SacredSpaceBoise

Long Live the Difference

noreply@blogger.com (Tom Rasmussen) — Sat, 24 Apr 2010 05:55:00 +0000

Vive la difference! "long live the difference"

We all know that women and men are different, even beyond the obvious anatomy. But, precisely how are they different, and how do we recognize the differences in marriage?
To explore these questions, we look to perhaps an unlikely text, God’s judgments against Adam and Eve. The nature of these unique curses can reveal some of the different ways men and women respond to life. (This does not imply that differences are a result of the “fall.” Genesis 2 implies that the humanity as maleness was incomplete, that is, did not bear the image of God as fully as possible. Therefore, though gender differences were already part of humanity, the story of the “fall” exposes how they became magnified East of Eden.)

Genesis 3:16-19 (New Living Translation)

Then he said to the woman,

“I will sharpen the pain of your pregnancy, and in pain you will give birth. And you will desire to control your husband, but he will rule over you.”

And to the man he said,

“Since you listened to your wife and ate from the tree whose fruit I commanded you not to eat, the ground is cursed because of you. All your life you will struggle to scratch a living from it. It will grow thorns and thistles for you, though you will eat of its grains. By the sweat of your brow will you have food to eat until you return to the ground from which you were made. For you were made from dust, and to dust you will return.”

As we read this passage, we need to take the curse beyond merely the literal into categories which can give us meaning for our life. First, we look at the words to Eve.

“I will sharpen the pain of your pregnancy, and in pain you will give birth. And you will desire to control your husband, but he will rule over you.”

Beyond the literal physical pain referred to, we see that Eve’s curse is in regards to her closest relationships; husband and children. So the pain of birth is also a metaphor for the pain of the child growing up and leaving home. It is the pain of empty nesting. It is the pain of a child taking a self destructive path. The desire to control or consume her husband is met with the husband’s reluctance to be controlled and his move to rule or dominate her. In short, the woman’s curse is loneliness in relationship.

Next we look at the words to the Adam.

…the ground is cursed because of you. All your life you will struggle to scratch a living from it. It will grow thorns and thistles for you, though you will eat of its grains. By the sweat of your brow will you have food to eat until you return to the ground from which you were made. For you were made from dust, and to dust you will return.”

Even though most of us don’t actually scratch a living from ground that begrudgingly gives up its fruit, we may be quite familiar with the feeling that no matter what we do today, we will do it again tomorrow. We experience the hard earned paycheck that seems to buy less than we think it should. But worst of all, the ground that we come from and scratch a living from still seems to win in the end. In short, the man’s curse is the futility of work.

Vive La Difference

noreply@blogger.com (Lorene) — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 01:29:00 +0000

“I am a man and you are a woman.

I can’t think of a better arrangement.” ~ Groucho Marx

It doesn’t take a neuroscientist or medical doctor to tell us that men and women are different. Yet, when it comes to relating to our spouse, sometimes we are completely surprised to find out they don’t think or respond the same way we do.

Couples who acknowledge and appreciate their differences will improve their chances of averting conflict, creating synergy, and increase their level of intimacy. Embracing the gender gap can be a life-long pursuit of happiness weaved with challenges and opportunities.

Beginning Tuesday, April 20, we will boldly explore scripture, science, culture, and experience, to assist couples in their efforts to bridge the gender gap.

The purpose of this six-week interactive class is to help you recognize, understand, and enjoy how your spouse, by virtue of being the opposite sex, thinks, feels, and behaves differently than you do. . .and to that we say . . . vive la difference!

Ultimate Loyalty

noreply@blogger.com (Lorene) — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 22:39:00 +0000

As we finished up the six weeks of study, we looked at the idea being loyal to one another above all others. Most folks would agree that you should be more loyal to the one you committed your life to in marriage, but this also means being more loyal to your spouse than your own self. For me this means, I must esteem Tom more than myself.

If I want to have the kind of marriage that represents the whole person of the Trinity, than I will be more committed to Tom, the person, than I am the marriage. Do not read this wrong! I need to be committed to my marriage (and I am) but not more than I am to Tom, the person.

How is that possible? Well, if I'm committed to my marriage more than I am Tom, then I will keep peace at all cost. I will not risk the chance of making our marriage uncomfortable by engaging or addressing things that come up and that need our attention as a couple.

