.*

*Claiborne, Shane. Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals (p. 52). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.

Advent | Peace | Hope | A Christmas Story pt. 3

The Lord's Prayer

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,

your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.

And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

Amen.

Conversation Series | A Christmas Story

Christmas is a season full of stories. Some of these narratives are complementary, and others are contradictory. As a community, we want to pause and listen. What are these stories trying to tell us, sell us, or compile us to do?

Message | Advent | Peace | Hope

This week we explore the first two themes of Advent: Peace & Hope. Megan, Glenn, and Carl sit down for a table talk about how they have come to understand and what they are learning about the Advent season.

Formational Learning:

As we explored the themes of peace and hope through the lens of Advent, what stood out to you?

Were there any points of curiosity, clarity, confusion, conviction, or conflict that emerged as you walked through these stories?

(Head)

What are the ways that Advent or the birth of Jesus help you reimagine peace and hope?

(Heart)

What does peace and hope look like for you in this season?

How are peace and hope related to ideas of justice?

(Hands)

As we reimagine peace and hope together in light of Advent, how do we engage in the work of peace and hope?

Announcements 

• We have a SOAP group that meets online at 9:30am PST every Thursday. Also, if you want to follow along with SOAP, you can find the daily reading plan, an explanation of SOAP, and a link to our Thursday Morning online group https://zoom.us/j/502434122

• You can also follow SOAP daily on Instagram stories.

• Every week we try to get to know our community better, and others who are connected to FōS, through our Shared Story segment in our liturgy. If you have a creative gift or something that you found meaningful to you that you would like to share with the community, please send us an email at hello@fos.church

• We will be hosting a Movie Night on Friday, December 18th, at 7pm PST. You can vote for and suggest a movie in the FōS Facebook Messenger Chat. Or if you don't have access to that, you can shoot us a message at hello@fos.church

• Last, one of the ways we invest in the future of FōS is through tithes and offering, generous giving. You can give online at www.fos.church/partner. Make sure to follow the instructions.

Our Benediction

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you;

may he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm;

may he bring you home rejoicing: at the wonders he has shown you;

may he bring you home rejoicing: once again into our doors.*

*Claiborne, Shane. Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals (p. 52). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.