If you asked the question, “what does the world really need right now?”, my answer would not be “another blog”. But my good friend and fellow pastor Les suggested that this year might be a good year for me to keep a weekly journal of what my community and I are experiencing. The suggestion was made because there are people who do not go to Sondays but are still invested in the community at large. And I thank all of you who have invested your time, talents, prayers, and financial support in order to further the cause of Sondays. These investments are not in vain. We see life come from death in our community. We see brokenness transform into wholeness. We see light penetrate darkness. 80% of our community are either homeless and/or addicted, or formerly homeless and/or addicted. So when the Spirit of God brings hope into our community, its easier to spot. When someone breaks free from an addiction by going into the place of surrender, the contrast is stark, and for this we are thankful. Here are some voices in our community. http://vimeo.com/16803755
It’s amazing to think that God has this perfect plan of redemption, and He chooses to use very imperfect people to execute His perfect plan. We used to think we were called to help and teach people who are down and out, at the end of their rope. I guess I still believe that to be true, but I was not prepared for the fact that “those” people have taught me as much or more than I could ever teach them. When Jesus said things like “the first will be last, the last will be first” and “in order to gain your life, you must first lose your life”, its not that I thought those statements were untrue, its just that it was impossible for me to truly grasp the implication of those words. But since the first year of Sondays, back in 2005, I now have experienced the truth of Christ’s words. I have seen that when it comes to life within the Kingdom of God, the realm that Jesus so often spoke of, the ones that are the most overlooked in this kingdom are the first to recognize His Kingdom. This is because they have seen and experienced that this world has very little to offer them.
The rest of us hold on to the things of this world, believing that temporary things will give us lasting peace or joy, and we become addicted to those things. Of course we don’t say or even see it that way. We say that we don’t have addictions, we aren’t drug addicts. But our addictions are much more subtle, and therefore potentially more dangerous. In our community, we call addiction anything we go to in order to feel better other than the Source of all healing. Which means we are addicted to relationships, how we are perceived by others, work, excessive exercise, money, etc...
I would never have said I was addicted to money, I never pursued money, I never needed an expensive car or expensive things. I have given away money even when I didn’t have it to give away. But over the last year when we lost all of our financial “security”, I realized that I was at least addicted to knowing how my mortgage was going to get paid, how my car note and cell phone bill were going to get paid. You may say that that’s just a natural part of life. We all have bills and we have to figure out how to pay those bills. I agree 100%. It is a natural part of life. But when all of those securities have been stripped away (even by one’s own hand), like I have seen with friends in our community, that is when the natural exits the scene and the supernatural enters the scene. It’s a case of Christ’s strength being perfected in our weakness. This makes it easier to understand that the last to get it (in this kingdom) are the first to get it (in the Kingdom of God).
This path doesn’t always feel rewarding, especially when the work I do is coming from my own strength and not His, but when this work becomes a natural expression and outpouring of the love that I receive from God, that in itself is the reward. Its so simple and I make it so complicated. Well, Les, I think this journal or blog or whatever you want to call it might benefit me as much as anyone else, so thanks for the suggestion.
“You’re blessed when you’re at the end of your rope, with less of you there is more of God and His rule.” --Jesus
Matthew 5:3 (the Message) By the way, as an example of what brokenness to wholeness looks like, click on this link so you can see my friend Darla's story. She showed up toward the very beginning of Sondays and has been with us ever since. http://vimeo.com/16707070
