{"id":2185,"date":"2007-05-25T02:20:49","date_gmt":"2007-05-25T02:20:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/jesuscreed\/2007\/05\/friday-is-for-friends-43.html"},"modified":"2007-05-25T02:20:49","modified_gmt":"2007-05-25T02:20:49","slug":"friday-is-for-friends-43","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/jesuscreed\/2007\/05\/friday-is-for-friends-43.html","title":{"rendered":"Friday is for Friends"},"content":{"rendered":"

We close today the book of Darryl Tippens,Pilgrim Heart<\/em>. A gentle, ruminating set of reflections on themes in discipleship that mix the individual and the community. As I have said before on this blog, a discipleship that is group-shaped is more and more needed and this book takes us one step closer. Our theme today is “seeking” but before we get there, I mention again that in two weeks we begin Jon Wilson’s Why Church Matters<\/a><\/em>.
\nDarryl opens with a magnet line from Flannery O’Connor — and I ought to add again that I like his wide-ranging quotations — “Don’t expect faith to clear things up for you. It is trust, not certainty.” (197) Now if that doesn’t strike home, nothing will.
\nA faithful heart, the book states, “is always a passionate pilgrim heart, ever on the road, ever moving forward — searching for understanding, seeking the face of God” (199).
\nAnd this leads him to the point of all spiritual disciplines, whether individually-framed or ecclesially-shaped: to love.
\nHe concludes the book with a look at the final scene of John’s Gospel with Peter and Jesus and the disciples. “Tragedy,” he observes, “is pregnant with holy possibility” (201). They thought Jesus was gone; they learn he is not only alive but that he is present in the smallest of these and at work in the minorests of details: in the meal.
\nThe Christian life is like Peter’s — one that has failure. Again from Flannery O’Connor: “When we get our spiritual house in order, we’ll be dead” (202). And he finishes off with a wonderful analogy.
\nBob Keeshan was the man who acted the role of Captain Kangaroo — whom I watched as a boy. He began acting this role as a young man, 28 years old. He had to have his hair whitened and fake wiskers and a wig — and as he got older he began to morph into his character. His own line: “I have grown into the part.”
\nIsn’t this the essence of spiritual formation? To “become the part over time”?
\nHow’s this for a closer? “In the end, the followers of Jesus know only love. We were created in love in order to love, so that we may finally be embraced forever by a greater Love that will never let us go” (205).
\nDarryl, we’re better for having spent these weeks with you and your book. Thanks brother.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We close today the book of Darryl Tippens,Pilgrim Heart. A gentle, ruminating set of reflections on themes in discipleship that mix the individual and the community. As I have said before on this blog, a discipleship that is group-shaped is more and more needed and this book takes us one step closer. Our theme today…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":298,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2185","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-books"],"yoast_head":"\nFriday is for Friends - Jesus Creed<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/jesuscreed\/2007\/05\/friday-is-for-friends-43.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Friday is for Friends - Jesus Creed\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"We close today the book of Darryl Tippens,Pilgrim Heart. 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