Daily Advent Devotional: WEEK of LOVE
When we love another heart
And allow it to love us,
We journey deep below time
Into that eternal weave
Where nothing unravels …
- John O’Donohue (excerpt)
Daily Advent Devotional: WEEK of LOVE: Day 22- Sun, Dec 19
I give you a new commandment, that you love one another.
Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.
— John 13:34
In the same way, let your light shine before others.
— Matthew 5:16
______________________________________
Love glows bright as the focus of this week’s reflections. As you light four candles, prepare to welcome holy love into your home and life.
Can you imagine a love more determined than the one that chooses to show up in our messy and imperfect world? To be born human?
It takes a stubborn love to move toward us, because we cannot ever quite reach that love itself. That is what our holy stories translate to us. Love chooses to be with us and among us in this season. And every day.
The holy love narrated in our scriptures points toward agape. Agape is a love greater than ourselves. It is different than erotic or passionate love, larger and deeper than love for friends or family.
Agape gives of itself. And part of that giving begins with movement. Holy love has turned to us and returned to us, chosen us over and over, meeting us where we are, coming to this world and time in which we live. Love shines out as the final light of Advent: until the arrival of the Christ light. — Rev Gail
______________________________________
When I say it’s you I like, I’m talking about that part of you that knows that life is far more than anything you can ever see or hear or touch. That deep part of you that allows you to stand for those things without which humankind cannot survive. Love that conquers hate, peace that rises triumphant over war, and justice that proves more powerful than greed. ― Fred Rogers
When you possess light within, you see it externally. – Anais Nin
Advent Daily Devotional: WEEK of JOY: Day 21-Sat, Dec 18
Clap your hands, all you peoples; shout to God with loud songs of joy. — Psalm 47:1
… when I fall, I shall rise; when I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light to me. — Micah 7:8
______________________________________
On this final day of lighting three candles, culminating in joy, each light flickers at its own height, since each candle has burned at longer or shorter intervals. Together, they weave a net of radiance that spans the distances and gaps between them.
Kindness and compassion, offered as you are able to share them with others, serve as external expressions of gratitude and mindfulness. Kindness recognizes opportunities to say or do something that acknowledges and thanks another person for their presence and their service in the world. It honors people’s humanity.
When you give out positive energy in ways that create an impact or affect change, you cultivate joy. Your acts of kindness may occur within day-to-day encounters at work, play, service, or study. At other times, you may plan a specific opportunity, by volunteering, for instance, to extend kindness to others.
Kindness can also be focused inward: toward oneself. Sometimes you need as much generosity and gentleness as others to whom you offer it. Sometimes, when your inner critic is dominating, you cannot be gentle with yourself. At such times, you might try to invert the situation. If someone else was going through whatever experience you’re having, what advice would you offer? What comforting words would you share, to ease the stress? Now can you offer those same words, out loud, to yourself?
As a spiritual practice, kindness is an empowering approach to life. It identifies your competencies and capabilities, and reminds you that you have choices. It affirms your value and purpose as a human being and helps to acknowledge others, also.
Being kind and being of service enlarge personal perspectives. They alter the understanding of others’ circumstances, thus allowing you to recognize your own blessings. They cultivate appreciation for your own individual agency and the ability to be helpful to others. With kindness and service, through small acts or major forms of participation, you renew your internal sense of fulfillment and joy.
Joy rises as the light flares. Let it touch you and change you, as you change others with the light you offer. — Rev Gail
______________________________________
The most beautiful moments in life are moments when you are expressing your joy, not when you are seeking it. ― Jaggi Vasudev
Scatter joy! ― Ralph Waldo Emerson
Light is to darkness what love is to fear;
in the presence of one the other disappears.
— Marianne Williamson
Daily Advent Devotional: WEEK of JOY: Day 20-Fri, Dec 17
But let all who take refuge in you rejoice; let them ever sing for joy. Spread your protection over them … —Psalm 5:11
What is the way to the place where the light is distributed, or where the east wind is scattered upon the earth?—Job 38:24
______________________________________
Joy is fueled by the same source as hope and peace: it is fed by gratitude. As you light the three Advent candles, give thanks for the time and opportunity to reflect.
