WITH.

Our area Church of the Brethren Pastors group is reading and discussing the book:  "With: Reimagining the Way You Relate to God"  by Skye Jethani.   In preparation for next week's gathering, I read the two chapters assigned and couldn't put it down.  Been thinking about an Advent Theme for 2011 and think I may have found it.

From the book..." The Life With God posture is predicated on the view that relationship with God is at the core of the cosmos: God the Father with God the Son with God the Holy Spirit.  And so we should not be surprised to discover that when God desired to restore his broken relationship with people, he sent his Son to dwell with us.  His plan to restore his creation was not to send a list of rules and rituals to follow (life under God), nor was it the implementation of useful principles (life over God).  He did not send a genie to grant us our desires (life from God), nor did he give us a task to accomplish (life for God.   Instead God himself came to be with us - to walk with us once again as he had done in Eden in the begining.  Jesus entered into our dark existence to share our broken world and to illuminate a different way forward.  His coming was a sudden and glorious catastrophe of good."

In the book Skye compares and contrasts 4 postures we often use to relate to God.  Life under, over, from, and for God.  And he shares the disappointments each leads to.  Then he encourages us to consider living out of a 5th posture... Life WITH God.   This is what the gospel writers record about Jesus.  Especially evident in John 1.

With.