Is Community?

Is Community proximity?

I have been thinking a lot about community.

Acts 4:32 says "the whole congregation of believers was united as one-one heart, one mind! They didn't even claim ownership of their own possessions. (The Message)

We live in a cul-de-sac we moved there to be more in proximity of our church so we could have more opportunity to build into the community which we have put our spiritual roots.

We had no idea what God had in store for us in this move.

Upon moving in we found that the neighborhood was friendly in a way that we were unfamiliar with.

We had a neighbor who upon seeing I didn't yet possess a lawn mower offered his whenever I had need of it.

We have had opportunity by proximity to bless those who we live near in our church, such as seeing one of our youth walking near our house and picking them up and having them for dinner and taking them to their event later.

Also by living where we do we have had the opportunity to expand who watches our children, and we have been blessed by some of the teens in our church and there caring for our children.

Acts 2:46 says that the believers met daily in the temple, that they broke bread in there homes.

I believe community is strengthened by proximity, because it allows us different opportunity and the lack of proximity can be a deterrent for building stronger relationships.

Driveway Date

If your married this one is for you if your not them read this and remember.

A driveway date is not a new concept I have read about it and heard about it previously.

Now that I have two kids it has become a marriage saver.

Every Monday night Nicole and I block out time after the kids are alsleep and make time for each other to be with Jesus and we have it in the driveway.

We have modified the idea to meet our needs, at first I thought it was only okay I was thinking about what I could be doing instead.

But having time when all the "things" in life get put on hold has become invaluable.

For Nicole and I this is a time we now look forward to and value because it gives us quality time with each other and spend time praying and listening to a podcast sermon.

Every married person knows that a good marriage needs time put into it to make it successful.

Hence the driveway date night.

We also need to take time to be in communication with our heavenly father so this night fills in both of those needs.

If you have never tried to have one night a week where you and your spouse spent time away from it all getting closer to God then I challenge you to try it make it what you need it to be but make it purposeful and I believe that you will see fruit in your marriage and spiritual life.

Batman VS Superman.

I just recently saw the latest batman movie and it was awesome.

It got me thinking about the differences between two of my favorite comic heroes, and the change that needs to happen in me in how I look at where I am.

Bruce Wayne is a man needing his role as Batman to fulfill his purpose.

In every incarnation of batman his is a tortured soul seeking value and acceptance in what he does.

I have lived there I have seen my job as role I must play (Bruce Wayne) while my true value and my real purpose is what happened when my kids go to bed (Batman) I have struggled to balance my need for things like a house and food for my family with the almost overwhelming desire to do something of real value.

If like Bruce I give into my need for purpose and make my identity that of my role, in his case Batman then I loose all the value that comes with small things like relationships and such, only small things mind you.

This almost happened to Bruce it almost happened to me but my Alfred my segregate father pulled me from that way of thinking by helping me connect the dots.

Now for Superman.
My most favorate of comic characters. He is a man who is not defined by his role as he defines what his role is by who he is.

That's how I need to live that's how I am going to live.

I know who I am and what God created me for and as such I can create a role that is an outward expression of an inward reality.

To further the parallel.

I may have a job that does not draw on the best I can give but as a wise mentor told me it allows me the opportunity to be ready to move into action when the time comes.

I want to throw down the gauntlet this week, for myself and any who read this.

I want us to live like who we are in Christ is what makes what we do valuable.

I want us to stop living like what we do makes us valuable.

See you all next week.

The Revelation.

Reading quitter by Jon Acuff. He is talking about the plan myth.

It's his determination that you need to dip your feet in the area of your passion (step 1) to practice (step 2) so that when the time comes to plan (step 3) you are better prepared to live out your dream.(the goal)

I have had a directionless desire to influence people.

I knew I was made to make a difference in people's lives I just never new how.

I never looked at my passion to be the catalyst of my dream.

I always assumed my passion would come once I discovered my dream.

Wrong.

I have long had a passion to write.

My first stories, I kid you not, were about my lego games. I would imagine stories play them out and write them out. I called them "Lego wars."

I still have those stories rolling around I still on occasion write stories involving those characters. I have maps and timelines all that was pointing to my passion.

How could I have missed it?

My passion is writing.

I heard John C Maxwell talk about how he writes so many books. He said he writes every day not a book a day sometimes not a chapter a day but he writes something everyday.

I would say that strategy is working for him.

So I gave it a try and I have committed to writing everyday and publishing this blog once a week.

Something happened I didn't expect. I can't not write everyday now.
As long as I'm getting input I have to output.

My passion won't let me do anything less.

If no one reads this blog ever I will be successful in my life simply by letting my passion be expressed.
I also intend to read some blogs to help me form better style and technique.

the page ceremony

To explain what this ceremony is all about you have to have a small understanding of the historical idea of a page.

In Medieval times a page was a young boy who was in the service of a knight or Lord.

In some cases for the purpose of becoming a knight. In others he was the son of a lord and this was his training ground to take the role of lord some day. 

The context of this ceremony is a page is a knight in training. 

I have spent most of my life asking a question that for the longest time I couldn't form words around,

Do I have what it takes?

As boys we ask this question we ask our fathers we ask men who are around us. 

We always get an answer and the answer will set us on a path to success or failure. 

in different ways one way is we ask men in our lives if we can help do tasks or activities that we see being done with skill and success. 

I heard alot growing up 

"Your to small"

"When you get older"

"I don't have time to teach you"

These are classic you don't have what it takes moments. 

The page ceremony says you have what it takes and we will help you to do it. 

The page ceremony is all about putting people in the life of a young boy who will influence him toward becoming what God created him to be.  

A friend of mine has four sons two of which I have had the privilege of participating in the page ceremony.  

It's a time when these boys are invited to enter into a group of men to be told you have what it takes we are going to walk with you and teach you how to succeed. 

This is one of the most intentional things you can do to train up a child in the way he should go, you can bet when he grows up he won't depart from the teaching. 

There are to many men walking with him who won't let him slip away. 

I heard a quote a long time ago 

"It takes a village to raise a child" 

I believe it takes a community, a group who stand togeather in faith and values to empower a child to become all they were created to be.