Re-framing each day through a lens of gratitude and appreciation is an excellent place for light to take hold. You perceive your world, your context, your life, and ideally yourself, with greater compassion and more perspective. You grow closer to connecting with those parts of your life that embody your values.
Before you blow out the candles, give thanks for the presence of light in the world. Give thanks for the ways you find to share your own light. — Rev Gail
______________________________________
You show your humanity by how you see yourself not as apart from others but from your connection to others.—Desmond Tutu
When you show compassion, when you show caring, when you show love to others, do things for others, in a wonderful way you have a deep joy that you can get in no other way.—Dalai Lama
Travel light, live light, spread the light, be the light.—Yogi Bhajan
Advent Daily Devotional: WEEK of JOY: Day 19-Thurs, Dec 16
You have turned my mourning into dancing;
you have taken off my sackcloth and clothed me with joy.
— Psalm 30:11
He has redeemed my soul from going down to the Pit,
and my life shall see the light. — Job 33:28
______________________________________
Whatever the time of day you have chosen for this activity, light your three Advent candles. The light of joy returns because you choose to bring it into your space and your life. You create the opening to welcome it.
Although our Advent reflections have touched on the concept of shifting perspective as a strategy to cultivate hope and joy, perhaps a few specific approaches can help give you more ideas about how to open yourself to joy in all sorts of circumstances. After all, you may not control your situation, yet you can shape your response. The Dalai Lama observes, “The question is not: How do I escape? It is: How can I use this as something positive?”
As one approach to gaining a holistic perspective, spiritual teachers such as the ancient Sufi poet Rumi and the contemporary Buddhist chaplain and mentor Joan Halifax advise you to approach each experience as a teacher. Then allow yourself to become its student. This creates a different perspective about the experience you’re having.
In one dramatic example, people who live with cancer or other life-limiting diagnoses discover a heightened appreciation for simple, tangible, fleeting moments of life. Brushes with death re-prioritize how they cherish small details of daily living.
Now ask yourself, in your own current circumstances, what lesson might be learned? What action might be taken? What ought to change? What are you able to change? How do you make meaning out of your current reality? How do you respond to what is happening? How does this situation empower you?
Another way to gain perspective and make meaning out of an experience, cultivating the deep capacity for joy regardless of the circumstances, is to find release through the way you express yourself. Creative outlets permit you to liberate a wellspring of joy. Singing and music, for instance, light up many parts of the brain. They allow a person to access deeply-embedded emotional states, memories, and experiences. Other expressive arts also create paths toward joy and resilience. Almost every mention of joy within scripture is connected to the act of singing, dancing, or otherwise expressing joy dynamically. From such artistic, expressive processes, meaning-making (purpose) arises.
What might these three Advent lights, their wicks darkened and curled, their tapers slumping more each day, each candle shorter than its companions, teach you? What within your life also needs care and renewal, so that the light of joy may continue to burn passionately within you?— Rev Gail
______________________________________
When you can stop and ask yourself, “How can I help,” or, “How can I be of service,” you create a new internal dialogue that leads to alternative and expanded ways of thinking and responding. … You have something to offer, a gift brought into this world to share with others. It could be your ability to listen, give a great hug, advocate for those in need, build something, or be there for someone. In being able to share this gift, you build a greater sense of connection and belonging, something you can relate to as a basic need. Joy is often a side effect of what can happen when you are in the service of something greater than yourself. — Rachelle Williams
Joy is the holy fire that keeps our purpose warm and our intelligence aglow. —Helen Keller
TUE, DEC 14 – SUN, DEC 19
TUE, Dec 14
- CLERGY LUNCH
12:30pm • Zoom (private meeting)
Local clergy convene for conversations, ecumenical event-planning, and peer support. Rev Gail attends. - Community Event: CHAIR YOGA
9:15am • Zoom.
Pre-registration required. Register for the Zoom link. https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZIvd-CpqD4sEtdFkuT2horCr6QrTMdCHnGD. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting. Classes resume, after this week, on 1/4/22. This class is sponsored by the Whitney Community Center in Jackson for Jackson residents however, non-Jackson residents are encouraged to attend. Non-Jackson residents pay a class fee .More info: https://www.anjali-rose.com/yoga - Community Event: FLOW & ALIGN YOGA
4:30pm • Zoom.
