Tag Archives: forward day by day

Flashback Friday: November 15, 1994

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Hebrews 10:37 For you have need of endurance, so that you may do the will of God and receive what is promised. 

A friend of mine is recovering from a serious injury. She spent months in physical therapy, learning first to stand and sit again, to walk with a walker and then with a cane. She does exercises which are designed to strengthen her muscles; the therapists tell her that her pain will diminish as her muscles strengthen.

And she finds that this is true: slowly but surely, she is getting better. She can now walk long distances, and she has just begun riding a bicycle again. At first, she could not ride the bike up the gentle slope of her driveway. She would have to dismount and walk it up. It was discouraging, not being able to go up such a little hill. She kept trying; she’d go a few yards up before her strength failed. Then a few yards more. Then halfway. Finally one day, she sailed up the drive, ringing her little bicycle bell in triumph.

Nothing comes to us overnight. God calls us to a life of faith, not a life of magic. When we grow in patience and perseverance, we grow spiritually stronger. That which seemed impossible to us at first grows possible as we endure in hopeful fidelity to God’s plan. God does not test us hoping we will fail. God strengthens and encourages us, willing our good.

Throwback Thursday: 1995

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This meditation, originally published in Forward Day by Day in 1995, was featured in our 75th Anniversary edition in 2010.


Luke 17:11-17 He prostrated himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him.

I remember the importance my mother put on writing thank-you letters and saying “Thank you” after a party. I recall thinking as a youngster that she made too much of it. I identified with the small boy who said after a party, “My mother told me to tell you I had a very nice time.”

Now that I’m grown up, I realize how important gratitude is. The name of our central service of worship—the eucharist—means “thank you” in Greek. As a psychotherapist, I realize that the cornerstone of mental health is a thank-you attitude toward life, even in the midst of pain and less. Unhealthy is a whining “I deserve better than this; it’s not fair” even in the midst of plenty. The ability to give thanks is a watershed of spiritual and mental health. To find a thank-you in your heart toward the Author of life is true worship.

Reflect on the area of your life which is causing you pain right now. Can you stay with the pain for a moment and sincerely say “Thank you” for something you have discovered within it? In doing so, you have just celebrated eucharist in your own heart.

P.S. Thanks, Mom. (1995)

 

Throwback Thursday Meditation: June 8, 2001

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Forward Day by Day coverLuke 18:9-14. I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income. 

We all have our yardsticks for judging others’ faith: “I heard that they tithe;” “He was a senior warden;” “They go to church every day;” “She’s a priest.” Measurements can either make us feel superior or guilty; you can always find someone worse or better than yourself. The result of these comparisons is always the same: paralysis. We either convince ourselves that we are doing well and don’t need to change, or guilt forces us to leave religion to the religious or to wallow in self-pity.

Of course, only God knows what is inside, and God isn’t keeping that kind of scorecard. Trying to judge other’s faith solely through their external piety is just as foolish as thinking that if we do enough “good” things, God will have to let us into heaven. We aren’t saved by anything measurable, rather by the immeasurable love of Christ on the cross. Our part in it is to have faith, and that faith can bear fruit without effort or worry. Christ came to set us free from the bondage of sin; we need to step outside our cells.

Throwback Thursday Meditation: November 5, 1982

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Forward CoverLuke 13:31-35. Jesus said, I must be on my way today and tomorrow and the next day.

There is about Our Lord a sense of continuous travelling. It is not a frantic restlessness but a controlled and purposeful journeying. Again and again we read of him in terms of “the way.” There is very little element of a fixed abode.

We can transfer that into the interior world of our spirituality. Our spirituality must be a living reality, ready to be mobile rather than static, ready to do a great deal of mental and spiritual travelling and exploration. To do that we certainly do need spiritual bases. Jesus had them for his travels. There was Bethany, there was Capernaum, there were quiet hillsides, even the desert. Being a Christian today means possessing these two elements of spirituality. Faith is, by paradox, both a point of arrival and a staging post for further journey.

Turn, follow, learn, pray,
Serve, share, the disciple’s way
Weary find your rest in him
Whose worship is the pilgrim’s inn.

Pray for the sick and for God’s guidance to know what you can do to assist their healing.

 

Throwback Thursday Meditation: July 8, 1965

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This was the Forward Day by Day meditation on July 8, 1965. It is titled What Draws People to Christ.

A great multitude, when they had heard what great things he did, came unto him.

People were drawn in droves to Jesus, not by the charming stories He told, but by the “great things he did”: healing sick bodies and minds, picking up fallen sinners and setting them on their feet, raising dead souls to life.

