Fall Faith Formation Fortnight Devotions
(written by Pastor Rebecca Liberty)
Monday, September 8
Fall Faith Formation Fortnight (FFFFt) Devotion #1: INTRODUCTION**
“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect.”
(Romans 12:2)
“All the things in this world are gifts of God, created for us, to be the means by which we can come to know him better, love him more surely, and serve him more faithfully.”
(St. Ignatius of Loyola, founder of the Society of Jesus, 1491-1556)
Reflection
Like an artist, God the creator continues to work on us throughout our lives, forming and transforming us through our experiences and relationships—through “all the things in this world,” as Ignatius says, not only “religious” or church experiences. For these two weeks, we’ll be reflecting on some of the ways we have been formed as people, and specifically as people of faith, by our encounters with God throughout our lives. As you are able, reflect on yourself at different ages—as a child, a teenager, a young or middle-aged or older adult, etc. What was significant to you and your faith at different times?
- What one gift of God in your life has most helped you come to know, love, or serve God better?
- What have you learned at different ages about where and how to “find God”?
- Are there any ways you would like to be “transformed” over these next two weeks?
Practice
We are formed together in community. Each day, consider sharing your reflection on one of the questions with another person. If you’re on Facebook, you can join the conversation by commenting on our page, “Redeemer Lutheran Church Bangor ME.” (Each day we’ll post at least one of the questions there; you might need to go to the page yourself if it doesn’t show up on your news feed.)The pastors would be pleased to hear your thoughts as well, over email ( or ) or by phone, 945-3166.
Tuesday, September 9
FFFFt Devotion #2: WORK
“Like good stewards of the manifold grace of God, serve one another with whatever gift each of you has received.”
(1 Peter 4:10)
The prince should think: Christ has served me and made everything to follow him; therefore, I should also serve my neighbor, protect him and everything that belongs to him. That is why God has given me this office, and I have it that I might serve him. That would be a good prince and ruler. When a prince sees his neighbor oppressed, he should think: That concerns me! I must protect and shield my neighbor....The same is true for shoemaker, tailor, scribe, or reader. If he is a Christian tailor, he will say: I make these clothes because God has bidden me do so, so that I can earn a living, so that I can help and serve my neighbor.
(Martin Luther, 1483-1546)
Reflection
“Work” can refer to all kinds of things—the job you do to put food on the table, the career you have dreamed of having, the volunteering that allows you to use your skills for a good cause, or the simple act of helping a neighbor shovel snow. In Martin Luther’s efforts to reform the church, one of his innovations was that any kind of work that served “the neighbor” (anyone in your life) could be godly work—not just work done for or through the church. The things we do each day—for pay or not—can express our faith, and they also form us. We get good at what we practice. Whenever we spend a lot of time practicing something, chances are, that’s what we’ll get good at!
- When in your life have you felt most useful or helpful to a “neighbor,” and how did that opportunity come about?
- Who did (or do) you want to be like when you grew up? How are you similar to or different from that person now?
- How has God found you in your work, and how has it taught you about God?
Practice
Look for ways to practice being the person you want to be, in whatever you do. For example, if you’d like to be more generous, do something generous. If you’d like to be more patient, find someone who needs you to be patient with them.
Wednesday, September 10
FFFFt Devotion #3: NATURE
“God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good.” (Genesis 1:31)
“God writes the Gospel not in the Bible alone, but also on trees, and in the flowers and clouds and stars.” (Martin Luther)
Reflection
Think back on yourself at various ages encountering nature. Bring to mind animals you have known, living things you have cared for, and places you have lived or visited or even just seen pictures of. Encounters with nature, even if it’s with a windowsill garden or our friend’s backyard, often call us to notice and care. Sometimes they even disgust or frighten us. Notice the places, creatures, or living things that have had the strongest effect on making you who you are today.
- Where have you encountered nature in forest, mountains, ocean, or your own backyard, and who introduced you to those places?
- What aspects of the natural world (or environmental concerns) have you been most passionate about?
- How has God found you in nature, and what has it taught you about God?
Practice
Pay special attention to the gifts of the natural world today, giving thanks for the way you encounter God’s creation in daily life.