Pre-registration required. Register for the Zoom link. https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJUrf-Gvqz0sRf0_-P230qBI9VLMei_Ytw Classes resume, after this week, on 1/4/22. This class is sponsored by the Whitney Community Center in Jackson for Jackson residents however, non-Jackson residents are encouraged to attend. Non-Jackson residents pay a class fee. More info: https://www.anjali-rose.com/yoga - Community Resource: LIBRARY OPEN
10am-7pm • Jackson Library
Contact the library for additional help: 603.383.9731 or by email: staff@jacksonlibrary.org
WED, Dec 15
- FITNESS with Laurie McAleer
9am • JCC Parish House
Free to participants. Last class of 2021: sessions resume January at 9:30am on Wednesdays. - Community Resource: LIBRARY OPEN
2pm-5pm • Jackson Library
Contact the library for additional help: 603.383.9731 or by email: staff@jacksonlibrary.org - SANCTUARY DECORATING
1pm • JCC
Rev Gail and volunteers continue decorating the sanctuary, - ADVENT 3-Week Study Group: The Redemption of Scrooge
5pm: Dec 15, Dec 22 (zoom)- Co-facilitated as shared Jackson-Bartlett program by Rev Gail Doktor (Jackson) and Rev Pojen Lee (guest preacher at Bartlett)
- Free copies of book available in front entrance of Jackson Community Church. Judy Ludgate also has a few copies available for Bartlett Conrgegational Church’s friends and members who may wish to participate.
- Attend via Zoom link. COntact church for link and password: jcchurch@jacksoncommunitychurch.org.
- The Redemption of Scrooge is written by Matt Rawle. Book description: Is redemption possible for Ebenezer Scrooge? Pastor and author Matt Rawle discovers the teachings of Jesus in the words of the Charles Dickens classic A Christmas Carol. Rawle dives deep into the dark, sad, greedy world of Scrooge and discovers a man in dire need of a second chance. Along with Scrooge, we meet the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Future and in the process learn about living with and for others in a world blessed by Jesus. Rediscover and reinvigorate your faith this Advent and Christmas season and look at this familiar classic through the lens of faith.
- COUNCIL MEETING
7pm • Zoom.
Contact church for link and password: jcchurch@jacksoncommunitychurch.org.
Leadership meeting with staff, church officers, and team leaders to make decisions that support the church’s mission and operations. Open to public. This month we prepare budget for consideration during January 2022’s annual meeting.
THURS, Dec 16
- Community Resource: LIBRARY OPEN
10am-7pm • Jackson Library
Contact the library for additional help: 603.383.9731 or by email: staff@jacksonlibrary.org - Community Service: WAY STATION SHIFT
All Day • Way Station, 15 Grove St, No Conway
Volunteers open day resource center for showers, mail pickup, grocery distribution, more. - Community Event: WINTER BIRD ECOLOGY (TIn Mountain Conservation Center)
7pm • Zoom Link pending.Brush up on your winter bird identification as we review local winter bird field marks as well as pass on a few bird feeding tips for the winter season ahead. This program is a great refresher for the fast approaching Christmas Bird Count. More info: https://www.tinmountain.org/event/winter-bird-ecology-7/ - Community Event: CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS with Heather Pierson Jazz Trio (Mountain Top Music)
7pm/8pm • Majestic Theater, Conway
Heather Pierson, piano and vocals; Shawn Nadeau, bass, and Craig Bryan, drums, will perform Vince Guaraldi’s “A Charlie Brown Christmas” at the Majestic Theatre. Doors open at 6:30 and refreshments will be available in the Majestic Cafe. Info & tickets: https://mountaintop.ludus.com/index.php - Community Event: A CHRISTMAS CAROL (M&D Theater Productions)
7:30pm • M&D Theater, North Conway
Patrick Barlow, writer of the Broadway and West End hit The 39 Steps, has retold Charles Dickens’ holiday classic, A Christmas Carol. This thrilling adaptation uses only five actors to bring some of Dickens’ most beloved characters to life. From Scrooge and Tiny Tim to Bob Cratchit and Mrs. Fezziwig, Barlow’s A Christmas Carol uses nothing more than some simple props, fresh physicality, and the power of imagination to convey this timeless story of redemption. Witness Ebenezer Scrooge’s transformation from a stingy miser to a man who generously celebrates the spirit of the season all year long, in this highly theatrical adaptation. Tickets and info: https://app.arts-people.com/index.php?show=124639 - Community Events: MUSIC AROUND TOWN
- Wildcat Tavern: Rafe Matregrano • 6-9pm
FRI, Dec 17
- Community Resource: LIBRARY OPEN
2pm-5pm • Jackson Library
Contact the library for additional help: 603.383.9731 or by email: staff@jacksonlibrary.org - C3: COCKTAILS & CHRISTIAN CONVERSATION
5pm • Zoom.
