08-25-23

ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGS
August 25, 2023
Sunday, we begin a new series where we will reflect on stretching. As a former gymnast and gymnastics coach, I know the importance of stretching. In some of my beginner classes, it was fun to watch incredibly inflexible kids start to see progress. Maybe it started with touching their toes, then moved to the splits, and eventually to a pancake. Of course, you can’t force it or make it happen any faster than your muscles will allow. And each of us is different. The same is true of our faith. In Romans 12:2, Paul writes about how we are to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. The Greek word we translate as renew is anakainósis, and it is made up of two Greek words: Up and Make Fresh. There is this sense of making something new by moving (or reaching) upward. We know for sure that neither renewal nor transformation will occur by remaining where we are. It requires movement, and in this case, the stretching of our minds. How is your mind being stretched these days?

God, continue to form me and stretch me for the purpose of making me a more faithful disciple of the one they called the Incarnate Word, Jesus. Amen.