Celebrate Wesleyan Church

The Wesleyan Church is a protestant, evangelical, holiness denomination. The Wesleyan church was originally part of the Methodist Church but split from it in the mid 1800's, due to disagreement about sanctification -- the process by which people become more holy. The church took its name after John Wesley the founder of the Methodist church. A fundamental teaching of the faith is, "a victorious Christian life is possible for all believers through the experience of both forgiveness of sins and the filling of the Holy Spirit in our lives." There are just a few Wesleyan Churches in Albuquerque. 

This past Sunday, I attended Celebrate Wesleyan Church's 10:45 service. Reverend John Bubbico conducted the service. It started with singing, a call to the altar, and prayers. Then Rev. Bubbico gave a very well prepared and moving sermon based on Romans 8:28

"All things work together for the good of those who love God."

Rev. Bubbico preached about the difficult times in life and how to not close yourself off from God during these times. He talked about using moments of grief and crisis as an opportunity to grow, to strengthen your relationship with God, and could even serve as some of life's best lessons. He talked about how attitudes are the biggest factor in determining how these moments affect you. He said, "Your attitude in life, affects your spiritual altitude." He also discussed the common pitfalls in how people choose to face life's challenges:

• Self Pity - Asking God "Why Me?" and soliciting pity about your circumstances from others
• Rebelling - Getting angry and trying to fight back against the sorrow or challenges you are facing - as if getting mad at God will really change things
• Breaking Through - Using the grief or sorrow for creating something good in your life. Always looking for the lesson or the good in the hard times.  

He encouraged us to put our Faith in God, because God has a way of pulling together the broken pieces and sculpting them into a beautiful new creation. 

It was a simple service, but very good insight into the Word of God. An elderly couple invited me to have lunch with them but I already had plans ♡♡ Very Sweet.  

OPEN YOUR MINDS AND HEARTS TO THE SPIRIT OF GOD. 

THANK YOU Celebrate Wesleyan Church for such a great and inspiring service and sermon. 

United Pentecostal Church

United Pentecostal Church was formed in 1945 by the merger of the Pentecostal Church Incorporated and the Pentecostal Assemblies of Jesus Christ and originally emerged out of the Pentecostal movement of Azusa Street Revival in Los Angeles and later Topeka, Kansas. Pentecostal faiths believe Miraculous Works of the Holy Spirit and that the Holy Spirit takes a hold of a person and they should express it by singing, dancing, jumping, and other movements. 

I attended the 2pm service at the New Life United Pentecostal Church 

The Mission of the New Life Church is to "exalt God through heartfelt sincere worship,  bible-based teaching, and anointed preaching." The whole service was conducted in praise - first singing praise, then prayer and healing, a sermon full of the praise of God, then they concluding the service with more healing prayers. In the true pentecostal vein, the members of the church were very vocal - speaking in tongues, praying out loud, singing joyfully. Some of them jumped up and down and ran around. They were very excited about the time they spent in prayer and praise. It was by far the most spirited pentecostal service that I have attended. Their healing is done by the laying of hands on each other, anointing with oil, and speaking tongues over one another. 

This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit. ~ 1 Corinthians 2:13

Pastor Steven Hamilton gave an exuberant sermon. He showed a great humility for his faith and God's will. He encouraged us to always go to God for direction and spoke of not holding the words of ministers or any man above the words of God. He asked if we have surrendered our Affection, Intellect, and Will to God?  Only those who have surrendered to God will hear the guiding voice of God. 

"Only God can stop your crash course to Destruction."  - Pastor Hamilton

The members showed a great dedication to their faith and humbleness to the Lord. 

Note: Pentecostal women generally wear skirts and wear their hair up even thought there is no official rule on that. Pentecostal women do not cut their hair so that is the reason so many of them wear it up. 

THANK YOU New Life United Pentecostal Church for sharing your Spirit Filled worship with me. 

Mystics ~ Center of Light

Mysticism is not a religion, it is rather a way to practice a certain religion. Mysticism is defined as distinctive practices, discourses, texts, institutions, traditions, and experiences aimed at human transformation, it is expressed differently in each religion.  There are mystics in Christianity, but there is also Judaism mysticism called Kaballah. Muslim mystics are Sufi. 

Christian Mysticism is the "spiritual process of coming into the experience of God at the center of one’s being." Mystics do this through practices of meditation, prayer and being in relationship with God on a daily basis, all in an attempt to know God with a personal relationship. Famous Christian mystics are St. Francis of Assisi and St. Catherine of Siena. 

Centers of Light otherwise called Order of Christ Sophia, are a Christian Mysticism self proclaimed Holy Order with multiple centers around the United States. They "teach, share, and cultivate spirituality through sacraments, meditation, seminars, classes, and practical instruction" and are unique to other denominations that they believe Jesus represents the masculine aspect of God and Mary represents the feminine aspect of God. The Order's Co-Founder, Peter Bowes, left in 2012 and the group saw a major shift to a more inclusive and collaborative spiritual community. 

I attended the Santa Fe Center of Light Church's 9:30 am service. 

The center was in a small commercial area in a suburb of Santa Fe. There was a small group. They start out with a 30 minute guided meditation. There were two licensed ministers who performed the service. There were hymns sung, then a reading from the bible. 

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.         ~ Mark 12:30

One of the ministers, Leah Johnson, gave a sermon from The Poem of the Man God which is a text that was a forbidden text by the Vatican until the 1990's. It is an Italian nun, Maria Valtorta's, interpretation of the Gospels. The story told was one that compares Mother Mary to Lilies of the Valley with her humility. Then she talked to the two models that spirituality often speaks of - Wholeness and Perfection. The Wholeness approach is often referred to as the feminine model - inclusion, cooperation, and acceptance of all aspects of life and the world as some level. The Perfection model, often considered more the masculine of the two focuses on achievements, competition, and a results oriented approach. Johnson spoke of how the two should both be integrated and honored in spiritual studies. 

There was then Communion which everyone was welcome to receive regardless of their affiliations or beliefs. They first prayed over the wafers and wine. Their prayers, even the Lord's Prayer, incorporate Mary into them. The way they hold the Mother Mary in esteem and include her in their rituals and prayers, reminded me of some catholic practices. After the service, the members hugged one another. 

They offer a variety of classes, meditation times, and social events. 

THANK YOU Center of Light Church for allowing me to share your service with you.