The Story

Last weekend my bride and I traveled north to McKinney to keep the youngest grandbaby while his parents had a real "date." They headed out for sushi and then spent the evening at Starbucks just visiting. The boy went to bed and stayed down until well past the time his parents came home. We spent the night and went to church with them the next morning. Well, actually, they went to teach the 4 and 5 yr olds, we stayed home with Isaac until he was ready to head for church. So we got there in time for the assembly.

I love visiting other communities of faith. Seeing what they find important. This one seems pretty healthy, a nice blend of ages, lots of kids, and friendly but not in a forced way. My guess is that their leadership does more right than wrong, which may be unique in its own way.

Anyway, the entire assembly time was spent launching an initiative around a packaged group product called "The Story." At first I was a little off put by the idea. But the more I thought about it, the more sense it made to me. It is my opinion that most churches have opted out of the scripture. They use what little they have to justify what they think needs to be done, but most simply don't just herd the crowd into scripture and see where the Spirit will lead them. The community last Sunday at least has said "for the next 31 weeks, we are going to spend all our time in the Story"

Also, I like the approach. It is a chronological approach to scripture from beginning to end, selected scripture, but panoramic in the scope. The primary quest is this, "What is God wanting to do?" I am assuming that the application will come over time. For now, though, the journey is one of discovery, to stand quietly and simply listen to the story. To ponder the scope of it, to let it lead us where we need to go. This has the potential to change the trajectory of this community of faith for decades to come.

Could this be done without a pre-packaged initiative? Yes, and it might be better, however, the staff is tasked in such diverse ways that they don't have the time to develop the entire project. The spiritual leaders probably aren't trained or guided to do it, so the easier path is probably the better path. I hope this changes their lives, I hope it opens their hearts and minds to the mission that God has followed since the very beginning.

As this all percolated in my head, I wondered why I couldn't do something here in my neighborhood. What if I could gather a few neighbors and convince them somehow that I want them to bring their lives into this initiative, just as I will mine. Wouldn't a shared, diverse experience really be stimulating? My temptation is to believe that my experience is the only one that has value. But if I can set that aside for a moment and listen to those who were not raised in this part of the country, who were not raised in my tribe, who have not been blessed like I have, but in other ways, wouldn't that have value as we look at the story?

It is my opinion that the spiritual renewal that we all feel must take place will be far from the masonry of the white steeples. It will be in the living rooms of the ones who are wandering...and wondering.

Godspeed, the journey may have some unexpected turns.
Don