ADVENT Week 3

Week 3 (December 16 - Third Sunday of Advent – December 22)

An Advent Reflection:

Last week we reflected on the waiting we do in advent, but also the waiting we experience here at the Mustard Seed as we wait for the kingdom of God to come here on earth. But in other ways, we also see that not only are we waiting for the coming King, we also have some beautiful opportunities to witness that the kingdom has also already arrived. In a world marked by violence, starvation, over consumption, and poverty, how can we still become a community of joy? Matthew 3:2 says, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." So we are waiting for the kingdom to come in fullness and glory here on earth, but we are also bearing witness to the many ways the kingdom is showing itself here joyfully on earth every day. This is where we draw our joy and also our hope from; seeing the face of Jesus in our community. In the people who come through our doors for dinner, in the faces of our staff as they comfort one another during a difficult shift, in the hands of our volunteers as they prepare meals and serve our community each night, in the acts of kindness and generosity that we see even amongst our community members. Beautiful acts of love and generosity, the Holy Spirit at work through us each day.

Follow the link for a short clip from Pastor Rudy Rasmus about his view on Advent. It’s called: A Resurrected Christmas and I think you’ll like it.

http://vimeo.com/32450067

An Advent Invitation: (an idea for getting active during the advent season)

Gift giving is a big part of the holiday season. I was discussing Christmas with a friend of mine the other day and she was telling me about how every Christmas she spends hours preparing to get her family the perfect gifts. She takes great joy from watching her family open carefully chosen and wrapped gifts on Christmas day. It is in a sense, a gift to her to be able to see the joy in her family as they open their present from her. She lamented to me the fact that each year one member of her family would not accept a gift from her. She would take extra care to find something she thought they would like, but they would never accept the gift saying, “oh no, I couldn’t, I don’t have any need right now.” Each year she would make a second trip to the store to return the unaccepted gift. “It makes me feel terrible. It’s like she is too good for the gift I have to offer her.” There was so much hurt in her voice as she described the feeling of her gift rejection!

One thing I’ve learned through working at the Mustard Seed is of the beauty of gift giving. The other day one of our community members came up to me and said, “How are you? You look tired! Can I get you a cold drink?” At first I was a little taken aback, I was tired. I had been working all day and it was now well into the evening. I accepted his offer, expecting him to return with a mug of cold water from the kitchen, but he returned with a can of juice he had purchased from the pop machine in our building. I was shocked. Emptied by humility. Filled with gratitude. In a job where we are constantly trying to meet the needs of people who go without, this man had seen a need (perhaps one that I didn’t even recognize in myself), and filled that need with a dollar and tremendous generosity. It was solidarity in action, the kingdom coming to earth, while I was working to make sure his needs were met, he was doing the same for me. It was Christian community at its finest, each of us bringing our gifts and talents and potential together to create community as the hands and feet of Christ.

This Advent Season, I want to invite you to see gift giving in a new light. There is something special about being able to give someone a gift, and perhaps there is something special about receiving a gift too. In a way, when we receive a gift with graciousness and gratitude, we are returning a gift of joy to the person who showing the spirit of giving to us.

May we be conscious of both the gifts we give, but also the not-so-obvious one’s we receive too! Perhaps this is one way we can see Christ in our neighbor this season.

Want to get active in gift giving? We have plenty of opportunities: http://www.theseed.ca/christmas.html

Have you had an advent reflection of your own to share? Write a blog for us and submit it to: JenniferFast@theseed.ca to be posted on our blog.

Prayers for Advent:

This week, please pray for the people in our city who will go without this holiday season.

For those who have no family to share the holidays with.

For the strength of our staff, and all inner city workers, that we would have patience and compassion always.

For all Christians, that each day we would have the eyes to see the signs that the Kingdom of God is at hand, and that our joy and hope from the resurrected Christ would spread His kingdom through fascination instead of fear.

