T(r)oy's Marbles

journal | noteworthy quotes from team building

In early April, the Oasis Madrid team had a team building retreat. Today I was doing some filing and came across some notes I took at that event. Included among the many papers, I found these gems: funny, quirky quotes, proving once and for all that our team really is a crazy bunch.

Here they are. Hope you get a chuckle.

"It's either hemorrhoids or forgetfulness, I think." --Kelly Wills, while playing Balderdash.

"Shani's black." --Troy, deciding what color Shani will be in a game we were setting up to play. Here's a pic of Shani, by the way.

"Don't worry, Amy: I started out in the crapper." --Troy, to Amy. 'nuff said.

"You guys can expect me to continue to love me." --Kelly Wills, telling the team what they can expect of her, during one of our serious exercises.

"You know, bacon grease is actually good for you." --Don't know who said this, but I'm sure it's true.

"I think I'm okay with lard, personally." --Uh, again: don't know who said this, but that is just too dang funny not to put here.

All I have to say is: I thank God for a team that likes to laugh and doesn't take themselves too seriously.

poetry | buried german, buried jew

Yesterday I read a story about infanticide in Germany.

Buried German, Buried Jew
a poem by Troy Cady

*FATHER DEWIS: This is out of my domain. I’m in the quiet part of town.

Your face is dry now.
Is this right?
Will this make you weep?

Once upon a time,
there were eight big flower pots.

………………………………………

Shepard wrote a play:
“Buried Child.”
Shepard was a prophet.

HALLE: The messengers of God’s word are screaming louder now than ever before, screaming to the four winds.

Do you get me?

………………………………………..

Look at the pretty flowers,
my child.
No, my child, don’t go
digging in the dirt.
Just look at the flowers—
Don’t—
You’ll only—

VINCE: …the carrots have nothing to do with the situation here.

…………………………………………..

You’re only digging yourself in.

There is something under there—
What am I saying?—
There is some One under there.

TILDEN: I had a son once but we buried him.

………………………………………

You wouldn’t know to look at the pretty flowers,
But those roots are human.
The girl is fertile.
So was the baby.

Shepard said this was going to happen.
This happened.

SHELLY: I don’t even know what I’m doing here.

………………………………………………..

TILDEN: You’ve got to talk or you’ll die.
DODGE: I don’t want to talk about anything.

Your face is dry now.
Mine too.
Is this right?
Weep, my soul.
Wash away the dirt
stuck to your face
from the digging.

……………………………………………..

Your face is dry now.
Is this right?

HALLE: You used to be a good man.

Shepherd
told us we looked pretty
on the outside.

You can’t see the inside.
What does that matter?

You think I’m pretty.
That’s good—
just don’t start digging.

…………………………………….

Shepherd
Told us we were dirty
on the inside.

Start digging.
Work and sweat.
When you find the Buried Child,
weep.

VINCE: I just gotta get outta here. Think things through by myself.

………………………………………

VINCE: Same eyes. Same mouth. Same breath.

Your face is dry now.
Is this right?
The Baby was innocent.
We put him in the ground.
He died like a seed,
buried underground.

The Flower was red
like blood.
The Flower now dead.

The Flower and The Baby
are one.

My face is still dry.
Why?
The Buried Child
does not look like a crucifixion
but it is.

SHELLY: You really don’t recognize him?
DODGE: What’s to recognize?

Shepherd said this would happen.
Shepard said we’d pretend it didn’t happen—
so did Shepherd.

FATHER DEWIS: I’ve been so busy with the choir.

Die with the Child,
like a seed
planted in a flower pot—
because your face is still dry.
So is mine.

Is this right?

FATHER DEWIS: I thought by now the Lord would have given me some sign, some guidepost, but I haven’t seen it. No sign at all.

_____________________________________________________________________
*Text in italics are citations from “Buried Child”, a play by Sam Shepard.

journal | solitude saturday

Oasis Madrid will hold neither a “service” nor a Gathering Event this Saturday, 31 May. Occasionally throughout the year a certain month will contain 5 weekends (instead of just four). On the first and third Saturday of each month, Oasis Madrid hosts a corporate worship service; and, on the second and fourth Saturday, we host a Gathering Event. It has become our custom to observe a Sabbath rest when a month happens to have 5 weekends. In such instances we take the Saturday of that weekend and dub it “Solitude Saturday” for the purpose of ceasing activity (yes, even “Christian” activity!) so that we may spend time with God in simplicity and solitude.

In fact, the name of our community (Oasis Madrid) suits this kind of rhythm, since we are convinced that every once in a while weary travelers need a place where they can simply stop and rest to drink in the living water of God’s love and grace. This Saturday (31 May) I would encourage you to do just that. Just stop. Just rest. “Be still and know that the Lord is God.”

