This week Britton and I celebrated 30 years of marriage. Over the years I’ve come to realize that if it wasn’t for Britton in my life, I would eat the same food all the time, go to the same places every week, and do the same thing day after day. I came to realize this several years ago when Britton was traveling regularly on business.   

When Britton travels, the first thing I do is go to the store and stock up on the staples. Eggs, bacon, cheese, tortilla shells, and if I’m feeling fancy, some shallots. There’s nothing I like more than scrambled eggs and bacon in a toasted tortilla. When Britton is away, I eat them three times a day…seriously, I love them that much. After a week of this a few years ago, I came to the realization that I’m a creature of habit – I do the same thing over and over again. Do you? 

When Britton is home, she pushes me to try new things, go to new places, and break out of my habits. On one of our first dates 31 years ago, she pushed me to eat broccoli, and I liked it! She’s gotten me to eat black bean soup (didn’t like that) and lentil stew (I do like that). She’s also gotten me to hike a mountain and tour the underground sidewalks of Seattle, things I wouldn’t do on my own. While I tend to be a creature of habit, I’ve found that when Britton invites me to break those habits, life is better.  Is there someone in your life that invites you to break habits? 

Jesus invites us to break out of our habits. Jesus invites us to live differently than how we normally do. The problem is that we are creatures of habit. We find comfort in the known. What Jesus is inviting us into is often different, unknown, and even uncomfortable.  Yet, if we’ll listen to Jesus’ invitation and response, we’ll discover that life is better his way. To do this, to live as Jesus envisions, we are going to have to break some habits. We are going to have to let go of some ways of viewing the world and doing things to which we have grown accustomed, maybe even love. To live as Jesus envisions means embracing a brand-new way of living. 

This week, I want to invite you to join us as we look at Luke 6:37-42 and discover a brand-new way of seeing ourselves and the people around us. I hope you’ll join us as we continue to discover that the Jesus way is the best way to live.   

See you Sunday, 

Pastor Kirk 

PS…The Board of Elders of Living Hope are inviting the membership of Living Hope to consider a change in our governance to allow both women and men to serve on the Board of Elders. A vote of the membership on this matter will take place on May 26 at 7 pm. In preparation for this vote, all members are asked to participate in a Discernment Gathering. Please visit mylivinghope.ca/governance-change to sign up.