Thursday, September 11
FFFFt Devotion #4: WORLD EVENTS
“Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words….We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.”
(Romans 8:26, 28)
“Take your Bible and take your newspaper, and read both. But interpret newspapers from your Bible.”
(Karl Barth, 1886-1968)
Reflection
On this day when we remember 9/11/2001, we reflect on the world and local events that have formed us through our lives. A theory of generations says that people’s lives are shaped differently based on the world events that took place at different ages. For example, someone who was a child during the Vietnam War would be shaped by it differently than someone whose child was fighting in it. Think back on the way world events have shaped you at various ages, forming your fears, your hopes, your life in community, your images of God, your convictions about how the world works. Consider also how you have been formed by the news; at times perhaps you have been glued to news media, following every detail, and at other times maybe you have avoided the news for your own well-being.
- At different times in your life, what was going on in the world that made you feel afraid or hopeful?
- How have your parents, teachers, and pastors helped you interpret current events?
- How has God found you through world events and your response to them?
Practice
Take the newspaper or news website you usually read, and pray your way through it, offering concern and thanksgiving. Then, take your Bible and read Romans 8 with the news in mind; ponder the Spirit’s “sighs too deep for words” and the ways God is working for good.
Friday, September 12
FFFFt Devotion #5: BOOKS, MUSIC, MOVIES, & ART
“Does not wisdom call,
and does not understanding raise her voice?
On the heights, beside the way,
at the crossroads she takes her stand;
beside the gates in front of the town,
at the entrance of the portals she cries out….
(Proverbs 8:1-3)
“Music is a more potent instrument than any other for education, because
rhythm and harmony find their way into the inward places of the soul.”
(Plato, Greek philosopher)
Reflection
Sometimes we encounter a creative work that calls to us—a book, poem, film, image, or piece of music. Sometimes a work of art doesn’t even wait for us to hear that call, but instead just “finds its way into the inward places of the soul.” Either way, those encounters form us throughout our lives—not only how we answer life’s big and small questions, but also how we ask the questions in the first place! There is a strong connection between creativity and spirituality—whether we are being creative ourselves, or appreciating what someone else has created.
- What have been your favorite books, songs, and movies at different times in your life?
- Who introduced you to them?
- How has God found you through creativity (yours or someone else’s), words, sounds, and images?
Practice
Share with another person (or on Facebook) yourfavorite book, song, or movie and how it has formed you. At the Faith Formation Extravaganza on Saturday September 20th, we will have a “resource fair:” a table full of books and movies that have helped shape people’s faith and worldview at different ages. Please consider adding your selection(s) to the fair! You can bring them to church this Sunday or during the coming week, and pick them up on the 21st. Include your name and, if you choose, a few words about why you contributed that selection.
(You’ll receive the next daily devotion next Monday—our faith formation “fortnight” has one more week to go!)
Monday, September 15
FFFFt Devotion #6: SCHOOL/LEARNING
“When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars that you have established;
what are human beings that you are mindful of them,
mortals that you care for them?
Yet you have made them a little lower than God,
and crowned them with glory and honor.”
(Psalm 8:3-5)
Christians believe that God createshuman beings with ability to learn,teach, and know and that God isactive in and through education…. The Creator gives us responsibility for the life and education of new generations and for making the earth a fitting home for human beings and other creatures (Genesis 1:26-28). To carry out these divine mandates we are enabled to learn, teach, and know in a world that can be known, at least in part.
(ELCA Social Statement, “Our Calling in Education”)
Reflection
The ability to learn and change is one of the great gifts and responsibilities of being human. Our learning is not simply intellectual or academic; it affects not only what we know but also how we feel and what we do. Even as children, our learning goes far beyond “reading, writing, and ’rithmetic,” and learning continues throughout our lives. Study—in class or on our own—can also have a profound effect on our faith, whether it’s studying the Bible or studying science.
- What have been your favorite subjects to learn, in or out of school?
- Who have been your favorite teachers and fellow students?
- How has God found you through your learning?
Practice
Think about something you’d like to learn. What teacher, class, book, or other resource might be available for you to explore that topic or skill? Ponder a very small step you could take in that direction; for example, whom could you ask about how they learned it?