No doubt you know a couple or two who were committed to their marriages more than they were to each other. You may even know a couple who has been married for 20, 30 or 50 years but they live in a two-story house. He has his story and she has her story! They have managed to live all that time without fully entering into their relationship because of the fear of being naked and ashamed.

Our marriages can be a "WiLd ADvenTure" filled with opportunities to fail forward and get to know each other. To have Ultimate Loyalty to your spouse is to risk, repent, and experience a fresh taste of the resurrection.

Loving, Leaving, and Loyalties

noreply@blogger.com (Lorene) — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 01:33:00 +0000

Here we are, February 7th, Chapter 3, and we are engaged in wrestling with the idea of leaving our family of origin and creating loving loyalties with our spouse. Even though we've been married for 28+ years, Tom and I find this to be a daily activity.

How can we show loyalty/respect to our spouse whether brand new married or married since the womb?
b Go to your spouse first with the "exciting" news of the day instead of your friend
b Ask your spouse first for advice instead of a family member or old friend
b Consider your spouse's feeling primarily over those of family or friends

Although there are not any shortcuts or easy answers to loving, leaving, or loyalties there is a lifetime engagement of wrestling with these crucial ideas.

And for me, that part of the fun!

To My Fellow Monarchs

noreply@blogger.com (Lorene) — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 01:18:00 +0000

What does it mean to be a Divine Image-bearer? Did you know you are "crowned with glory and honor?" Have you ever thought of yourself as being the king or queen of creation?

Our exploration into Genesis 1:26-31 and Genesis 2:7 brings out some of the most sacred truths of creation and God's original design for His people.

Although He looked at all creation and exclaimed, "it is very good!" It is His people that He took the time to form out of dirt (adam) and breathe life into that makes you and me just "a little lower than Himself." (Psalm 8:5)

It is significant for us to gain a new appreciation for how we are made in the image of God and how we reflect His glory. As kings and queens of creation, God designed us to have a close and intimate relationship with Him. If we would genuinely accepted this bold proposition, think about how we would treat our spouse and others on a regular bases.

Is it hard to think of your spouse (or others) as fellow monarchs? Few of us do, however the imagery of being fellow rulers serves to evoke respect and awe toward others, including our spouse.

"When we look into the face of another, we look into the face of God."

Some Songs Just Say It Best

noreply@blogger.com (Lorene) — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 20:15:00 +0000

I heard "Love Like Crazy" last night on my way to dinner with my husband. I had to smile remembering back some 28 years ago when folks were sure we were crazy for getting married so soon after my high school graduation. I won't argue that there could have been some changes in our timing, but I don't regret the commitment to love like crazy.

Intimate Allies

noreply@blogger.com (Lorene) — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 20:26:00 +0000

"Who wants to endure the tedium of a relationship that is institutional and not romantic?"

On December 28th, 1981, in my childhood home and in front of a room full of family and friends, I said, 'I Do!' to a man who had NO idea what he was getting himself into. With only a few dollars to our name and a lot of starry dreams we set out on an adventure as man and wife.

D Some 28-years later, we are still dreaming. Dr. Allendar states, 'A marriage is no better than the vision we have for one another and the willingness we have to sacrifice for each other, to suffer to see growth.' Although I would not elevate Tom and Lorene Rasmussen as the examples of the perfect couple, I would add that we have continued to share a vision for each other as well as our marriage. If anyone has the formula for a perfect marriage, please don't share it with us because we would very likely ruin for you.

D However, if you would like to journey with us as members of a bigger community, we encourage you to do so. Our vision for SacredSpaceBoise and the Intimate Marriage series we are about to start, gives HOPE that others want more from their marriage then just being institutionalized.

D Just like when we said our vows in a living room so long ago, I look forward to what going to happen in our living room in 2010. Join us!"

Getting Excited

noreply@blogger.com (Lorene) — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 03:54:00 +0000

I am looking forward to getting acquainted with all the new members that will be attending Sacred Space on Tuesday, January 12, 2010. I know the Lord has BIG plans for us as we come together in community.

THE Story

noreply@blogger.com (Tom Rasmussen) — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 02:50:00 +0000

"Creating space to Rest, Wrestle, and Play with God and Others."

