January 26, 2025
Finding Your Calling in Everyday Life
The following main points are from the Sermon "Finding Your Calling in Everyday Life".
“The only way to live is to accept each moment as an unrepeatable miracle.”-Tara Brach.
“Life is a succession of moments. To live each one is to succeed.” — Corita Kent
“Your purpose doesn’t always shout; sometimes, it whispers in the quiet of the ordinary.” — Unknown
We are ALL anointed to bridge heaven and earth in everyday experiences which is a sacred and holy calling.
Finding Your Calling in Everyday Life:
- Work Environment
- Family Influences
- Hobbies and Interests
- Friendships
- Strengths and Feedback
- Overcoming Obstacles
- Evolving Purpose
- Identifying Needs
- Obituary Exercise
- Imagining Freedom
Unique Callings:
· Life presents us with a multitude of callings, each one tailored to the individual.
· Embrace the notion that your calling can take many forms through your career, acts of service, seasons, or personal relationships.
Divine Presence in Daily Life:
· By being attentive to the everyday, we can feel God's guiding presence in our lives.
· Each moment, when accumulated over weeks, months, and years, create a profound understanding of God’s direction.
Finding Glory in the Ordinary:
· Our lives become a testament to the splendor of each day, demonstrating that the extraordinary often arises from simple, intentional living.
· By appreciating the ordinary, we deepen our connection to God’s glory.
The Tapestry of Time
Threads of moments weave through my days, A tapestry of choices, both bold and shy. In the pattern of my life, I search, For the design that speaks of purpose. Some threads gleam with golden promise, Others dark with doubt and fear. Yet each has its place in the grand design, A necessary contrast in life’s fabric.
I am the weaver and the woven, Creator and creation intertwined. With each decision, each dream pursued, I add my colors to existence’s loom. Purpose reveals itself in the weaving, Not in the finished product alone. In the act of creation, in the joy of becoming, I find the meaning I’ve sought all along,
January 19, 2025
Every Little Bit Counts and Helps
1 Samuel 18:7, “Saul has slain his thousands, and David his ten thousand.”
“Act as if what you do makes a difference. It does.” – William James
Embracing the God Factor/Every Little Bit Helps:
- Acknowledge that your courage is a gift from God.
- Discern those who will uplift you spiritually and emotionally.
- Understand that every small achievement is a testament to God’s provision and grace.
- When you step outside your comfort zone, do so with confidence.
- View uncertainty as a space for God’s intervention.
- Flexibility in your plans allows you to be responsive to God’s leading.
- Trust that God orchestrates moments to guide you.
“May your choices reflect your hopes, not your fears.”-Nelson Mandela
CYCLE OF BLESSINGS
As a congregation, The Tabernacle of Glory bases our studies and principles on the Six Holy Currencies of the Cycle of Blessings through the lens of Acts 2:42-46:
The believers devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching, to the community, to their shared meals, and to their prayers. A sense of awe came over everyone. God performed many wonders and signs through the apostles. All the believers were united and shared everything. They would sell pieces of property and possessions and distribute the proceeds to everyone who needed them. Every day, they met together in the temple and ate in their homes. They shared food with gladness and simplicity. They praised God and demonstrated God's goodness to everyone. The whole city was favorable to them. The Lord added daily to the community those who were being saved.
The Cycle of Blessings, by author 
Eric Law, teaches how the six currencies of: time and place, gracious leadership, relationship, truth, wellness and money flow and recirculate to form a cycle of blessings to empower congregations as well as strengthen their internal relationships and to reach out and connect with the diverse populations in their neighborhood.
SIX HOLY CURRENCIES DEFINED
RELATIONSHIP:
The internal and external networks of mutually respectful connections that leaders and members of a church and ministry have. Internal connections include constructive relationships among members and leaders, area churches or ministries of the same affiliation, area denominational organizations, and national and international denominational structures.
External connections include constructive relationships with non-members, different racial, cultural and ethnic groups in the neighborhood, people with resources and people in need in the community, civic community leaders, ecumenical and interfaith partners, community and civic organizations, and local businesses.
GRACIOUS LEADERSHIP:
The ability to use skills, tools, models, and processes to create gracious environments (Grace Margin) within which mutually respectful "relationships" and the discernment of the "truth" across differences an be built internally, among existing members, and externally, with non-members. Differences can be racial, ethnic, age, gender, sexual orientation, class, political affiliation, or simply those existing between church members and other folks in the neighborhood.