The Homecoming

It's been a long awaited day, the arrival of our middle daughter Bonnie home from 5 months in Guatemala. We bought the biggest balloon we could find to welcome her home, and filled the house with beautiful summer flowers. Our house is brighter when Bonnie is in it, she brings such joy to all of us.

Bonnie went to YWAM, which stands for Youth with a Mission, in Gutatemala as a pre-requisite for her next training: to become a midwife for 3rd world countries. This combines all of Bonnie's passions: the poor, other cultures and mothers and babies.

She loved Guatemala. She loved the people, the culture and the experience of living in South America for the second time (she also spent a year in Ecquador as a freshman in college.) Bonnie was able to live with people from many different places: Canada, Austrailia, El Salvador and others. They did their studies both in Spanish and English, so her Spanish increased dramatically.

Bonnie is born to live in other cultures. She is at ease with people different from herself. She loves the poor and the disenfranchised. She cares about justice and involves herself in ways to bring justice.

Yesterday we met with a representative from IJM: International Justice Mission. IJM is one of the leaders in addressing human trafficking. I saw Bonnie's face light up when she spoke about some of her experiences in being a part of the solution, and most fully when we were told that sex trafficking for minors is almost non-existant now in Cambodia. Bonnie wrote a paper on that very subject in college and has committed herself to pray for freedom ever since.

I know that Bonnie is on loan to us, she has been since birth. God entrusted her to us so that we would be good stewards of her life: giving her encouragement and permission to follow her passions, even if it means to places that are at times rather disconcerting. Bill and I look forward to the next year that Bonnie will be home before she leaves for Austrailia for midwifery training, and then we will do it again: put her on the plane to a far away place to follow her passions and the very unique and specific dream that God planted within her since birth.

Detox from Church-Part 4: Come to the Table Together

One of the big questions for Missio Lux is "What are you going to do with the children?" It has been a stumbling block for many families in their willingness to engage the lifestyle of Missio Lux. It seems that we have been conditioned to believe that our families are meant to be segmented.

But, I wonder, is that really what God intended?

If it is, why does Jesus tell everyone around him, especially the disciples, that he is never too busy for a child?
If it is, why did God make such a big deal that parents needed to train their children up in the ways of the Lord?

Let's dream about how it can be at the table. Have you ever sat next to a child during a meal that isn't your own? Have you watched them and the amusing things they do? Have you ever heard the funny joke from a child that makes absolutely no sense, but they laugh and laugh, until everyone else is laughing too? Have you ever had the chance to affirm a child, watching their eyes water from the praise?

We need each other. Adults take one another way too seriously. Children bring joy and laughter, yes, also a different pace. Perhaps we can adapt to how children learn by having lots of movement and song and a short focus.

My favorite conversation from last week was with a young man in Missio Lux. His name is Daniel. He is 10 years old, but the wisdom he carries is light years beyond his age. I asked him what he was reading in the Bible and he told me that he had just finished Revelations. We had a fascinating conversation, one that left me feeling like I had eaten a meal at the most fabulous restaurant in Seattle.

Children are a gift and a blessing. Part of what can happen as we take the step away from the traditional church that sends them to Sunday School is remembering what it is like to have interaction and relationship with people of all ages and lifestages.

Let's come to the table for a rich and satisfying meal!

Detox from Church--Part 3: Come to the Table

As I move away from the busyness of being at church, more and more I can experience Jesus' call to "Come to the Table." This phrase has been remuniating in my mind over and over, and making something deep within me long for more of it.

What does "Come to the Table" mean?

What is Jesus saying in his invitation to us to come?

He invited his disciples to come to the Passover table with him before his arrest. They, of course, didn't know what was coming as they gathered around the table, experiencing Jesus' presence, his laughter, his love, and his servanthood as he washed their feet.

But, I know that when the disciples looked back on that night, they knew that they had been invited to the table with Jesus and the experience totally shaped how the early Christians lived.