A Prayer Excerpt from Common Book of Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals:

Fourth Century poet Ephrem the Syrian wrote, “The word of God is a tree of life that offers us blessed fruit from each of its branches. It is like that rock that was struck open in the wilderness, from which all were offered spiritual drink. Be glad then that you are overwhelmed, and do not be saddened because he has overcome you. A thirsty person is happy when drinking, and not depressed, because the spring is inexhaustible. You can satisfy your thirst without exhausting the spring; then when you thirst again, you can drink from it once more.”

God of abundance, help us live today trusting that there will be enough for tomorrow. Your sources have no end. Teach us to share our resources, believing that the more we give, the more you will provide for all.

Sign up for our advent email list (paulacornell@theseed.ca) or follow our twitter feed (@mustardseedyeg) and our blog to receive a weekly Advent reflection focused on Justice, Poverty, and the reason for the season; Christ.

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What Being Homeless for a Week Taught Me

As a little kid, I had an unusually large fear of becoming homeless. Maybe it had to do with overhearing conversations between the adults in my life about paying the bills, and making ends meet; perhaps it stemmed from the nervous anxiety I felt every time I walked or drove past a person on the street who was panhandling for change or pushing a shopping cart full of empty bottles.

Regardless, I resolved at a very early age to never let myself wind up in that position. By the age of six, I was meticulously saving my paper route money, declining to go with my friends and spend my hard-earned cash on Beanie Babies or candy.

This pattern (and my somewhat irrational fear) continued throughout my childhood and teenage years; in high school, I worked for straight As so that I could earn scholarships to help pay for my university tuition, and took part-time jobs so I could pay my other expenses and save for a car.

When I started working at The Mustard Seed, an organization that partners with individuals experiencing homelessness and poverty, a little less than two years ago, my ignorant fear of those on the streets quickly disappeared and, I'm grateful to say, was replaced by love and compassion for those without fixed addresses. However, my cautious lifestyle of saving and budgeting continued. I would consider myself a fairly responsible person, and I think many of my co-workers and friends would agree.

So you can imagine the shock I felt when one week very recently, I found myself homeless.

I returned home one evening after a fun day out with friends to find that I needed to leave the place where I was living due to circumstances beyond my control. I had less than one hour to throw my clothes, textbooks, important documents, special photographs -- in other words, the contents of my life -- into suitcases and duffel bags, unsure if I'd be able to return, and worried about leaving anything irreplaceable behind.

When I walked out my front door and put my belongings in my car, it was close to midnight. I was fortunate to get in touch with one friend who told me that he was not allowed to have people staying in his apartment as part of his rental agreement, but that he could offer me his couch for one night. I gratefully accepted.

I don't think I'll ever forget the emotions I experienced as I was driving to work at The Mustard Seed the next morning. I had gotten a combined total of about 45 minutes of sleep throughout that first night and finally got up with the sunrise. I threw on my staff shirt and got in my car to head to the shelter for a 12-hour shift.

I hadn't eaten since the previous afternoon (my friend, God bless him, is one of those bachelors who survives on fast food, and whose fridge usually contains pop, stale take-out containers, and that random jar of mayonnaise that has long since expired), and I had no money in my pocket to buy breakfast somewhere on the way.

I sobbed tears of frustration and exhaustion on the drive across the city, asking God to give me strength to make it through the day. I knew I had to pull myself together, because a lot of times, our jobs at The Mustard Seed are all about holding it together for other people, whose lives are falling apart in front of them and who are often just looking for some stability in the midst of chaos.

I wiped my eyes and walked in the door with a smile on my face, all the while wondering where I was going to sleep that evening. I eventually resigned myself to the fact that I would be couch-surfing and, if necessary, spending a few nights in my car when it was 15 degrees below zero outside.

The hardest part of that week was trying to maintain some semblance of normality in every other aspect of my life. I had exams to write for school, homework to complete, volunteer commitments to fulfill, and most of all, I had my job at The Mustard Seed.

Throughout the whole experience I told only two of my co-workers, who are also close friends; the rest never had any idea (though if they're reading this, I guess they do now!), not because they are not caring and understanding people, but because I simply couldn't get past the shame of my situation to confide in them that I was in desperate need of support.

