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A UMNS Feature
By Susan Passi-Klaus*
3:00 P.M. EST Sept. 24, 2010
Around Christmas 2009, Sally Dyck, holed herself up in her small,
but comfortable home office and with the cold and snow of a Midwest
winter as her backdrop wrote the first draft of “A Faithful Heart ...
Daily Guide for Joyful Living.”
But what brought her to her writing hideaway?
Prospective pastors often asked the Minnesota bishop what the church
was looking for in clergy. She always responded by listing
characteristics her cabinet and conference’s Board of Ordained Ministry
developed such as passionate, called, holy, equipped, joyful, loving,
learning and authentic. Then she realized these same attributes applied
to everyday Christians who were looking for ways to grow their
spiritual lives. Soon, with a nudge from Abingdon Press, the idea for a book was born.
“A Faithful Heart”
provides a day-by-day walk through eight weeks of study and
reflection. Every week has a different theme and challenge. Each day has
a Scripture reading and meditation. At week’s end, the reader may
reflect by answering questions about his or her personal reading
experiences. Although the book is formatted for individuals, a separate
leader’s guide is available for small-group studies.
Using Mary, the mother of Jesus, as a theological thread throughout
the book and an example of someone with a faithful heart, Dyck invites
the reader to get to know this biblical character “beyond the Nativity
set.”She hopes modern-day women can relate to her.
“She was a learning, growing follower of Jesus,” Dyck said. “I
believe Mary was called to bear Christ into the world. But then we are
all called to bear Christ in the world. We just do it in different ways.
I think she’s an example of what we’re all called to be.”
Featured below are excerpts from a recent conversation with Bishop Sally Dyck.
How do you recognize someone who has a faithful heart?
Someone with a faithful heart: seeks to live authentically, joyfully,
connected with others—understanding each day is a new opportunity to
learn more about God and one’s neighbor. And when we do that, even when
it’s uncomfortable, it does give us long-lasting joy.
In the book, you make a distinction between “joyful” and “happy” living. Can you explain the difference?
I’m sure we use the words interchangeably, but joy is really a
condition of faith. Even in the midst of life’s adversity, we
experience joy as opposed to happiness. For instance, when a community
surrounds you when your loved one is dying or has died, then you have a
sense of peace that in spite of the uncertainty and adversity, you can
keep going. You may feel joy in that, and that is a faith condition.
It’s different from just “things are going well, and therefore I am
happy.” I think some of the things we think will make us happy — and
maybe even do make us happy — aren’t really the things that last. They
aren’t the things that bring true joy.
Are detours ever a part of God’s plan or will for our lives?
Every detour, every little twist and turn that comes along — even if
we did it to ourselves — is all grist for the mill. It can help smooth
some of our rough edges or cause us to trust in God or help us to see
life differently because we went there. So everything’s kind of
redeemable when you put it in the context that God never abandons us.
Explain the difference between having a purpose to our lives and having a specific calling.
I think a lot of us can define what our purpose is. It might be to
make a lot of money, or have a particular career, or whatever. But a
calling is a condition of faith. You have a sense that God is part of
your calling. It’s not about us. It’s about what we are living to do for
God. And I think that’s a little bit different from a purpose.
So many of us struggle with the ordinariness of life — the
bill paying, the routines, the just getting by — that the concept of
offering our everyday, ordinary life to God (as you suggest in the
book) seems so lackluster. Is God satisfied with that?
What we do forget is that in our ordinary life, as it says in Romans
12, you know, our sleeping, eating, going to work, walking around
life, etc. is what we are called to place before God as an offering.
That’s where we begin. We must realize everything we do can be an
offering to God. It matters how we do it, how we go about our business,
the kind of attitude we carry, the way we treat others. All those
things are a part of who we are as followers of Jesus. How we go about
our everyday, ordinary lives makes a difference, not only to us, but
also to the people around us.
What things work against us living joyfully?
One thing that is counterproductive is when we compartmentalize our
lives so that God is about this and not about that. We think this is
sacred, but this is secular or this is of a spiritual life, but this
isn’t. Another thing that works against living a full, faithful
and joyful life is something I define as “functional atheism.” That’s
when we rely on ourselves and our own power, strength and ability and
fail to recognize that God is part of everything. I also think that
when people stop growing, when they have the arrestment of faith
development and don’t continue to stretch, then it works against our
faith.
Purchase a copy of “A Faithful Heart” from Cokesbury online.
*Passi-Klaus is a staff writer on the Public Information Team at United Methodist Communications.
Contact: Press Center, (615) 742-5406 or presscenter@umcom.org.
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