A Christian Beloved Community
"Honoring Diversity, Celebrating Unity, Transforming Community"
An Extravagant Welcome to YOU!
Children welcome to join adult worship with special youth sermon. Casual dress.
10:30 a.m. Sunday worship service
at the Ruritan Clubhouse,
5146 Ruritan Court, Va. Beach, VA 23462
map
at the Ruritan Clubhouse,
5146 Ruritan Court, Va. Beach, VA 23462
map
Rev. Pamela Anne Bro, Ph.D., Pastor
Vision Statement: Living Waters Sanctuary is a progressive, inclusive interfaith community, Christ-centered and yet open to truths of other religions and cultures. We welcome those of any race, culture or sexual orientation. We seek to build bridges of understanding between cultures and spiritual paths, and we celebrate our unity and responsibility on our precious home, the earth. With body, mind and spirit, we worship with love and joy!
THIS WEEK'S SERVICE:
May 19 PENTECOST!! Tomorrow The theme is taken from Jim Wallis' new book "On God's Side"--my sermon title is "Taking Back the Common Good--in our Faith & in Our Public Lives"--inspiring book, very timely and practical. So come and celebrate and
WEAR RED!! for the flames of the Holy Spirit dancing in our midst!
Pamela Anne
May 12. Living Waters Sanctuary's theme this Mother's Day is "'We are wound with mercy round and round': Mother Mary and the Rebel Priests" (Catholic women). Great music with Frank Jordan and Karl Werne tomorrow, too! Come celebrate the Divine Feminine within and among each one of us (guys, too)!
April 21st. The theme is "The Song of Solomon--"Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away"--God's passionate love call to our soul". Dr. Bro preaching.
April 14th,the theme this Sunday is "Are You Ready to Be Healed? Jesus Heals the Bent-over woman". We will have a guest singer Karen Shepard and I'm excited about this!
April 7, "Breakfast on the Beach with Jesus: "Feed My Lambs"". Dr. Bro preaching on the post-resurrection text in John. Holy Communion, too! Come join us!
March 31st, Easter Sunday: "He is Risen and We Are Risen with Healing in Our Wings", Dr. Bro preaching--3 christenings, and special music! Come join us!
THIS WEEK'S SERVICE:
May 19 PENTECOST!! Tomorrow The theme is taken from Jim Wallis' new book "On God's Side"--my sermon title is "Taking Back the Common Good--in our Faith & in Our Public Lives"--inspiring book, very timely and practical. So come and celebrate and
WEAR RED!! for the flames of the Holy Spirit dancing in our midst!
Pamela Anne
May 12. Living Waters Sanctuary's theme this Mother's Day is "'We are wound with mercy round and round': Mother Mary and the Rebel Priests" (Catholic women). Great music with Frank Jordan and Karl Werne tomorrow, too! Come celebrate the Divine Feminine within and among each one of us (guys, too)!
April 21st. The theme is "The Song of Solomon--"Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away"--God's passionate love call to our soul". Dr. Bro preaching.
April 14th,the theme this Sunday is "Are You Ready to Be Healed? Jesus Heals the Bent-over woman". We will have a guest singer Karen Shepard and I'm excited about this!
April 7, "Breakfast on the Beach with Jesus: "Feed My Lambs"". Dr. Bro preaching on the post-resurrection text in John. Holy Communion, too! Come join us!
March 31st, Easter Sunday: "He is Risen and We Are Risen with Healing in Our Wings", Dr. Bro preaching--3 christenings, and special music! Come join us!
"Seeds of Grace" by Dr. Pamela Anne Bro
May, 2013
“Lazarus, come forth!”
“If you’re not busy being born, you’re busy dying.” (Bob Dylan)
You may remember the story in the Gospels. Lazarus, one of Jesus’ best buddies and brother to Mary and Martha, has died. The sisters are devastated that Jesus was not there to save him. When Jesus arrives days later, Lazarus is wrapped, dead and locked in the tomb. His response: “Jesus wept.”--the shortest and most poignant line in the whole Bible. Then Jesus cries out, “Lazarus, come forth!” And lo and behold, Lazarus stumbles out into the daylight, drawing an agonizing breath. But the eager embrace of his sisters and Jesus steady and warm him—and he’s on his way to a new life.
