EPISODE 3A SERIES BY SPIRIT OF INVITATION

Some Hebrew poets describe the heavens as a kind of curtain stretched out by enormous hands.

I like to image that if we could go to the other side of that curtain, we'd find joy.

 Have you seen glimpses of this joy in creation?

When I really enjoy something, I want to share it with other people.

And then, out of nowhere, we see this plane on the horizon… This is a waterbomber, and it's going to come back. And I think to myself, if it's coming back - I could chase it. So in a moment of sheer insanity, that's exactly what I do. It was this incredible, surreal moment of pure joy. So I did what anybody would do, I went straight back to the dock and I said to my friends, you've gotta try this. Because that's what joy does.It expands.It just begs to be shared.

It’s this joy that has led me to invite people in.

And not only is it fun, you’re swept up in this thing that’s

bigger than you… 

There’s a call that resonates, it’s the opportunity to make this big

and beautiful thing together, and all of a sudden you’re tapped into this bigger

thing, and it’s a part of you and its beyond you and it’s something that you want to

invite others into.

Have you ever experienced joy like this? Didn't you want to share it?

Didn’t you want that joy to just multiply?

The force behind creation itself is on the move again, expanding, and gathering

people up into life itself.

That’s exactly how Jesus talks about the Kingdom of God.

If we remember those stories of joy that we have, we'd also remember something about why it's so important that we share that joy with others. What would happen if we took a moment to remember who we are and what we've been invited into? What would happen if the good news of Jesus really felt like good news again? What would happen if we could tap into that big, beautiful, expansive spirit through which everything in the world was made? If we did that, we'd have learned something really important about what it means to engage in genuine invitation.

Invitation like that is too busy jumping up and down, caught up in the joy of something that's just too good to not be shared.

"God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good."Genesis 1:31 nrsv

"What is the kingdom of God like? And to what should I compare it?

It is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in the garden; it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the

air made nests in its branches."Luke 13:18-19 nrsv

Spirit of Invitation, Invited, the Spirit of Invitation Logo, and the Diocesan Logo copyrighted by The Incorporated Synod

of the Diocese of Toronto, 2014. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations from the New Revised Standard Version Bible,

copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United

States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

For more information, visit www.spiritofinvitation.com or send us an email at info@spiritofinvitation.com

Spirit of Invitation gratefully acknowledges the financial support of the Diocese of Toronto through

the Our Faith Our Hope program.

Invited is a series of short films that seek to explore what it means to engage in genuine, Christian invitation. We begin with the conviction that invitation is at the very heart of the Gospel – that Jesus invites each one of us to come and follow him, and being an invitational people is at the very core of our identity as Christians. From there, we offer thoughts, images and dreams – and we hope that you’ll join the conversation.  

Joy explores the way that joy grows and spreads. Built into the fabric of the universe is the joy of God the creator, and when we catch a glimpse of something amazing, the truth is that we can’t help but share it with others. What if this is where invitation really comes from - the kind of excitement that’s too busy jumping up and down to be worried about expectations and programs and church attendance. Because joy expands, inviting everyone in.