Contact church for link and password: jcchurch@jacksoncommunitychurch.org.
Bring your adult beverage and your curiosity for a conversation about our sacred texts. - Community Event: MAJESTIC CAFE Concert: Dan Moore on piano, with Rick Gordon and Mike (Mountain Top Music)
7pm • Majestic Theater, Conway
$10/pp. More info: https://mountaintop.ludus.com/index.php?step=seats - Community Event: A CHRISTMAS CAROL (M&D Theater Productions)
7:30pm • M&D Theater, North Conway
Patrick Barlow, writer of the Broadway and West End hit The 39 Steps, has retold Charles Dickens’ holiday classic, A Christmas Carol. This thrilling adaptation uses only five actors to bring some of Dickens’ most beloved characters to life. From Scrooge and Tiny Tim to Bob Cratchit and Mrs. Fezziwig, Barlow’s A Christmas Carol uses nothing more than some simple props, fresh physicality, and the power of imagination to convey this timeless story of redemption. Witness Ebenezer Scrooge’s transformation from a stingy miser to a man who generously celebrates the spirit of the season all year long, in this highly theatrical adaptation. Tickets and info: https://app.arts-people.com/index.php?show=124639 - Community Events: MUSIC AROUND TOWN
- Wildcat Tavern: Al Shafner • 6-9pm
- Shannon Door: Marty Quirk • 6-9pm
- Red Parka: Shark Martin• 8-11pm
- Shovel Handle: Rek’lis Duo • 6-9pm
SAT, Dec 18
SUN, Dec 19
- INTERFAITH GATHERING
8am • Old Red Library next to church (indoors) & Zoom.
COntact church for link and password: jcchurch@jacksoncommunitychurch.org.
Poetry and conversation. Join us. Bring your own hot beverage on cold mornings! - WORSHIP IN-PERSON & ZOOM – Advent 4: Love
10:30am • Zoom & Live. Contact church for link and password: jcchurch@jacksoncommunitychurch.org.- Join us for worship with music, scripture, prayer and reflection.
- Live music by Alan Labrie
- Advent 4: Love candle-lighting by Robert Carper & Elizabeth Polansky
- Choral song debut
- In-person attendance requires social distancing and masking for all attendees (additional precautions may be changed based on COVID stats and CDC guidelines).
- Service will also be live-streamed to website and Facebook (if technology supports this function on the day of event). Afterward, recordings of worship service will be posted to Facebook, Vimeo.com channel & Youtube.com channel.
- CHRISTMAS STORYTELLING with Doug Brendel
4pm • JCC
Author, minister, and humanitarian Doug Brendel performs Christmas stories in Parish House. Join us for seasonal reflections and delicious goodies. Donations will benefit the nonprofit New Thing and the local nonprofit the Way Station. This will also be livestreamed to Facebook and church website. - Community Event: A CHRISTMAS CAROL (M&D Theater Productions)
3:30pm • M&D Theater, North Conway
Patrick Barlow, writer of the Broadway and West End hit The 39 Steps, has retold Charles Dickens’ holiday classic, A Christmas Carol. This thrilling adaptation uses only five actors to bring some of Dickens’ most beloved characters to life. From Scrooge and Tiny Tim to Bob Cratchit and Mrs. Fezziwig, Barlow’s A Christmas Carol uses nothing more than some simple props, fresh physicality, and the power of imagination to convey this timeless story of redemption. Witness Ebenezer Scrooge’s transformation from a stingy miser to a man who generously celebrates the spirit of the season all year long, in this highly theatrical adaptation. Tickets and info: https://app.arts-people.com/index.php?show=124639 - Community Events: MUSIC AROUND TOWN
- Shannon Door: Riley Parkhurst • 6-9pm