It's time or past time for the former business office to be cleaned out. I offered earlier in the summer; but it's now time--past time--and I quickly discovered I am not cut out to be a 'martyr'! After a half-day of working through interruptions and mail and other tasks (but very little cleaning out!), I quickly jumped online to send a group email inviting help. As always, several good and faithful disciples stepped forward.
Now, cabinets and shelves and desktop empty and clean, only a small truck load remains for delivery to a local thrift shop. From this point forward, we're moving on, a new path, an open way.
Tertullian said, "The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church." No doubt he was talking about the early martyrs. They stood calm and strong in the face of persecution, even death. And in their dying, they planted seeds of the Christian Church so that it sprouted, grew and spread thick and wide, bearing fruit like a vineyard only the Lord could plant.
Perhaps I and the disciples of Stepping Stone are more like martyrs than I thought. We may not be shedding our own blood, but we're willing to give up our stuff: habits and mindsets, perceptions of church now and church past so we can reach for and help bring in church future. We stand ready to sacrifice the church we grew up in, the church we're familiar with, or 'church should be...' for the church becoming new with a future--fresh, vibrant, growing now and for the next few hundred years.
The tough part of the journey is throwing away, cleaning out, being still while the Holy Spirit digs and plows and configures the new way of being church. Thankfully, I know a few disciples who like to help; they don't mind a little dirt under their nails and they're ready to plant! Praise be to God (and thanks to faithful disciples)!
No comments:
Post a Comment