At your feet, I Iisten,

Dear Geneva Family,

As we approach Holy Week I thought I'd post a poem I wrote about one of Jesus' closest friends, who is also one of my favorite biblical people, Mary of Bethany. The poem is about Mary's journey with Jesus through their friendship, to the cross and resurrection. As you read the poem you might reflect on your own journey with Jesus. When have you experienced listening at His feet as Mary did? How have you experienced Jesus intervening in your life when you thought all was lost? What will it mean in this Lenten season for you to journey with Jesus to the cross? In what ways have you experienced His resurrection? In what ways do you hope to experience it more deeply?

Your sister in Christ,
Cindy Thomas

Mary of Bethany

by Cindy Thomas

At your feet, I listened,
The fragrant words anoint my heart
with love and peace
More precious than gold,
Cleansing me from inside,
Clothing me in silk,
White silk.

At your feet I wept,
My beloved dead, lying
in a tomb.
Your fragrant words anoint my heart
with hope and joy
Clothing me in light,
In stars and moon and sun.

The jar, white, like a painted tomb,
was broken,
And fragrance filled the room.
O Jesus, do you know? This is my soul,
Poured out, running
in fragrant rivers
Down your face, into your beard.
This is my soul, soothing your feet -
Your beloved feet,
Where I listened, wept
And rejoiced.

Was the fragrance of my soul
still with you
At the table,
when you broke the bread?
In the garden,
when the cup seemed too much to bear?
Was it in the air,
when you were scourged,
when your dear flesh was torn
By all the fury evil could unleash?
when you were scorned,
And cruel words pierced your heart?
Could the mocking red robe
conceal it?

At your feet I wept,
Your feet, anointed
still fragrant,
But pierced through,
pierced, like my heart.
Was the fragrance with you
when you cried, "It is finished?"
It is with me, here
In my hair it lingers,
Clothing me, bittersweet.

The tomb, painted white,
like an alabaster jar,
was broken,
And not death, but life
filled the earth,
The sweet fragrance of life.
Oh Jesus, now I know,
And at your feet I weep,
Not in sorrow, but in joy.
I anointed you with my soul,
And in return,
You gave me your life.

worship preview

Dear Saints: In his radio address today, President Obama remarked that the challenge we face as a nation is "to discover great opportunity in the midst of great crisis." One of my hopes is that each Sunday in worship, we get a taste of what the president is talking about. I sincerely believe that in this time of economic upheaval, God is fervently at work helping us to discover the many great opportunities we have to build our lives more firmly upon His wisdom and love. This Sunday, we will continue to look for the divine opportunities that are ours for the taking. We will look specifically at the opportunities connected with the use of our financial resources. While the nation is awash with financial discussion, so much of the converation misses out on the deeper dimensions of this topic that are crucial if we are to live as God intentds. To prepare for Sunday, please read Proverbs 30:7-9 and I Timothy 6:17-19. As you read these passages, you might ask, "How do these Scriptures view money and wealth? What are they telling me about the dangers and the possibilities that wealth brings? What kind of change in perspective do these passages encourage me to have about money? " I look forward to worshiping with you tomorrow. In Christ, Bryan