I’ve been Lazarus lately. The dead one. Oh yes, I thought I was alive; other people did too. But I was dead. How?
Well, I’ve been the founder and pastor of a little church for 7 years, and through those amazing, challenging and heart-warming years of community worship and service, I had continually asked the people for very little commitment and support. Though I cherished being their pastor/friend, lately the struggle to earn a living was becoming untenable. What should I do?
Then last week I had an epiphany. The Spirit showed me that I had a fear of rejection, and most of my flock had a fear of commitment.
Now their fear is understandable. Our culture scoffs at commitment, inundating us by every means available with choice upon choice—of partners, consumer goods, worship communities. Why commit to one when you can have it all? Why risk being a part of a group where you’ll be asked to give, to grow, and to be more fully engaged with your soul and the world?
And what about me? I didn’t fear commitment—I had shown up 50 weeks a year for the last seven years to preach, even when I was bald and near death because of chemo. But the Spirit did show me that:
· I was mistaken to feel that people could reject me. Living Waters Sanctuary was never about me. It was about what God wants us to do together to help bring healing, understanding and love to our community and beyond. Yes, I was a necessary catalyst for our spiritual community but never the wellspring.
· God could always use me somewhere else--this crazy, caring, striving, irreverent Pamela Bro-- God had few enough servant leaders as it was.
· Did I want to die before I realized, “Oh my God, you mean we at Living Waters could have done that and that and that together to help our poor world, and we never even tried!” Did we want to be the living dead?
Suddenly Jesus stood before me, weeping over my premature demise in my self-made tomb, and then belting out,
“Pamela, come forth!”
I woke up! I stepped out—dancing, with my grave cloths flapping wildly around me. I wanted to kiss everyone I met. I still do.
So last Sunday, I shared my revelation with my people, urging them not to fear making a stronger commitment to each other and to God’s work, or it was time for me to step down. But if they stepped up, a new kind of life would await them.
And they rose up, too! They committed!
It is ironic but true that it is only by committing ourselves to a few specific and imperfect people that we can actually regenerate the larger world.
Listen, my friend. Do you hear someone calling your name? Commanding, “Come forth!”
The world needs you now--fully alive.
The Boston Marathon Bombings: A Plea for Care and Prayer--April 13
As I was driving to my yoga class this morning, I spied something round and dark creeping across my lane. I jammed on the brakes and realized it was a turtle, tentatively making its way across the pavement, totally unaware of the danger it was in. I pulled my car to the side of the road and got out so I could rescue it, but the traffic was coming too fast and heavy. My heart sank when I realized I couldn’t save it. Crushed by the probable death of such innocence, I fought back the tears.
And immediately the Boston Marathon bombings came to mind—how could anyone possibly do such a horrendous act to such innocent people?
“Where are you in this, God?” My anguished pastor’s heart cried out.
An hour and a half on the mat did little to calm me. There I was breathing in and out in peace while others up in Boston and around the country were in agony, grief and pain. Marathon runners a target of vicious violence?
I silently shouted, “Free will is too high a price to pay! We can’t handle it, Jesus! We’re going to hell in a hand basket, all of us, even runners and little children and slow-moving turtles who hurt no one. What is happening to our country? And where is the justice? Where is your loving God???”
Jesus on the mat, usually so responsive, was mute. Revenge, hatred, fear—I felt all these emotions well up in me.
Then I remembered…
Scientists now confirm that thoughts carry energy, real energy and power. That means that when we dwell on dark (and justifiable) emotions, they go out into the ethers to gather with similar thoughts into an energy field. Our world is already too full of hatred and terror. We mustn’t contribute to that black hole.
So friends, here is my plea. Let us strain with all our might, like valiant runners, to transform our negative thoughts to ones of comfort and healing we send to the victims, their families, and any suffering person standing right before us, right here and now.
