#AdventBookClub: Day 4: ‘Flashback’

Back in day 2 – I love the idea of the different voices each having a part of the story to tell – but each complete in its own right. And religion is not a soft option for those who can’t cope with science – we need more than science alone – hence the need for the arts & humanities.

Back in day 3 – Luke’s passion for storytelling, but in a historical ‘orderly’ way – I’m a historian by training, who now seeks to bring that love of story-telling to blogging, etc.

So, onto “today” (well, last night) – and Maggi is dealing with one of those more difficult texts – the genealogy – but this demonstrates that

… the story of Jesus’ incarnation is more than merely a rescue plan for a world gone wrong. In Christian doctrine, salvation is something much more than just fixing or repairing a broken thing. The Latin word salus also suggests the idea of wholeness, healing and completeness. Salvation carries no sense of disappointment, of a second-best option. In fact, it’s about bringing something to fruition.”

If I then look to Brian Draper’s e-mail, there’s an encouragement to continue to slow down … pick somewhere busy that you usually rush through, and walk ‘mindfully’, paying attention to what you notice. I decided to go and look at Google to see what came up when I put in ‘mindfulness’:

Mindfulness is a mind-body approach to well-being that can help you change the way you think about experiences and reduce stress and anxiety. Bemindful.co.uk

The other book that I picked up from my desk is Ron Glusenkamp’s Elements of Advent, which is linked to a daily piece of music – which may help one sit still and be mindful! Reading back over the last few days of material, there’s a call to be awake/aware and ready – aware for advent; a focus on the promises made to us and that we make to others; an activity in which we make cookies/biscuits – to remind ourselves that God moulded us in his image; and today – a call to seek to comfort others as we are buffeted by daily life.