God's Love Story

The Bible is God’s Story written down. It was written by human authors in different genres over several hundred years in various cultural contexts. We hold that the authoring, redaction, and canonization of these writings was under the authority and inspiration of God’s Spirit. It tells a true story of the God of the universe and His relationship to humanity. It is not merely instructions for living or moral and ethical code even though we may find these embedded in the story. The Bible story is testimony to God’s most complete revelation to humanity; the person of Jesus Christ.

N.T. Wright suggests that we read the Bible as a play in six acts. This paradigm also serves well to define our beliefs. The six acts tell a story of God’s progressive self revelation.

Act One

In act one we meet the Triune God as Creator. God creates all that exists from nothing and calls it good. Father, Son and Holy Spirit (three persons but one being) are all present at this creative beginning. Embedded in this story is the creation of humanity as male and female. The essentials of who we are as human beings are communicated through this story. We are created in the Image of God as His most beloved creation. We are relational because God is relational; creative because God is creative. Masculine and feminine are distinctive but equal because Father, Son, and Spirit are distinctive but equal.

Act Two
The story continues with sin and evil marring God’s creation. Humanity exercised the free will God created in them to choose life separate from God; a life focused on self. They felt the nakedness of shame and the pain of isolation from God. Humanity and all of creation has continued to live in this state for all of history.

Because of God’s love and mercy, He graciously promised a way back into relationship. God did not undo the sin or restore creation immediately; instead He asked humanity to look to Him in faith and hope for a solution. The rest of the Bible narrative is the story of this solution. We see hints of it in the stories of Cain and Able and Noah.

Act Three
The story intensifies as God chooses Abraham and his descendents, the nation of Israel, to be the conduit for His ultimate solution; a Messiah and deliverer that will make all things new and usher in God’s eternal kingdom. The history, law, wisdom, poetry, and prophecy of Israel weave a tapestry that illustrates God’s character and points toward His coming Messiah.

Act Four
This act represents the focal point of God’s story. It is story of the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ; the final promised solution to humanity’s problem. Jesus comes as God in the flesh. He is the fully God and fully human culmination of all revelation that has gone before; history, prophecy, law, and wisdom.

We begin with the story of His miraculous birth from a virgin; a birth foretold by prophets and proclaimed by angels. The story continues with Jesus’ ministry; His miracles of healing and His teachings. It climaxes with His undeserved but prophesied death on the cross and His burial. However, the story does not end there. It continues with Jesus’ resurrection and His appearance to His astonished followers. This act closes with Jesus ascension into the heavens with a promise to return in the future.

From this part of the story we learn, among many things, that God loves us. He came in the flesh and died on the cross so that the problem of sin would be overcome and we could enjoy a redeemed relationship with Him eternally.

Act Five
This act begins where act four left off; with Jesus’ ascension and establishment of the Church. The story of faith continues as we see the empowering of the church by the Holy Spirit and its spread throughout the world of the first century. It is the ongoing story of the church as Christ’s body being His representative in the world and spreading the good news.

It is in this continuing story that we find ourselves as actors improvising the story from what has gone before. Our script consists of the stories and teachings of Jesus, the journey of the early church as it engaged its own culture, and the back story of Israel’s faltering walk with God. Our director is the Holy Spirit and faithful improvisation requires us to interact creatively with others on stage with us.

Act Six
We have some hints as to what the final act will look like; Christ has promised to return. There will be a final judgment and a resurrection. Jesus will redeem creation making everything new.

We do not how or when the curtain will fall on act five signaling this final chapter of the story. We do know that our task is to occupy this time and space as the church representing Jesus to the world; called to walk by faith, live with love, and wait in hope for Jesus’ promised return.

Contact US

noreply@blogger.com (Tom Rasmussen) — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 02:50:00 +0000

Resources

noreply@blogger.com (Tom Rasmussen) — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 02:42:00 +0000

Resources

Engaging The World

noreply@blogger.com (Tom Rasmussen) — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 02:41:00 +0000

Mission - coming soon!

Intimate Marriage

noreply@blogger.com (Tom Rasmussen) — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 02:40:00 +0000

This winter, beginning on January 12, we will be having a small group study called Intimate Marriage. This curriculum is by Dr. Dan Allender and Dr. Tremper Longman (two of my seminary professors) and highly respected men in the fields of Counseling Psychology and Biblical Studies. According to Allender, the Biblical model of marriage consists of three components; leaving weaving, and cleaving.

Leaving our families of origin.
Weaving the distinctiveness of two persons into one.
Cleaving or maintaining the intimacy of our marriages on a daily basis.