Yes, I’m still reeling from the insanity of the bombings: no place seems safe now in our public lives. And yes, prayer and care can seem like flimsy responses to such a diabolical event. Yet, just as we desire the quick apprehension of the bombers, may we also join our hearts and minds to re-shape policies and thoughts that will protect our citizens, our children and our fellow creatures.
Outside again after class, I was heartened to find no sign of the turtle anywhere. Prayer and care may be all we have right now--but let’s use them.
5 Tips to Welcome Spring
1. Spring clean your whole house. (J)
Now how many of us actually do this? Then we feel like a failure. Here’s how to break that cycle. I invite you to clean out only 2 items:
2. Spring clean your thoughts.
Choose one consistently negative thought you have and replace it with a positive one. For example, say you hate being criticized. Replace this thought with “I can easily handle criticism. It’s not personal. I can sift through it and find what’s useful to change in myself, and then throw the rest out.” Which leads us to Tip #3…
3. Spring clean your list of good friends.
That is, honestly look at each friend to see if they are a positive or negative influence in your life. If they’re always critical of you or too HM (high maintenance), have the courage and wisdom to spend less time with them or completely let them go. Sigh of relief….
4. Buy an essential oil or room spray.
Science is showing how stimulated your brain will be by odors that please you. They can actually calm you and send out endorphins, those good-feeling chemicals. So intentionally pick out a scent that will delight you: lavender, rose, lily, lemon or linen…breathe in deep and slow….ummm…
5. Bring one object of beauty into your home.
Whether it’s the bold yellow of sunflowers, or the dainty and delicate daffodils for your kitchen table, or a new painting of love birds cooing for your bedroom wall, lavish yourself with a little beauty. Beauty breeds beauty!
With these 5 easy tips, you are now ready to greet spring with a spring in your step and a happier, fresher you!
May, 2013
“Lazarus, come forth!”
“If you’re not busy being born, you’re busy dying.” (Bob Dylan)
You may remember the story in the Gospels. Lazarus, one of Jesus’ best buddies and brother to Mary and Martha, has died. The sisters are devastated that Jesus was not there to save him. When Jesus arrives days later, Lazarus is wrapped, dead and locked in the tomb. His response: “Jesus wept.”--the shortest and most poignant line in the whole Bible. Then Jesus cries out, “Lazarus, come forth!” And lo and behold, Lazarus stumbles out into the daylight, drawing an agonizing breath. But the eager embrace of his sisters and Jesus steady and warm him—and he’s on his way to a new life.
I’ve been Lazarus lately. The dead one. Oh yes, I thought I was alive; other people did too. But I was dead. How?
Well, I’ve been the founder and pastor of a little church for 7 years, and through those amazing, challenging and heart-warming years of community worship and service, I had continually asked the people for very little commitment and support. Though I cherished being their pastor/friend, lately the struggle to earn a living was becoming untenable. What should I do?
Then last week I had an epiphany. The Spirit showed me that I had a fear of rejection, and most of my flock had a fear of commitment.
Now their fear is understandable. Our culture scoffs at commitment, inundating us by every means available with choice upon choice—of partners, consumer goods, worship communities. Why commit to one when you can have it all? Why risk being a part of a group where you’ll be asked to give, to grow, and to be more fully engaged with your soul and the world?
And what about me? I didn’t fear commitment—I had shown up 50 weeks a year for the last seven years to preach, even when I was bald and near death because of chemo. But the Spirit did show me that:
· I was mistaken to feel that people could reject me. Living Waters Sanctuary was never about me. It was about what God wants us to do together to help bring healing, understanding and love to our community and beyond. Yes, I was a necessary catalyst for our spiritual community but never the wellspring.
· God could always use me somewhere else--this crazy, caring, striving, irreverent Pamela Bro-- God had few enough servant leaders as it was.
· Did I want to die before I realized, “Oh my God, you mean we at Living Waters could have done that and that and that together to help our poor world, and we never even tried!” Did we want to be the living dead?
Suddenly Jesus stood before me, weeping over my premature demise in my self-made tomb, and then belting out,
“Pamela, come forth!”
