on community

I am thinking through the purpose of community as Christians. This is what was on my mind tonight.


The idea is that we are known by our love for each other and as people observe from the outside they are drawn into the community where the cycle continues. As we practice healthy community and move together towards Christ and his likeness, the hope, generosity, love, kindness, etc towards each other is a compelling witness to the world around us. We are not called to go out on our own and convert people nor to make friends just to move on to the next person so we get to ‘chalk one up for Jesus’ but instead we need to come together and love all those around us and in doing so share with any and everyone the hope that we have found in Jesus. We do have a purpose as a community and it is to share with others the hope of the gospel but they are not be to be projects. Instead as an outward and obvious overflow of what we ourselves are experiencing. It is as if you have found the ability you have found to stay in great shape with only a two minutes of workout a day. Would you not want to tell everyone you cared for about this amazing discovery? Would you not be selfish and somehow hateful to keep it to yourself? Even if this is a stupid example, how much more does the community of Jesus followers have to share with a dying world. And it is not a hit and run message but instead a way of living and seeing the world. It is a faith in Jesus that is not just fire insurance but the chance to truly live both in this life and the one to come.

A healthy community by its nature should be reaching out and excitedly drawing others in. This is only hard because we tend to see community as a safe bubble for us to escape into, a chance to flee the outside pressures. This should not be. Instead it should be a place of universal refuge where even when it is made clear to someone that they are in need of forgiveness, they feel safe and loved. We are not called to convince the world of their sin but instead be open about the process of grace that we have experienced and by God’s grace he might use our brokenness to draw others to himself.

Not sure about that last sentence but I think it might be true.

platform 1

Here is the beginning of our national political platform. I am not sure if this will hold my interest long enough to write them all out and know that things discussed are not in order of importance. I should also remind everyone that these ideas were formed around a table with good friends and beer, they may just be pretentious and idle conversation but whatever it is my blog.

1. HUMAN RIGHTS

Our party holds that all persons have innate value regardless of their citizenship. We long to be a nation known for helping those in need and being the advocate of those who have none. Now of course no one is going to be against this value. It is basically like a politician saying, "I am pro children". Come on. I dare anyone to say out loud that they are anti kids and run for some popular vote. So the fact that we are pro human and serving those who are in need does not by itself have any bite. However this item was discussed in light of the fact that our current government states that it is against genocide but tends to merely give lip service. We desire to be a country that moves towards these situations with use of force when needed to help protect those who are being slaughtered. It is understood that by reaching out towards those in need of food, clothing, housing, etc these actions will over time build tremendous goodwill in a world that is moving rapidly towards greater and greater interdependence. A significant amount of time and money, especially during times of peace, will be put forth by our armed forces to reach out to the above peoples.

Also, and this is my idea not the group as a whole, we would consider having a mandatory year of service for all US citizens. This does not mean that it would be within the military but could be spent in a variety of ways.

Okay that is enough of this for now. At times I think that dreaming about what I wish our country or even our churches could be about might do some good but most of the time I am far less hopeful. Here is to hoping.

perfect world

This past weekend I had the chance to head to Central Wisconsin with several of my closest friends. It was a wonderful time of eating large amount of meat and saving the world through our conversations. I really am blessed to have such amazing guy friends in my life and I can honestly say they have a large part to do with the person I am today. (the good part they should get credit for and the taste for good beer which I guess is a really good part)

In the midst of our many long ramblings about religion, politics, the arts and society in general we decided to come up with a government platform of our own. I think the idea started because we all are pretty much sick of the two party system or at least the fact that neither side seems to come close to representing our beliefs. So with that said I would like to present this 'One True" political philosophy over my blog. But the problem is that I don't really remember all that we said and I do not have the notes from the time so Cory, Matt, Jared and maybe Adam, I am going to need your help.

SIDENOTE: A surprising realization came out of this time and it was that it is awfully hard to avoid a fascist regime when one is coming up with the perfect society. So please be warned that any views shared, if put into practice could lead to pretty bad results. Funny since it is the perfect plan.

juan something

It is about time for another update so here we go...

Since last writing I was in Honduras on a short term mission trip so this blog will be dedicated to sharing some thoughts, stories and general ramblings from my time. I should also mention that I am listening to Last of the Mohicans while writing so if at any point I mention saving the lives of beautiful, frontier women during my trip it is a lie. I did not have the chance this time.

I must admit this year I had rather small expectations for this trip. I am not sure if it is because I have been to the same place several times or if it is my way over analytical mind. I am pretty sure it is the latter. But the cool thing about God is that he seems to know our expectations and laugh. Then he surprises you. This was a wonderful trip of learning more about the Honduran culture, people and how to better serve together. I now truly believe, after a long time of questioning, that short term missions can have a very positive impact not only on the team going but also the community that is visited.

One highlight for me was the chance to meet with some of the adult leaders in the town we were in. One of the last nights a small group from our team had a chance to sit down with a group from the town and discuss who we are and hear from them what sorts of things the future might hold. Before you picture too grand of things, you should try and imagine a handful of older people in mostly farming clothes sitting in plastic chairs in a room a little too large for the group. However, the people that were kind enough to join us were some of the most influential people in the community and we were blown away by their positive and welcoming attitude towards us. At one point in the evening they asked us to get the youth of the town together and tell them about Jesus because it would be good for them. Cool stuff. For me, this time was a gift of grace that showed that God indeed is working and again by his grace, using our teams and the church we serve with.

Another thing I should share is that ever since my first time to this community I have been known as Juan Gordo, Fat Jon, for those who do not speak Spanish. Now I must say that there is no better way to make one want to think about losing weight then spending several days hearing this name over and over again. Try as I might this nickname does not go away but I think the problem could be that all I really know how to say in Spanish is, "No fat, yes skinny". Maybe it is time to hit the books and learn something more useful like, "Shut up kid! You are a boogerhead." Here is to higher education.

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