Some time ago, I read a book by Thomas Merton. In one of the chapters of that book I came upon a paragraph which speaks to this need. He writes:

“We do not live merely in order to ‘do something’—no matter what. Activity is just one of the normal expressions of life, and the life it expresses is all the more perfect when it sustains itself with an ordered economy of action. This order demands a wise alternation of activity and rest. We do not live more fully merely by doing more, seeing more, tasting more, and experiencing more than we ever have before. On the contrary, some of us need to discover that we will not begin to live more fully until we have the courage to do and see and taste and experience much less than usual.”

Solitude Saturday is really about “doing less”. It helps us embrace a “wise alternation of activity and rest.” In short, it helps us rest.

At the same time, as we enter into this weekend I am very much aware that some of us may not be able to observe solitude due to travel or special visitors or other activity that simply cannot be avoided. Heather and I, for example, will be away on a leader’s retreat. Because of that, we will be unable to take a Solitude Saturday (although, of course, the retreat itself is designed to give us a rest). And many of you may find you have a similar sort of situation. If that is the case, don’t worry. Simply try to take another day on a future weekend to “be still”.

In either case, try to be intentional about it, because solitude is the kind of thing that doesn’t just “happen.” It takes a conscious act of the will to choose solitude, to cease activity. So, see what you can do to clear your schedule this weekend if possible, but if that is not possible, see what you can do to schedule an alternate time of solitude within the next two weeks.

I am also aware that many of you reading this do not live here in Madrid, so you may feel this is something just for those who are part of Oasis Madrid now. If that is the case, please know that “distance” does not need to prevent you from joining with Oasis Madrid in rest. We are family, whether near or far, and we can still unite in the simple practice of solitude. If you live or are away in another part of the world this Saturday and you plan on joining us, won’t you drop us an email or leave a comment here, letting us know you’ll be joining us so we can be mindful of one another? Thanks.

In closing, here are some ideas and guidelines to help you embrace solitude this weekend. I have shared these items in the past, but include them again here as a reminder.

Continue reading "solitude saturday"

journal | wanted: your questions

We've been doing a series on discipleship at Oasis. Started it a couple months ago.

Just three weeks ago, for the teaching time in our service, I decided to do a Q & A on discipleship instead of using my usual teaching format, which consists of preparing a sermon ahead of time and manuscripting it. I got out the flip chart paper and markers and asked folks in the service to write down three questions per table on the topic of discipleship. I asked them to ask anything that came to mind with the topic and told them I would do my best to address their question, if I could.

They came up with some good ones. Here is a sampling:

-"What is the ultimate goal of discipleship?"
-"What does Christ charge us to do as disciples?"
-"How much of discipleship is down to the disciple's will and how much of it is caused by God?"
-"How would you define the separation between evangelism and discipleship?"
-"What does discipleship consist of?"
-"What is the easiest thing about discipleship?"
-"When I know I am imperfect, how can I disciple someone else?"
-Another one dealt with the role that community plays in making disciples.

I thought these were good questions. In fact, they were so good that we weren't able to address them all. So, in two weeeks at our next service, we're going to repeat the Q & A format.

Here's where you come in. I got to thinking: "Maybe there are some folks out there in cyberspace that would like to participate through contributing one of their own questions." If so, here's your chance. Take a few moments and ask yourself: "When it comes to discipleship and making disciples, what things come to mind?" What do you wonder about? What would you like to get another perspective on? Perhaps there's something in your own experience that you'd like to ask about or think about more. Perhaps there's something you read about or are thinking about (a text of Scripture you wonder about, or something someone wrote, or...). What questions do you have about discipleship and disciple-making? If you could ask anything, what would it be?

Either email your questions to me at troy@oasismadrid.org or just post them here as a comment. If it fits, perhaps we'll talk about it at our next service. Or, if you want, I could just email you some thoughts. Also, let me know if you'd like me to use troymarbles to address some of the questions I listed above that came from our first Q & A service. I'd be happy to do so.

--Troy

journal | my dream last night

I've been known to laugh in my sleep. I have these dreams that make me laugh so hard I not only wake Heather up with my "cackling" (as she calls it) but I also wake myself up.

Last night I had another one of those dreams.

This one was quite possibly the funniest one ever. I could not stop laughing, even after I woke myself up.

It was this: I was on the street and turned around, when, to my amazement, I saw the ugliest Wonderwoman I have ever seen in my life. I couldn't believe it. I started laughing and moved to get a better look, because I thought, "That has to be a guy dressed up in a Wonderwoman suit!"

But, as I came around to get a view of them from the front, I discovered: "Oh. My. Goodness. That is a woman. That has to be the ugliest Wonderwoman I have ever seen in my life!"

And I just started LAUGHING and LAUGHING and LAUGHING. And I could not stop, though I wanted to. And I could not get that image out of my head. And every time I thought of Ugly Wonderwoman I just broke up laughing and laughing and laughing.