Hello Heartlanders! We are excited about the conversations around the Strategic Planning Vision as our members and friends provide feedback on the initiatives presented to the congregation. It has been invaluable to hear the affirmations, questions, and thoughts around some of the ideas presented in the Connection and Creation strategic plan. We hope many more … Continue reading Ravin Rev, Connecting to God Through the Arts
Category: Ravin Rev
In the coming weeks we will be exploring questions around mental health and the gospel. More specifically the meaning of Grace amid the normal struggles of our psychological well-being as well as those times when more serious mental illness may affect our lives. It is with some trepidation I approach these questions in part because … Continue reading Ravin Rev, The Gospel and Mental Health
“Instructions for living a life: Pay attention. Be astonished. Tell about it.” Mary Oliver I discovered while hiking that I had this alarming habit of keeping my eyes on my feet. This was understandable in one sense as walking along a hiking trail is not an easy thing -- the uneven ground with roots … Continue reading Ravin Rev, Glacier National Park Blog 4
“If God exists he isn’t just churches and mathematics.He’s the forest, He’s the desert.He’s the ice caps, that are dying.” Mary Oliver On our first day to go hiking, our guide gave us a lecture about bears. To be honest I was a little taken aback. I was eager to start my adventure in … Continue reading Ravin Rev, Glacier National Park Blog 3
I don't know exactly what a prayer is.I do know how to pay attention, how to fall downinto the grass, how to kneel in the grass,how to be idle and blessed, how to stroll through the fieldswhich is what I have been doing all day.Tell me, what else should I have done?Doesn't everything die at … Continue reading Ravin Rev, Glacier National Park Blog 2
“There’s no spiritual life that does not involve, does not start, intimately and inescapably, with the Earth. That is not enriched and sustained by the Earth. That doesn’t depend on the Earth for reawakening, rejuvenation, and renewal, for restoration and forgiveness, for life and love. Without contact with the natural world, our faith and spirituality … Continue reading Ravin Rev, Glacier National Park Blog 1
I have always thought of myself as a city boy or at least a born and raised suburban kid. Our family was not one to go camping or spend much time out in the woods. Other than the obligatory family trip to the Grand Canyon, Carlsbad Caverns, and Yellowstone Park, we did not spend a lot of time out in nature. My exposure to animals was limited to petting zoos and having cats and dogs in the house...
“We do not grow by knowing all the answers, but rather by living with the questions.”Max De Pree This hope is our door, our portal.Even if we never get back to normal,Someday we can venture beyond it,To leave the known and take the first steps.So let us not return to what was normal,But reach toward … Continue reading Ravin Rev, 01/14/22
"Do not be afraid!” - Just about every time Jesus talked to his disciples. The Corona Virus has certainly revealed a number of things about our world these days. It has shown us how interconnected our global community is to the extent a virus that appears in one part of the world can travel to … Continue reading Ravin Rev, 03/13/20
“Love, Justice, and All that Jazz.” -Heartland 25th Anniversary Theme “I was hungry and you gave me food to eat. I was thirsty and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger and you welcomed me. I was naked and you gave me clothes to wear. I was sick and you took care of … Continue reading Ravin Rev, 03/01/20