I keep going back to Acts over and over. Today I read it again (Acts 2) "they met in homes for the Lord's Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generousity." The Message says that the early Christians "committed themselves to the apostles teaching, the life together, the common meal, and the prayers." Right after that it states, "they worshipped in the Temple followed by meals at home, every meal a celebration, exuberant and joyful.... People in general liked what they saw."

There it is: the DNA of the early church in action.

They made being together a huge priority, in fact, they met together every day.

They did life together. They ate in one another's homes, blessing the home by their very presence in it.

They had fun together--laughing from the deep place in their bellies.

People on the outside saw what they had, and wanted it.

This is a far cry from many of the meals I've shared with other believers. They most often took place in the fellowship hall of the church, and everyone just hoped that by the time they made it through the line, there would be enough food. Most times, the people were gathered around an event, a missions talk, or a new members class, or the end of a Sunday School class.

We've substituted organizational gathering for the real thing: community, authentic friendship, living life together.

We've been so busy doing the organizational gathering that we've forgotten how to "live life together."

There's been a couple of people in the Missio Lux communities that have questioned, "Why do we have to eat a meal together? It makes it take so long--we could really shorten things up if we skipped the meal."

But, they are missing the point. The point is the meal. We are invited to the table with Jesus and with one another. This is the heart of what Jesus did. He hung out with people, going to parties, weddings, celebrations. Many of his best teachings happened in the context of the meal.

There's so much more that I can say about this. Jesus keeps calling me deeper into as I explore what it can be. I hope that you are hearing and responding to his invitation to "Join him at the table" but wait, don't forget to invite your friends, for they are desperate to come too!

Detox from Church, Part 2

I've been thinking a lot about the comment that Jason Zahariades made in his paper, "Detoxing from Church." He says, "This may sound harsh, but in order to BE the church, we need to LEAVE the church."

At first glance, this is extremely offensive. Doesn't Jesus tell us that we need to become part of the Body of Christ? Yes, he does. But, he doesn't tell us that in order to follow him, we need to follow the religious structure of the day. In fact, this is the very thing that he came to confront. The Pharisees were keeping people so busy following their rules (they had over 400 just for the Sabbath alone) that the people didn't experience the relationship with God, the very reason for which they were created.

God came to earth to pursue us. He wants to know us, and wants us to know him. The only way to do this is through relationship, both with him and with one another. I don't think that we can truly experience earthly relationships the way that he intends for us unless we first experience relationship with God.

We know that all relationships take time. They can't be microwaved--they need to bake in the oven, so that we smell the sweet aroma of baking bread and are filled through experiencing it.

So, when we remove ourselves from the constant busyness of life in church, what is left?

What do we do to move toward God?

Part of the answer involves finding out what thrills us, and awakens our heart.

Is it being out on a boat on a sunny day?

Is it having a Starbucks coffee with a friend?

Is it working in our Garden, experiencing the joy of seeing the beauty of nature come forth (this is easy to do in Seattle).

Is it playing with children and seeing the world through their eyes?

Perhaps it is opening the Bible and letting the Creators' Words speak to us.

Perhaps it is enjoying the fresh wind of the Holy Spirit sweep across our face.

Perhaps it is going to serve in a homeless shelter, offering ourselves for the sake of others.

Whatever it is, let's find it.

Let's find those ways to reconnect, or connect for the first time, with the One who Created us, and who adores us.

Let's find ways to understand what it is to BE the church, through first finding a way to know the One who created the Church.

Detox from Church

There's a website called "the off ramp" that is written by two former Vinyard pastors. They left their positions because they realized that working on the staff of a large church was toxic to their faith. They didn't realize it right away, it took some time away from it to get their perspective, but once they did, they knew that they had been sucked into a lifestyle that was often at odds with what Jesus asked them to do.

I've had similar conversations with people in my own life. One person remarked after they had been away from their church position that "I could actually hear the Holy Spirit speaking to me again." Another person I spoke to said that after several years of worship leading in a very large church, they knew they had lost their true calling.