I am thankful to have many teammates who would have reached out to me without a second thought, but my own self-esteem simply didn't know how to handle the blow. I have such great joy when I lend a helping hand to other people -- and conversely, I have great difficulty being on the receiving end. I was afraid that it would change how my co-workers saw me or related to me (kind of a ridiculous and ironic fear for me to have, when you consider that the very nature of our work involves being compassionate and non-judgmental).

I tell this story for one reason: to highlight the incredible resilience of those living on the streets. I was fortunate. My experience was fleeting, and yet, that brief stint of not having a place to call home impacted me greatly. Had it lasted much longer, I don't think I would have been able to maintain my daily routine, making it to work each day and keeping up with my schooling.

I also had friends' couches to sleep on, and a car for transportation. Many of the people I know have been experiencing homelessness for months or years, without any of the resources I had to fall back on. And yet, a vast number of them still manage to wake up every morning and head out the doors of our emergency shelter to get on a bus to work.

Whether their job is bottle-picking, manual labour, retail, customer service, or any number of other possibilities, they'll spend as many as 10 or 12 hours a day working before getting on another bus and coming back to the shelter, kicking off their shoes, and collapsing on their mat to get a few hours of sleep before doing it all over again the next morning.

There's this myth that homeless people must simply be irresponsible slackers, and that's why they don't have housing of their own. Some people have the notion in their heads that we live in a meritocracy, where you will succeed if you have talent, ability and a drive to work hard -- if you don't succeed, then you must incompetent or lazy.

Addictions and mental health issues play a critical role in the lives of many who find themselves on the streets, but for countless others -- those categorized as "the working poor" -- living in a shelter was once as unlikely and unimaginable as it is for you who may be reading this. The reality, however, is that a single life event -- the loss of a job, an unexpected hike in monthly rent, a serious injury requiring costly medical care -- can be enough to turn someone's world upside down, and leave that individual in a position which they never expected to be.

My experience has brought me a new perspective at work. I have more patience than I used to, and I take extra time to speak with first-time guests as I guide them through the intake process. Newcomers are often scared, intimidated, and stunned that their circumstances have led them to a homeless shelter. If we can offer them a little bit of comfort, reassurance, and support to ease the blow, then it allows them the opportunity to open up to staff and to process their situation internally.

My ultimate goal is that one day, The Mustard Seed and shelters like it would be merely a stopover in each guest's journey, and that individuals would need to access our services for no more than one or two nights before finding a place to call home. There is a great deal of discussion that needs to take place as an organization, a city, and a country to make that day come. In the meantime, it's back to work.

- Taj Hall, Support Worker at The Mustard Seed, Twitter: @therealtajhall
 
Originally Posted on Huffington Post Blog, Dec 9 2012:
 http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/taj-hall/homeless_b_2248291.html

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ADVENT Week 2

Week 2 (December 9 - Second Sunday of Advent – December 15)

An Advent Reflection:

Feasts and Fasts:

“Advent is marked by a spirit of expectation, of anticipation, of preparation, of longing. There is a yearning for deliverance from the evils of the world, first expressed by Israelite slaves in Egypt as they cried out from their bitter oppression. It is the cry of those who have experienced the tyranny of injustice in a world under the curse of sin, and yet who have hope of deliverance by a God who has heard the cries of oppressed slaves and brought deliverance! It is that hope, however faint at times, and that God, however distant He sometimes seems, which brings to the world the anticipation of a King who will rule with truth and justice and righteousness over His people and in His creation. It is that hope that once anticipated, and now anticipates anew, the reign of an Anointed One, a Messiah, who will bring peace and justice and righteousness to the world.” - Dennis Bratcher

We see oppression and injustice here are the Mustard Seed every day. We see the members of our community struggle to get enough hours at their jobs, to save enough money to get an apartment, to resist addiction, to make ends meet, to find food and shelter, to find a place where they feel like they belong. We often see cycles that echo the waiting of advent; there is a spirit of expectation and anticipation as our friends wait to hear back from a job interview or a rental application, there is a longing for a change for the better, a yearning for a new opportunity. Sometimes the employer or the landlord phones back, a bed opens up, a spot on the waitlist becomes available. But sometimes, too often it seems, the employer doesn’t phone back, the landlord chooses another tenant, and the waitlist stays full. And so we continue to wait. We wait for new opportunities each day, for doors to open, and lives to be changed, but more than that, we wait for The Kingdom to come here on Earth as it is in Heaven.   We wait for the day when no one will go hungry, when everyone will have a home and a place where they feel like they belong.