His Church today will do well to note this fact. We want the whole world to come to Christ in His Church. And the divine Head of the Church tells us to go forth in the power of His Name and do His works. Preaching His Gospel in words has its essential place. Jesus Himself came preaching. But He did more than talk: He acted. This was what drew the great multitude to Him. And this is what will draw the world to Him today: our doing things by His power.

We can, if we will. He gives us money, influence, opportunity, all necessary assets for the doing of His mighty works. When we do them, zealously, sacrificially, the world sees Christ working through us: and it turns to Him.

Update to Forward Day by Day online comment system

Since we began offering Forward Day by Day online several years ago, we have encouraged conversation among our readers and friends. For the last few years, we have been using a system from Facebook. This has offered an advantage in that most of our readers already use Facebook, so there’s no new password to use. It has also encouraged good online behavior, since all comments are coming from identifiable people.

We are proud of the quality of conversation we have hosted. Every day, a regular community engages with the daily meditations, and newcomers are warmly welcomed. The tone has consistently been gracious, even amid occasional disagreements about this or that issue. Above all, a spirit of prayer has pervaded the conversation. We are grateful to all who have participated and read the conversations.

Over the years, we’ve had some problems with the Facebook system. Every time, it is a struggle to address. We have little control over the setup, and we simply cannot get technical support. This is, after all, only a tiny speck of what Facebook does as a business. And we have heard from several folks that they cannot join the conversation because they do not want to have a Facebook account for one reason or another.

After considering various options, we have decided to switch to a new system for accommodating comments. Around the middle of November, we intend to switch to a system from a company called Disqus. You may be used to it already; it is perhaps the most popular commenting system now in use across thousands upon thousands of websites. We have already used it on several of our own websites.

We hope it will not be a big adjustment. It will have many similar features to our current system, and if you want to continue using your Facebook account, that will work. You can also use other social media accounts, and you will also be able to create an account to leave comments without being a Facebook or Twitter user. We are testing out the system now, and we hope the changeover will be free of undue disruption.

Here’s what will remain constant. We will continue to ask you to comment under your real name. We will continue to ask everyone to be respectful and gracious with others. We will continue to bar hateful rhetoric or falsehoods; this has rarely been a problem.

We hope you’ll enjoy the new system. And if there are problems, do let us know. We’ll do our best to host what has been inspiring and edifying conversation.

Thank you for your support of Forward Day by Day and Forward Movement’s ministries over these years.

The Good Book Club: Reading God’s Word Together

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By Richelle Thompson
Forward Movement Deputy Director and Managing Editor

Reading scripture changes us. Encounters with God and God’s word transform us. Every time. Whether we’re looking for answers or think we’re doing just fine on our own, God’s word still speaks.

This fundamental and profound truth lies at the heart of the Good Book Club, Forward Movement’s invitation to the church to read the Book of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles together throughout the seasons of Lent and Easter. We believe engaging in scripture brings us into deeper relationship with our Savior—and that reading God’s word together will bring us into closer relationship with one another.

Throughout Lent and Easter, Forward Day by Day will move through Luke and Acts instead of our regular practice of following the lectionary. (Don’t worry: We’ll still offer the lectionary readings on our website.) I am honored to be one of the four featured writers during this time period, alongside talented, faithful colleagues, the Rev. Lindsay Hardin Freeman (March), the Rev. Marcus Halley (April), and Miguel Escobar (May). As always, our Forward Day by Day meditations will be available in Spanish, as a podcast, online, on an app, in Braille, and large print.

In addition, we will offer free downloadable Bible studies for individuals and congregations to explore some of the stories in more depth. We continue the Bible Challenge series with A Journey with Luke and the newly released A Journey through Acts, daily meditations by noted theologians and faith leaders from around the world. With RenewalWorks, we also present a Good Book Club calendar featuring the inspirational and thought-provoking cartoons of the Rev. Jay Sidebotham.

Reading scripture is both deeply personal and an act of community. We invited Episcopal organizations from across the church to partner in the Good Book Club initiative. The response was overwhelming. More than twenty-five organizations stepped up to partner with Forward Movement, committing time and talent to develop resources for the wider church. Presiding Bishop Michael Curry issued a video invitation for all Episcopalians to join the Good Book Club. In my twenty years of local, diocesan, and church-wide work, I have never seen so many organizations come together for common cause. God is doing a new thing indeed.

