Posts
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Friday, July 23, 2010
25 Things I've Learned in 2 Years
[Tony] It is incredible to think that we have been doing intentional community in Dayton's Bluff for almost two years now. I couldn't begin to try to recapture everything that we have seen, learned, and experienced while we've been here. For me, the last two years have consisted of some of the most profound and transformational experiences of my life. I have grown immensely from who I was when we started and I'm glad that I've grown enough to now realize how much more I have to learn. Nevertheless, I recently sat down and started a list of some of the most important things I have either learned or experienced over the last two years here at Ekklesiah. This list is in no way exhaustive, but its a start. Maybe I'll follow it up with another one soon enough. But, for now, my top 25:
1.We don't have to “bring” God anywhere, God is already there.
2.Love is incredibly disarming and its power should never be underestimated
3.Whether we think we do or not, we all drag around a large bag of stereotypes and biases
4.Becoming aware of our own biases, stereotypes, privileges, and assumptions can be extremely difficult, sometimes painful, but so worth it!
5.Kids just want to be kids... and so do we, lets go find some chalk!
6.Jesus is desperately in love with homosexuals!
7.Community empowers the individual to accomplish more than they ever could on their own
8. We must learn to love by seeking and learning from the heart of God
9.While we learn to love, we will make mistakes. Part of loving is knowing that we will all make mistakes and that love is most powerful when it keeps on loving through them, unconditionally. People are beautiful, no matter how broken.
10.Church is so much more than a group of people who sing songs and listen to a pastor together on Sunday mornings.
11.We all contribute to the brokenness of our world, lets not be so fast to point our fingers at who is “right” and who is “wrong,” instead, lets accept that we've all contributed to the mess and figure out ways to help each other begin rebuilding
12.My most powerful worship experiences, my most intimate interactions with the Holy Spirit, and my most genuine impressions of “church” have come on the streets with hustlers, dealers, thugs, single mothers, addicts, the poor, the marginalized, and the forgotten. Given the number of times this truth is mentioned in scripture, this should surprise no one.
13.Jesus can throw a party that you will never forget.
14.Together, we actively choose what we want our world to look like
15.Always give God his props, he most definitely deserves it! Glory, honor, power, and praise to God!
16.Prayer matters
17.When Jesus says “bear your cross and follow me” he isn't kidding.
18.Let yourself by “interruptable,” most of the time the Spirit moves in ways that we don't expect. You wont regret it.
19.There is nothing more important than our relationship with God and relationships with other people
20.We desperately need each other
21.We are not called to be extraordinary on our own, we are called to be normal and to acknowledge our weaknesses because it is in our weakness that Jesus turns ordinary into extraordinary
22.Jesus is still alive. The Gospels are still good news. And Jesus is restoring everything- right now!
23.A simple life creates more space to be filled by God
24.God could completely restore the world right now if he wanted to, it is a blessing that we don't deserve that he would rather use us to bring forth restoration through relationships with us.
25.We have no idea what we are capable of as a force of truth, love, and restoration in this world: each one of us is wonderfully and fearfully made. Jesus knows we can walk on water. Most of the time we just don't really believe Him.
1.We don't have to “bring” God anywhere, God is already there.
2.Love is incredibly disarming and its power should never be underestimated
3.Whether we think we do or not, we all drag around a large bag of stereotypes and biases
4.Becoming aware of our own biases, stereotypes, privileges, and assumptions can be extremely difficult, sometimes painful, but so worth it!
5.Kids just want to be kids... and so do we, lets go find some chalk!
6.Jesus is desperately in love with homosexuals!
7.Community empowers the individual to accomplish more than they ever could on their own
8. We must learn to love by seeking and learning from the heart of God
9.While we learn to love, we will make mistakes. Part of loving is knowing that we will all make mistakes and that love is most powerful when it keeps on loving through them, unconditionally. People are beautiful, no matter how broken.
10.Church is so much more than a group of people who sing songs and listen to a pastor together on Sunday mornings.
11.We all contribute to the brokenness of our world, lets not be so fast to point our fingers at who is “right” and who is “wrong,” instead, lets accept that we've all contributed to the mess and figure out ways to help each other begin rebuilding
12.My most powerful worship experiences, my most intimate interactions with the Holy Spirit, and my most genuine impressions of “church” have come on the streets with hustlers, dealers, thugs, single mothers, addicts, the poor, the marginalized, and the forgotten. Given the number of times this truth is mentioned in scripture, this should surprise no one.
13.Jesus can throw a party that you will never forget.
14.Together, we actively choose what we want our world to look like
15.Always give God his props, he most definitely deserves it! Glory, honor, power, and praise to God!
16.Prayer matters
17.When Jesus says “bear your cross and follow me” he isn't kidding.
18.Let yourself by “interruptable,” most of the time the Spirit moves in ways that we don't expect. You wont regret it.
19.There is nothing more important than our relationship with God and relationships with other people
20.We desperately need each other
21.We are not called to be extraordinary on our own, we are called to be normal and to acknowledge our weaknesses because it is in our weakness that Jesus turns ordinary into extraordinary
22.Jesus is still alive. The Gospels are still good news. And Jesus is restoring everything- right now!
