The following is a quote from a blog which quotes another blog. The writer is David Fitch, and this is part of a post
It is stunning to me how many many people I encounter in a month who cannot even acquire even a modicum of mind space cleared of societal clutter to meet God. We live in a society where God is being organized out of our life experience (and this is most certainly true of our young people). If we don’t have the means to discipline our lives from societal noise, real living with God, listening and responding to his voice is lost from our horizon. God becomes an item to believe, an obligation to take care alongside the many others. And then, and I am dead serious here, other demons take over our lives. Our loneliness/our emptiness becomes filled by multivarious forms of fake pornographic substitutes. Demons take over. I see it everywhere.
In the midst of this, sometimes the best place (the only place) I can point people to is the gathering on Sunday morning. Go to the gathering. Not to get pumped up and inspired. Not to take some notes on the three things you can do to improve your Christian life. NO! Go to the gathering to shut down from all the noise..
Showing posts with label loneliness. Show all posts
Showing posts with label loneliness. Show all posts
Monday, December 06, 2010
Tuesday, January 06, 2009
Loneliness
How lonely are you? How lonely are the people in the congregations you work with?
You can check out your own state of loneliness by looking at the UCLA Loneliness Scale - it'll only take a couple of minutes.
Chronic loneliness is as unhealthy as never exercising, not looking after your heart or your blood pressure. Increasingly medical people are realising that loneliness may be a major factor in people dying younger than expected.
Salon.com published an article by Katharine Mieszkowski a few days ago on the subject. Even though it doesn't mention the spiritual side of life to any extent, it looks closely at the problems of loneliness and their physical effects.
How can congregations minister to the lonely? Can they be helped at all?
You can check out your own state of loneliness by looking at the UCLA Loneliness Scale - it'll only take a couple of minutes.
Chronic loneliness is as unhealthy as never exercising, not looking after your heart or your blood pressure. Increasingly medical people are realising that loneliness may be a major factor in people dying younger than expected.
Salon.com published an article by Katharine Mieszkowski a few days ago on the subject. Even though it doesn't mention the spiritual side of life to any extent, it looks closely at the problems of loneliness and their physical effects.
How can congregations minister to the lonely? Can they be helped at all?
Thursday, December 04, 2008
Changing UK Changing New Zealand
The 'Changing UK' Report, which has just come out this month, looks at five ways in which communities are breaking up. Each of these could be considered in relation to New Zealand, as well.
1) Simple “Geographical Inequalities”, such as population increasing more in someareas, house prices being higher and so on.
2) “Demographic Segregation”, the change from 1971 to 2006 of the population by age between areas becoming more segregated, most quickly from 2001 to 2006. This is where younger people are congregating in areas where there parents/extended families don't live.
3) “Economic Polarisation”, the increase from the situation in 1968 and the 1970s up to the present decade, in rich and poor geographical polarisation in Britain.
4) “Social Fragmentation”, the increase in the degree to which people appear to be socially isolated by area in Britain: data from 1971 up to last measurement in 2001.
5) “Political Disaffection”, the increase in the proportion of the population abstaining in general elections since 1966 and the increased polarisation in this measure most recently (up to 2005 compared with the early 1990s and late 1980s) when abstention rates at general elections are compared between areas over time.
Geography, age, income, loneliness and a lack of interest in where the country is headed. New Zealand needs to consider these issues and work hard to maintain community for the future.
1) Simple “Geographical Inequalities”, such as population increasing more in someareas, house prices being higher and so on.
2) “Demographic Segregation”, the change from 1971 to 2006 of the population by age between areas becoming more segregated, most quickly from 2001 to 2006. This is where younger people are congregating in areas where there parents/extended families don't live.
3) “Economic Polarisation”, the increase from the situation in 1968 and the 1970s up to the present decade, in rich and poor geographical polarisation in Britain.
4) “Social Fragmentation”, the increase in the degree to which people appear to be socially isolated by area in Britain: data from 1971 up to last measurement in 2001.
5) “Political Disaffection”, the increase in the proportion of the population abstaining in general elections since 1966 and the increased polarisation in this measure most recently (up to 2005 compared with the early 1990s and late 1980s) when abstention rates at general elections are compared between areas over time.
Geography, age, income, loneliness and a lack of interest in where the country is headed. New Zealand needs to consider these issues and work hard to maintain community for the future.
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