Episcopal Migration Ministries will offer a special podcast, featuring voices from across the U.S., the church, and the immigrant and refugee community. A blog will accompany the podcast featuring written reflections, art, photography, music, and videos from podcast guests and others. ChurchNext has developed a free, five-course video curriculum for Lent called Luke the Liberator. United Thank Offering (UTO) has prepared a downloadable booklet with meditations on the readings, questions for personal reflection or group discussion, space to keep a gratitude journal, and a story of a ministry supported by UTO. Forma will offer a weekly Faith-at-Home series, featuring reflections and activities for families, and Building Faith will publish a series of articles to help Christian educators and parents read and study Luke and Acts with children and teens. These are just a sampling of the wide variety of resources that offer an opportunity for people to engage wherever they are—geographically, spiritually, emotionally. A full list of the partners is featured below, and links to the resources can be found at www.goodbookclub.org.

In addition to organizations, entire dioceses are onboard, making scripture engagement a priority. So too several congregations have committed to reading and exploring Luke and Acts together. If you’d like for your congregation or organization to be included as a partner or want to know more about how to get involved, send me an email at rthompson@forwardmovement.org.

As we began making plans for this project, we discussed our goals and what success might look like. We have some quantitative and qualitative measures, but we’re also not willing to limit how God might work in and among us. We can only dream and imagine how the Good Book Club might shape and transform us as individuals and as a church. God already knows.

Excerpt from Forward Day by Day, February 2018

Luke 2:10-11. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord.

You have probably heard these words dozens of times. Perhaps you were a shepherd clad in an ill-fitting sheet or a young Mary holding a burlap-wrapped baby doll. Maybe, propped on elbows on the family room floor, you watched an earnest Linus tell Charlie Brown—and us—what Christmas is all about. Maybe wax burned your fingers as you held a candle at midnight mass, listening to these words said by a priest or sung by a choir.

Luke’s telling of the birth of Christ is the familiar favorite: The emperor sending out a decree; Joseph and Mary setting out for Bethlehem on a donkey; Jesus sleeping (and crying, I suspect) in a manger.

Whether this is your first or fiftieth time hearing this story, may you meet each telling with wonder and awe. The birth of any child is amazing, but the birth of this one is miraculous. Just twenty-one verses change the course of the world. One story in a sea of stories that is the greatest one ever to be told, offering good news of great joy for all people.

MOVING FORWARD: Read the lesson out loud today. Savor the memories this story calls up for you.

Volunteer Opportunity: Share your love for Forward Movement

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Forward Movement is seeking volunteers to run exhibit tables at diocesan conventions. Our staff travels as much as possible, but can’t reach every convention that we’d like to. We have packages with 6-7 sample books, copies of our catalog, giveaways items, and a table cover ready to go—the only thing missing, is a dedicated volunteer to run the exhibit table.

Our staff will handle all the logistics, shipping, and convention red-tape, allowing you to show up the morning(s) of your convention, setup the table, and spend the day answering basic questions about Forward Movement and our resources. We’ll provide a cheat-sheet about everything in the box…so don’t worry about being an expert on everything Forward Movement does.

As a thank you, we’re offering a “New Titles Subscription” to volunteers. This subscription means you’ll receive mailings throughout the year with complimentary copies of our latest books, calendars, pamphlets, and booklets.

Interested? Please contact us at volunteer@forwardmovement.org to learn more, and see if your diocesan convention is available for this opportunity.

Watch: Presiding Bishop Curry’s Invitation to the Good Book Club

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We’re getting really excited about the Good Book Club, the churchwide initiative to read together from the Gospel of Luke and Book of Acts next Lent-Easter.  But don’t listen to us tell it… Here’s Presiding Bishop Curry offering an invitation to the GBC!

Want to learn more? Like the Good Book Club Facebook page for updates during the leadup to the initiative, and head to goodbookclub.org for details on getting your church involved.

Forward Movement Launches the Good Book Club

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We’re excited to announce the Good Book Club—a church-wide invitation to all Episcopalians to read Luke and Acts during Lent-Easter 2018. Participants in the Good Book Club will begin reading Luke the Sunday before Lent, February 11, 2018, and finish up the Book of Acts on the Day of Pentecost, May 20, 2018. We hope you’ll join us, and the many churches, individuals and organizations who will be a part of this special project.

Several organizations have already announced partnerships with Forward Movement on the Good Book Club, including Episcopal Church Foundation, ChurchNext, Episcopal Migration Ministries, and The Episcopal Church and Presiding Bishop Michael B. Curry. Partner organizations are creating resources or encouraging their constituents to take part in the effort. A list of current partners can be found here.

The Good Book Club website (goodbookclub.org) lists the daily readings, as well as available resources to support people as they read the scriptures. Resources also will be available in Spanish at clubbiblico.org.

And a note to Forward Day by Day readers: Forward Day by Day will use Good Book Club readings during Lent-Easter 2018, instead of the usual daily lectionary.

For now, you can sign up for updates or learn more about partnering with us at goodbookclub.org. We hope you’ll read along with us, and Episcopalians around the globe!