I thrive on order and structure. My husband knows that to
spring something on me on short notice is to create stress for me. Years ago, I
heard a speaker describe a “time fence.” A time fence is a boundary around your
time. For those who are spontaneous, their time fence is small or nonexistent.
Time for them is like the open prairie. You cannot trespass on their time
because they freely give whatever you need.
For others, like myself, time is bounded by a large
fenced enclosure. I sit in the middle, but I want a large space between my fence
and myself. I want to see what has come into my fence from a long distance
away. I like time to plan and prepare. I am one who looks at restaurant menus
online if I know I am going to an unfamiliar establishment. I want to know my
options ahead of arrival.
My preference for structure may be why I like the
lectionary. The lectionary is a listing of scripture readings appointed for
given days. The Revised Common Lectionary used by many Protestant churches
includes readings from the Old Testament, Psalms, the Epistles and the Gospel,
with some variation depending on the seasons of the Church. Many pastors preach
from lectionary texts. The beauty of the lectionary to me is that I can read
and pray over the texts prior to attending corporate worship and hearing a
message preached on one or more of them. This is a particular advantage if you
are traveling and attend an unfamiliar church. If the pastor of the church you
are visiting preaches from the lectionary, you can still prepare for worship by
praying over the texts ahead of time.
Since my dad died, we’ve been traveling often to his
house in Tennessee. We attend worship at his church on Sundays when we are
there. It is such a joy to arrive and to hear the texts preached that I have
already spent time with in prayer. This preparation makes corporate worship
more meaningful for me.
On a larger scale, I know that others all over the world
are hearing messages preached on the same set of texts. It connects me to the
wider Church in a deeply spiritual way. Across differing denominations and
worship styles, the lectionary is a thread that binds us all together. It keeps
us from falling into ruts of only hearing “favorite” passages. It challenges us
to read scripture more broadly than we might otherwise. It calls us to
structure and discipline, to growth and order, by giving us a framework for
scripture study. And because the Revised Common Lectionary is on a three-year
cycle, it calls us to revisit the same passages time and again, so that the
texts meet us in different stages of our lives.
The discipline of praying the lectionary texts has become
a transformational spiritual practice for me. The more I do it, the more I
appreciate the beauty of the lectionary.
Thanks for this witness, Ann.
ReplyDeleteMay we link to it from the Consultation on Common Texts website (http://www.commontexts.org)?
Peace in Christ,
The Rev. Taylor Burton-Edwards
Secretary, The Consultation on Common Texts
I appreciate your time to read this! I would be honored for you to link to this post!
DeleteBlessings,
Ann Smith
This is how I found your post! Thank you for sharing it.
Deletehttp://danielhaas.org/2016/08/who-is-in-charge-of-preaching/
ReplyDelete