Recently a woman that is part of Missio Lux told me that once she stopped participating at our parent church, she began to have connection with Jesus that looked very different than what she had experienced while in church.

Is it possible that we have allowed our worship to be more about the church than Jesus?

Is it possible that we have gotten so busy "running the church" that we lost sight of the fact that "we are the church"?

Is it possible that we have substituted activity for relationship?

It is vital that we put relationship with Our Creator before anything else. Time with the One who Loves Us puts the rest of our day on an even keel that carries us through challenges and joys. Time with Jesus gives us space to make room for his priorities in our life.

Missio Lux is not about creating busy Christians. We seek to be authentic Jesus followers that are living counter culturally to both our world and to much of the traditional church.

We want to live lives of worship, making room for Jesus' interuptions in our day to help a neighbor or a stranger. We want to experience community of coming together with people who Know who we are, so we don't feel the familiar isolation that is so prevelent in American culture. We want to leave a meaningful impact on the world, one created through relationship and lived out of the missio that God has planted into our spirits.

Now, let's take a deep breath and enjoy the summer day.

The Power of One Life

Her name was Irena Sendlerowa. She lived in Poland when the Germans had the Jewish people imprisoned in the Warsaw Ghetto. Irenea was responsible for the identification and treatment of tuberculosis so she had frequent access into the Ghetto.

Irena knew that her life mattered beyond treating TB. She saw the handwriting on the wall for the Jews in Europe and knew that she had an avenue to help bring freedom. It wasn't an all out assault, it was more like a slow trickle of hope offered to the imprisoned Jews.

This is what she did. She smuggled infants and young children out of the Ghetto.

This is how she did it: she trained her dogs to bark whenever the German guards were present so that the children weren't detected, even if they were crying in fear. She put them in suitcases, bags, even coffins to smuggle them out.

Eventually, Irena was caught and brutually tortured and sentenced to death. However, she bribed a guard and escaped. All in all, she saved 2, 500 lives. She kept their names in a glass jar buried in her yard, so that when the war was over, she was able to re-unite many of the children back to their families.

I love this story.

I love the idea that if we take our ordinary circumstances and think creatively with God's imagination planted within us, we can do extraordinary things!

I dream about what can happen with Missio Lux. Imagine people all over the world, dreaming and asking God how they can take their ordinary life and make it count for something that will transform entire villages, generations, or even the course of history.

Irena Sendlerowa died on May 12 this year. She was 98. We won't have a holiday named after her, but for her courage, she deserves one. I choose to remember and honor her life, the power of her life should not be forgotten. Who do you know that is making a silent difference in their circumstances? Perhaps it is you; let's tell the stories!

The Fall

Thursday was the day we had been waiting for: Heather, Molly and I were going to San Francisco to celebrate Independence Day with Bill.

Bill is my husband and he works in San Francisco. No, really. He gets on a plane every Monday morning and flies to the city where he works all week and comes home Friday. This weekend, however, he was hosting a baseball game for some clients so he invited his family to come join him too.

I was really looking forward to it. Something about July in Seattle (perhaps the sun?) just makes it a rule that we have to put work aside and have fun.

But, before we left, Heather and I wanted to do some work in our garage--several moves home and some parent's things brought from Colorado where they are downsizing for a move to a retirement home has made our garage rather full and very disorganized.

I climbed the ladder to put some sleeping bags on our camping shelf. Suddenly, I knew that I was going to fall. I guess I even said it. It was almost as if someone or something pushed me over. Down I went, feeling a bit in slow motion.

But, the landing felt very much like concrete and kitchen chairs sticking into my arms, my side and my back.

I look like an abused woman. An bruise covers my entire right arm. I feel like an old woman when I move a way that arouses the injuries.

It's just got me thinking, however, about how much our physical state affects our entire life. The pain I was in affected my ability to enjoy San Francisco. It makes me feel vulnerable too. It makes it harder for me to embrace the challenge and delight of each day.

Take a moment to think about someone that you care about that lives with physical challenge. Pray a prayer for them.
And, just a word of caution: watch out for standing ladders!