In the Eastern Orthodox Church, Advent has been a season of celebration, but also a season of fasting. The Coming of the Messiah throughout the Old Testament and Judaism was often in connection with themes of oppression and injustice, the longing for redemption from the systemic evils of the world (Rom 8:18-25). Of course, there is the problem of longing for vindication from an evil world when we are contributors to that evil; we long for freedom from oppression but we so easily buy into the consumerism of the holiday season, a systemic form of oppression that contributes to economic injustice all over the world. This is the power of the images of Amos when he warns about longing for the "Day of the Lord" that will really be a day of darkness (Amos 5:18-20). Still, even with Amos’ warning the time of Advent is one of expectation and anticipation, a longing for God's actions to restore all things. Advent becomes a season of both joyous expectancy but also perhaps a time for fasting as well.

Excerpts and Ideas from Dennis Bratcher, read more here: http://www.cresourcei.org/cyadvent.html

An Advent Invitation: (an idea for getting active during the advent season)

We invite you to join the hungry in solidarity and spend some time this advent season fasting to remember those who continue to hunger while we sit down for our holiday feasts. Maybe it’s fasting from one meal a day for a week and spending the meal hour praying instead, or maybe its fasting from buying fast food for the advent season, and spending the money on meals for the less fortunate instead. Whatever it is for you, we invite you to fast with us this advent season in anticipation for a day when the Kingdom will come here on Earth, and all will have enough according to their need.

Perhaps you will have thoughts about fasting that you would like to share? Write a blog for us and submit it to: JenniferFast@theseed.ca to be posted on our blog.

Prayers for Advent:

This week, please pray for those that are hungry, that they would have enough to eat not only today, but every day.

Please pray for our meal program at the Mustard Seed, that our meals would be tasty, healthy, and good for our community, that our volunteers and the people coming to eat dinner would experience the joy of community through the experience of dinner at the Mustard Seed.

A Prayer Excerpt from Common Book of Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals:

Praise to you who lift up the poor: and fill the hungry with good things.

Read Psalm 22:22-25

Lord, when we strive after healing in the world and nourishment for those who hunger, we find you at our side. Whenever we long to see your face, help us not to avoid the corners of our communities where you most often dwell. Stir our hearts that we might seek and find you today in those places where you have promised to be. Amen.

Looking for an advent calendar this year? Have a look at this one:

http://www.adventconspiracy.org/_Crossing/Content/Documents/ac/ac_poster.pdf

a little holiday tune to kick things off!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IrNcD34KFhM

Sign up for our advent email list (paulacornell@theseed.ca) or follow our twitter feed (@mustardseedyeg) and our blog to receive a weekly Advent reflection focused on Justice, Poverty, and the reason for the season; Christ.

 

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An Invitation to Shine

Ah, the Christmas season: a time intended to bring us to a point of reflection on what matters most. Somehow though, amidst the shuffle of shopping bags and wrapping paper, glitzy cocktail parties and baking duties, it becomes all too easy to forget to reflect on anything but your to-do list. And so, it is with this in mind that we bring you the 11th Annual Shine-a-Thon!

You are invited to flood your ears with the important things of the season through stories and music filled with hope, and ways to help those who need more of it. On Wednesday, December 12, 88.9 Shine FM will be broadcasting live from Bankers Hall in downtown Calgary from 6:00 a.m. until 8:00 p.m. for our largest single-day fundraiser of the year and we hope that you will tune in and be a part of it.

If a full day of carols and caring isn't enough to restore you, there will also be a morning and afternoon raffle for two different weekend getaways to use when you really need a break from it all. All the more reason to tune in!

