pass it on
If you ever went to a Christian summer camp or sat around a bonfire with your youth group, the chances are pretty good that you know the song "Pass It On":It only takes a spark to get a fire going.
And soon all those around can warm up in its glowing.
That's how it is with God's love,
Once you've experienced it
You spread His love to everyone;
You want to pass it on.
Yes, it has a Kumbayah quality to it, but I truly believe there is theology in this song. I was at my mom's tonight and I came across some old hymnals and songbooks, and this particular song was in "Sing 'n' Celebrate", a songbook with a copyright date of 1971. Whew, what memories came back when I played the piano and sang that song. And it got me thinking about something that is a recurring theme with me lately ... the quest for authentic community.
I have been incredibly discouraged lately as I have been searching for a church and craving community and stimulating interaction with other believers. I want more than just the surface relationships that come easily through church potlucks and Sunday School classes. I want people in my life who push me and challenge me and sharpen me and change me. I want to engage in conversations where my mind is moving so fast that I can't even get the words out to convey what I'm thinking. I want to come home from somewhere and stay up late writing about a discussion I had with someone. I want to walk out of a church service refreshed and reminded of my mission. Instead I walk out bored and hungry and ready to drive to the Mexican restaurant for lunch.
What this song reminded me of is that maybe I'm wrong. Maybe it's not so much about seeking and finding community as it is about creating community. No, I am not going to go out and start a church and preach and teach and lead Bible studies every night of the week. But since when was community confined to a church setting? In the Bible, Jesus communed with prostitutes and tax collectors and shepherds and fishermen, wherever he was and wherever they were. It's not about going to a certain place to find community -- it's about creating community wherever you are. When I walk my dogs in my neighborhood and stop to talk to a neighbor, I am creating community. When I go to my office in the morning and step away from my work to sit down and chat with a colleague, I am creating community with that person. If I really carry Christ with me everywhere I go, I should be a walking, talking community creator. I can be that spark that gets fires going all over the place, in my everyday dealings with people. And when I'm doing that, I won't notice that I'm not finding community, because I will be all wrapped up in it. There will be communities all around me. Someone needs to be that spark ... I am the only one who lives my life and experiences those specific moments and opportunities, just as you are the only you, and the only one living out those moments in your life. It's up to each of us -- can you imagine the fires that would rage if we actually did it?
1 Comments:
Great post..found its way onto my church's blog. I couldn't find a way to trackback, so here's a poor man's trackback (by the way, I didn't mean to steal the whole "furious" thing...I noticed it just now that that that word is in your blog's title...:P ). The post was entitled, "In community or enchilada?":
"Occasionally I find someone that can say within a few brief sentences those things that I have felt over the span of years, in dark nights, in the furious loneliness of a group I don't quite fit in, in the passive resignation of growing jaded. Krista, an author from a blog I frequent regularly, describes the pangs of desire for "true community," beautifully in this exerpt from a longer post:
"I have been incredibly discouraged lately as I have been searching for a church and craving community and stimulating interaction with other believers. I want more than just the surface relationships that come easily through church potlucks and Sunday School classes. I want people in my life who push me and challenge me and sharpen me and change me. I want to engage in conversations where my mind is moving so fast that I can't even get the words out to convey what I'm thinking. I want to come home from somewhere and stay up late writing about a discussion I had with someone. I want to walk out of a church service refreshed and reminded of my mission. Instead I walk out bored and hungry and ready to drive to the Mexican restaurant for lunch."
I feel as though she frames Paradox's values of connection and solitude so succinctly that it could very well stand as the type of person we hope to become and hope to attract. One of the value couplets that we have is outlined in our Mission/Vision/Values, "Connection is the value that we have all been created to exist within the family of God, living a part in the family and story of God that is larger than our individual life. We exist to build each other up in Christ being a part of His redemptive work in each other’s lives. Solitude is the value that we have been created to have a personal one on one relationship with God, which is the place where we find the strength and wisdom to handle whatever He brings to the road of our journey with Him."
Apart from us all saying that we believe in this value; how can we take courageous steps towards sharing our stories and the fire in our bellies with one another, so that we can compete with Don Pablo's? Will we choose to be in community or enchilada? Krista is us and Krista is who we are hoping hears about us; but how will we ensure that Krista will know she is home when she finds us?"
Doug (www.douggeiger)
Church (http://paradoxchurch.blogspot.com)
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