23.A simple life creates more space to be filled by God
24.God could completely restore the world right now if he wanted to, it is a blessing that we don't deserve that he would rather use us to bring forth restoration through relationships with us.
25.We have no idea what we are capable of as a force of truth, love, and restoration in this world: each one of us is wonderfully and fearfully made. Jesus knows we can walk on water. Most of the time we just don't really believe Him.
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Good News and Ordinary Extraordinary People
[Tony] So, I love my seminary classes because of the things that I get to write about. I recently wrote a paper emphasizing the imperative need to address Christian social ministry within the context of community, arguing that an approach to Christian social ministry that occurs outside of the collective body of believers is inherently extremely limited in its ability to pursue deep, holistic social ministry. Anyway, I want to share the conclusion to this particular paper as it reminded me so much of the gift that God has given to us through the community that has been the heart of Ekklesiah. This is a response to a book by Derrel Watkins- to clarify the mention of the name in the paragraph below. Above all, writing this reminded me of how much I have fallen in love with the people I get to "do" community with, share in Christ with, and live out good news of eternal life that starts now with. Enjoy!
"To be a Christian is to believe that both Christ and the Gospels are still alive and relevant. The “good news” of Christ is not simply news of life after death, instead it is news of life before death, heaven on earth. It is news that through Christ, God is currently establishing His kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. The “good news” is news that is relevant now. Christian social ministry must see itself as an element of Christ's community of believers. As Christians, we are all called to collectively share the burden of “social ministry” however, it must also be understood that “social ministry” refers to the social repercussions of many living within the world but not of it, identifying themselves as the living body of Christ who is still bringing good news to the poor, is still proclaiming liberties to the captives, still recovering the sight of the blind, still setting at liberty those who are oppressed, and still proclaiming the year of the Lord's favor. The Christian community, like Jesus' original disciples, is not called to be extraordinary on its own, limited by a prerequisite of ability and skill. Instead, those within the community are called to be ordinary men and women made extraordinary through Christ. Watkins fails to acknowledge that within the single entity of the Christian community, whether we are marked by prolific need or by a substantial ability to give generously, we are all called to participate in social ministry. Social ministry within the Christian community perceives the least within it, the “client,” as the greatest asset. The “client” is the identity of Christ, for it is in the presence of the “client” that we interact most intimately with the presence of Christ."
"To be a Christian is to believe that both Christ and the Gospels are still alive and relevant. The “good news” of Christ is not simply news of life after death, instead it is news of life before death, heaven on earth. It is news that through Christ, God is currently establishing His kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. The “good news” is news that is relevant now. Christian social ministry must see itself as an element of Christ's community of believers. As Christians, we are all called to collectively share the burden of “social ministry” however, it must also be understood that “social ministry” refers to the social repercussions of many living within the world but not of it, identifying themselves as the living body of Christ who is still bringing good news to the poor, is still proclaiming liberties to the captives, still recovering the sight of the blind, still setting at liberty those who are oppressed, and still proclaiming the year of the Lord's favor. The Christian community, like Jesus' original disciples, is not called to be extraordinary on its own, limited by a prerequisite of ability and skill. Instead, those within the community are called to be ordinary men and women made extraordinary through Christ. Watkins fails to acknowledge that within the single entity of the Christian community, whether we are marked by prolific need or by a substantial ability to give generously, we are all called to participate in social ministry. Social ministry within the Christian community perceives the least within it, the “client,” as the greatest asset. The “client” is the identity of Christ, for it is in the presence of the “client” that we interact most intimately with the presence of Christ."
Thursday, July 8, 2010
PRAYER REQUESTS
summer brings the opportunity to get moving often and rapidly. we merely wanted to share some items with our community in hopes that as a larger group we can be lifting up one another.
Please Pray for the interactions that Kaleb Greene has on a daily basis at Big Sandy Camp. May strength be provided to him [in all forms] and may his actions be a reflection of Jesus.
Please Pray for Ryan's journey in Thailand. May Ryan's heart be altered in ways that he will never be the same again after these experiences in Thailand.
Colton Long has joined the house for this summer season. We Pray for the opportunities he has during his internship at the MN Court of Appeals and also hope he is blessed by his short stay @ Ekklesiah.
Finally, Please pray for Ekklesiah in general. An large, long transition phase is already underway. Right now we really don't know what the end of the transition looks like. But we ask for prayer for what this transition means for us individually and for the community in totality. Shalom.
summer brings the opportunity to get moving often and rapidly. we merely wanted to share some items with our community in hopes that as a larger group we can be lifting up one another.
Please Pray for the interactions that Kaleb Greene has on a daily basis at Big Sandy Camp. May strength be provided to him [in all forms] and may his actions be a reflection of Jesus.
Please Pray for Ryan's journey in Thailand. May Ryan's heart be altered in ways that he will never be the same again after these experiences in Thailand.
Colton Long has joined the house for this summer season. We Pray for the opportunities he has during his internship at the MN Court of Appeals and also hope he is blessed by his short stay @ Ekklesiah.
Finally, Please pray for Ekklesiah in general. An large, long transition phase is already underway. Right now we really don't know what the end of the transition looks like. But we ask for prayer for what this transition means for us individually and for the community in totality. Shalom.
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