You'll find a link on our website to listen and donate online or even volunteer, all of which will help to put you back into the true spirit of what Christmas is all about.


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ADVENT Week 1

Welcome to the ADVENT-ure 2012:

We will be posting an Advent Reflection each week of Advent in December. If you want to learn more, visit: http://theseed.ca/advent  

Week 1 (December 2 - First Sunday of Advent – December 8)

An Advent Reflection:

Preparing the way:

One of my favorite verses is Isaiah 40:3-5 (NIV)

³ A voice of one calling:
“In the wilderness prepare
    the way for the Lord^[a];
make straight in the desert
    a highway for our God.^[b]
4 Every valley shall be raised up,
    every mountain and hill made low;
the rough ground shall become level,
    the rugged places a plain.
⁵ And the glory of the Lord will be revealed,
    and all people will see it together.
For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”

The season of Advent is all about taking intentional time to remember the God who was, and is, and will come again. It’s about remembering his work and words on Earth, encountering His Spirit and presence here in our lives today, and it’s about preparing a way for Him while we wait on His return.

I love the verse from Isaiah, because it has so much imagery. It speaks of the wilderness. I often go through seasons in my faith where I feel lost in the wilderness, and in this verse a voice is calling out to me in that lost place and shouting, “prepare the way of the LORD” he is coming for you! The next image is of the mountains and the valleys, an image that resonates deeply with me through my work at the Mustard Seed. At the Mustard Seed we walk alongside the valley dwellers, and in Isaiah, I hear the promise that the valleys will be raised up and the mountains will be lowered all will be equal when the Lord returns. This imagery encourages me in my work as I attempt to create opportunities for mountain dwellers and valley dwellers to meet one another and from a relationship of solidarity, justice, and equality as we work to prepare the way for the Kingdom to come more fully here on Earth. The last part of this verse speaks of the glory of the Lord being revealed to all of us together. The glory of his Kingdom will be revealed to all. This image comforts me and gives me tremendous hope that one day, all of us will come to know his amazing love and justice!

May this advent season be one of preparing the way of the Lord in your own life. May you take the time to examine where there are valleys and mountains in your life and make them equal.  If you are wandering lost in the desert or the wilderness, above the din of the holiday season, may you hear the voice of the Lord calling for you!

The winter can be a dark season. At times it might seem that our spirits even mimic the season, we may go through a tough “winter” season, and find rebirth as the “spring” reawakens our spirit in faithfulness. I will leave you with a final video, one of Bringing Light and finding renewal in dark times. http://vimeo.com/33949006

An Advent Invitation: (an idea for getting active during the advent season)

Where can you see Valleys and Mountains in your community? Can you work this advent season to level that bumpy area?

How can you be a light to others in the darkness? Think of people in your community that you can be a light to through a random act of kindness today.

The Mustard Seed has many opportunities for you to get involved today and throughout the season. http://www.theseed.ca/christmas.html - Check out the opportunities in your city to be involved with bringing the light of Christmas to the inner city.

Have you had an advent reflection of your own to share? Write a blog for us and submit it to: JenniferFast@theseed.ca to be posted on our blog.

Prayers for Advent:

This week, please pray for people in our community who are wandering in the wilderness, or lost in a desert. Pray that they would see a light this Christmas and hear the Lord calling out for them.

Please pray for all of our community members who sleep outside in the literal wilderness. Pray that they would be blanketed in safety and protection, and that one day soon the opportunity for a real home would become a reality for them.

A Prayer Excerpt from Common Book of Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals:

O Lord, let my soul rise up to meet you as the day rises to meet the sun.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.

Come, let us sing to the LORD: let us shout for joy to the Rock of our salvation.

May your justice be a light to guide us: and your mercy a help on the way.

Readings: Psalm 101:1-4 Isaiah 10:5-19 Luke 1:5-25

May your justice be a light to guide us: and your mercy a help on the way.

Sign up for our advent email list (paulacornell@theseed.ca) or follow our twitter feed (@mustardseedyeg) and our blog to receive a weekly Advent reflection focused on Justice, Poverty, and the reason for the season; Christ.

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