I woke up! I stepped out—dancing, with my grave cloths flapping wildly around me. I wanted to kiss everyone I met. I still do.
So last Sunday, I shared my revelation with my people, urging them not to fear making a stronger commitment to each other and to God’s work, or it was time for me to step down. But if they stepped up, a new kind of life would await them.
And they rose up, too! They committed!
It is ironic but true that it is only by committing ourselves to a few specific and imperfect people that we can actually regenerate the larger world.
Listen, my friend. Do you hear someone calling your name? Commanding, “Come forth!”
The world needs you now--fully alive.
The Boston Marathon Bombings: A Plea for Care and Prayer--April 13
As I was driving to my yoga class this morning, I spied something round and dark creeping across my lane. I jammed on the brakes and realized it was a turtle, tentatively making its way across the pavement, totally unaware of the danger it was in. I pulled my car to the side of the road and got out so I could rescue it, but the traffic was coming too fast and heavy. My heart sank when I realized I couldn’t save it. Crushed by the probable death of such innocence, I fought back the tears.
And immediately the Boston Marathon bombings came to mind—how could anyone possibly do such a horrendous act to such innocent people?
“Where are you in this, God?” My anguished pastor’s heart cried out.
An hour and a half on the mat did little to calm me. There I was breathing in and out in peace while others up in Boston and around the country were in agony, grief and pain. Marathon runners a target of vicious violence?
I silently shouted, “Free will is too high a price to pay! We can’t handle it, Jesus! We’re going to hell in a hand basket, all of us, even runners and little children and slow-moving turtles who hurt no one. What is happening to our country? And where is the justice? Where is your loving God???”
Jesus on the mat, usually so responsive, was mute. Revenge, hatred, fear—I felt all these emotions well up in me.
Then I remembered…
Scientists now confirm that thoughts carry energy, real energy and power. That means that when we dwell on dark (and justifiable) emotions, they go out into the ethers to gather with similar thoughts into an energy field. Our world is already too full of hatred and terror. We mustn’t contribute to that black hole.
So friends, here is my plea. Let us strain with all our might, like valiant runners, to transform our negative thoughts to ones of comfort and healing we send to the victims, their families, and any suffering person standing right before us, right here and now.
Yes, I’m still reeling from the insanity of the bombings: no place seems safe now in our public lives. And yes, prayer and care can seem like flimsy responses to such a diabolical event. Yet, just as we desire the quick apprehension of the bombers, may we also join our hearts and minds to re-shape policies and thoughts that will protect our citizens, our children and our fellow creatures.
Outside again after class, I was heartened to find no sign of the turtle anywhere. Prayer and care may be all we have right now--but let’s use them.
5 Tips to Welcome Spring
1. Spring clean your whole house. (J)
Now how many of us actually do this? Then we feel like a failure. Here’s how to break that cycle. I invite you to clean out only 2 items:
- Your medicine cabinet and
- One kitchen drawer.
2. Spring clean your thoughts.
Choose one consistently negative thought you have and replace it with a positive one. For example, say you hate being criticized. Replace this thought with “I can easily handle criticism. It’s not personal. I can sift through it and find what’s useful to change in myself, and then throw the rest out.” Which leads us to Tip #3…
3. Spring clean your list of good friends.
That is, honestly look at each friend to see if they are a positive or negative influence in your life. If they’re always critical of you or too HM (high maintenance), have the courage and wisdom to spend less time with them or completely let them go. Sigh of relief….
4. Buy an essential oil or room spray.
Science is showing how stimulated your brain will be by odors that please you. They can actually calm you and send out endorphins, those good-feeling chemicals. So intentionally pick out a scent that will delight you: lavender, rose, lily, lemon or linen…breathe in deep and slow….ummm…
5. Bring one object of beauty into your home.
Whether it’s the bold yellow of sunflowers, or the dainty and delicate daffodils for your kitchen table, or a new painting of love birds cooing for your bedroom wall, lavish yourself with a little beauty. Beauty breeds beauty!
With these 5 easy tips, you are now ready to greet spring with a spring in your step and a happier, fresher you!