Tuesday, September 16
FFFFt Devotion #7: CHURCH
Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of services, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. For in the one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.
(1 Corinthians 12:4-7, 13)
God has prepared for Himself one great song of praise throughout eternity, and those who enter the community of God join in this song.
(Dietrich Bonhoeffer, in Life Together: The Classic Exploration of Faith in Community, 1939)
Reflection
In this faith formation fortnight, we finally get to reflect on church! While it’s not the only place that our faith is formed, it’s an important one. In the church, there are so many ways to contribute our presence and God-given gifts to the “great song of praise,” and to receive the gifts of others. Think back on significant moments you’ve experienced in communities of faith. Maybe it was a campus ministry retreat, an insight from a small group, a one-on-one connection, or a profound moment during a Sunday morning hymn. Maybe the significance was in the practices of faith such as prayer, sacraments, or service, for example. Or maybe it was in the practice of community—the relationships you experienced with other people of faith over time.
- What memories do you have of your own family’s faith community through the years, or of friends’ places of worship?
- Which people do you especially remember? Was there anyone you wanted to be like when you grew up?
- How has God found you at church, and what have you learned about God there?
Practice
Relationships aren’t always easy in communities of faith, and not all our experiences of church throughout life are positive ones. Just as in other relationships, in the church we are still hurting and hurtful human beings. In fact, some experiences of Christian community can be downright damaging. As you pray about your church experiences, for what do you want to thank God, and for what do you want to ask God’s healing?
Wednesday, September 17
FFFFt Devotion #8: BODY
“For it was you who formed my inward parts;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
Wonderful are your works;
that I know very well.”
(Psalm 139:13-14)
"The practice of honoring the body challenges us to remember the sacredness of the body in every moment of our lives... Because our bodies are so vulnerable, we need each other to protect and care for them."
(Stephanie Paulsell, Honoring the Body: Meditations on a Christian Practice, 2003)
Reflection
Our human bodies are a great gift and a source of many kinds of pleasure: experiences of the five senses, intimacy, exercise, good food, rest. As a source of pain and never-ending need, they can also seem like a curse sometimes. Bodies are both fragile and resilient, and at both extremes they can surprise us:How could someone die from a seemingly minor illness, while someone else bounces back from a devastating accident?Two different traditions of the body are reflected in the Bible: the Greek tradition, in which souls and bodies are only temporarily joined together in life (you “have” a body), and the Hebrew tradition, in which soul and body are one (you “are” a body). Whichever one rings true to you, your particular pleasures, pains, and needs shape the person you become. Think about your experience of your body at different ages.
- What sensory experiences do you remember—smells, tastes, textures; favorite foods, clothes, or possessions?
- What has your body revealed to you as you’ve grown older—joys, pains, strengths, weaknesses, healing, change?
- How has God found you in your body?
Practice
As you go about your day, notice when you pay special attention to your body (i.e. bathing, taking a walk), and when you ignore it (i.e. eating a rushed lunch while on the job, staying up past your natural bedtime). Ponder a small change in your daily routine that could help your body feel loved. This website on the Christian practice of “Honoring the Body” might give you some ideas:
Thursday, September 18
FFFFt Devotion #9: HOME
“Now the Lord said to Abram, ‘Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.”
(Genesis 12:1)
“Home is where one starts from.”
(T.S. Eliot, “The Four Quartets,” 1945)
Reflection
The Bible’s Old Testament is full of the longing for “home,” as the people of Israel yearn for the Promised Land and lament the loss of their home while in exile. The New Testament points us toward our eternal home in God’s love, as Jesuscalls the disciples away from their homes to follow him: the Son of Man with “nowhere to lay his head” (Matt. 8:20). In our time and place, the American Dream of the family home is a powerful metaphor and sometimes reality. Yet we are also aware of those who are homeless or whose homes are filled with violence or neglect. In the midst of homes we have made and/or shared with others through the years, and in the midst of journeys and exiles of our own, God promises to be our home now and forever. Spiritual practices invite us to be at home with God, and through them God shapes us into people who are “at home” in our own skin, in our communities, and in the world.