It's not often that I post other people's stuff, but this video was just too good not to share. Reminds me of the "mission statement" from Bob Goff's Love Does. Be awesome.
Enjoy! And pass along the encouragement! Be awesome!
Sunday, January 27, 2013
Monday, January 21, 2013
An almost perfect "church" day
Wow, it's been a while since I last blogged. For those of you following us on this journey, I apologize for the radio silence. I have hopes and new resolve to be more consistent in my posts.
A small group of us have been on this "church" journey for almost a year now. It seems unbelievable that it has been that long, but it indeed has. I feel like we've finally begun to turn a little bit of a corner. We decided a little while ago that it was time for us to expand our vision and begin to invite new people into our faith community. We've been very hesitant to do so, primarily due to the fact that we really didn't know where we were going, so why would we invite others into our uncertainty?
Yesterday was the first morning of our "growth." We had three "new-to-us" families that showed up at our house for a morning of worship, teaching, communion and prayer. I listened as our children on the "front row" sang at the top of their lungs that "Our God's not dead; he's surely alive." We shared about our wrestlings with grace and forgiveness and service. We prayed prayers of thanks for the blessings in our lives. Whereas for most of my church-going life, I was always concerned about what time it was so that we didn't offend anyone by gathering for too long, I had no idea what time it was, nor how long we had been there. It is a glorious feeling!
We parted ways and then made plans to get back together in the evening for a family game night. After an afternoon of football, we gathered back together at a friend's house for pizza, dominoes, Monopoly, more football, laughter, and community. Our "senior member" schooled us in dominoes. We told stories of mission trips past. We laughed at the Pintrest acumen of one of our male friends. Our kids watched movies together. It was a beautiful night.
I'm not sure we're much closer to understanding our "mission" and "strategy" than we were a year ago. But we've started to spread our wings and try some new things. We've begun to believe that a vital element of the spiritual life is that it is lived together, in community and on mission. And I couldn't be more grateful that God has brought together this little group that we call the 8th Day Collective. At least for one Sunday, it felt like everything was just perfect.
A small group of us have been on this "church" journey for almost a year now. It seems unbelievable that it has been that long, but it indeed has. I feel like we've finally begun to turn a little bit of a corner. We decided a little while ago that it was time for us to expand our vision and begin to invite new people into our faith community. We've been very hesitant to do so, primarily due to the fact that we really didn't know where we were going, so why would we invite others into our uncertainty?
Yesterday was the first morning of our "growth." We had three "new-to-us" families that showed up at our house for a morning of worship, teaching, communion and prayer. I listened as our children on the "front row" sang at the top of their lungs that "Our God's not dead; he's surely alive." We shared about our wrestlings with grace and forgiveness and service. We prayed prayers of thanks for the blessings in our lives. Whereas for most of my church-going life, I was always concerned about what time it was so that we didn't offend anyone by gathering for too long, I had no idea what time it was, nor how long we had been there. It is a glorious feeling!
We parted ways and then made plans to get back together in the evening for a family game night. After an afternoon of football, we gathered back together at a friend's house for pizza, dominoes, Monopoly, more football, laughter, and community. Our "senior member" schooled us in dominoes. We told stories of mission trips past. We laughed at the Pintrest acumen of one of our male friends. Our kids watched movies together. It was a beautiful night.
I'm not sure we're much closer to understanding our "mission" and "strategy" than we were a year ago. But we've started to spread our wings and try some new things. We've begun to believe that a vital element of the spiritual life is that it is lived together, in community and on mission. And I couldn't be more grateful that God has brought together this little group that we call the 8th Day Collective. At least for one Sunday, it felt like everything was just perfect.
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