What does it mean to be a Black Sheep church? How can we be faithful in a culture that doesn’t fit? We review our time with Jeremiah, and hear one last promise. The call is overwhelming, so it’s a good thing the God who calls us is even bigger!
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Did you know the nursery rhyme ‘Ba Ba Black Sheep’ was about unfair taxation? That’s right – we’ve been finding ways to protest unjust rulers since the first person exploited someone else. Jeremiah too critiqued the kings and priests who cared only for themselves. He promised a better ruler, a more faithful king was coming. So how does our relationship to Jesus help us spot the faithful leaders – and those who are working against God?
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How do we NOT feel overwhelmed when facing the evils of the world? No wonder we have a tendency to silence or ignore those suffering – especially when we’re powerless to help. Jeremiah teaches us that in times of great crisis maybe what we need to do is be silent and learn to lament. Because lamenting teaches us how to hear the voices of the crushed and marginalized. Lamentation is our pathway back to the people God created us and calls us to be!
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Sabbath is one of those old-fashioned ideas we don’t pay attention to much these days. After all, who can really afford to take a whole day off from life? In Jeremiah’s day, the people’s failure to keep Sabbath was the signal fire that they were faithless. Why is Sabbath so important? And what does it look like to keep Sabbath in our (way too) busy world? How is Sabbath an act of revolution?
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You know that “This is Fine” Dog? It’s a pretty good representation of God’s people in Jeremiah’s day – and maybe in ours too. That’s why God told Jeremiah not to attend funerals or weddings. God refused to go along with business as usual in the face of the people’s unfaithfulness. What does ‘no fast, no feast’ look like for God’s faithful people today?
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Everyone knows that God loves us. So… why is it so hard to receive that love? What is the path to freedom from the guilt, shame and fear that keep us trapped in idolatrous ways of life?
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No one worries about idols anymore. Which is weird because the prophets warned about them all the time. Why should we still heed their warnings today? What, exactly, IS an idol? And what does any of this have to do with raincatchers that leak?
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What is a prophet? Contrary to popular imagination, prophets in the Bible weren’t fortune tellers. God called prophets to tell the truth about God’s people, to hold up a mirror to the people. What does that look like today?
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Throughout the summer, we’ve see how differently we all experience the world, and how different our paths to healing can be. Such a variety can be overwhelming – sort of like Mirabel’s big opening number. As we bring this series to a close, let’s remember a core, simple truth: no matter who we are, we belong. We’re all part of the family God has created here at Catalyst!
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Did we save the best for last? Maybe so… Enneagram 7s are the life of every party. Sevens love life and want to live it to the fullest – just like Camillo in Encanto. But life isn’t all fun and games – so what does it take for Sevens to slow down and be present to the hard parts of life, too?
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