the drum|rob fairbanks

Eucharistic Mess

Jessica

More from Nouwen: Becoming a Church of the Poor.

I promise that I'll stop dropping these Nouwen excerpts in here, but I have been so moved by this string of his thoughts about the church that I have not been able to stop myself. I have posted two other: Here and Here.  I hope you are both as encouraged and challenged as I have been.

"When we claim our own poverty and connect our poverty with the poverty of our brothers and sisters, we become the Church of the poor, which is the Church of Jesus.  Solidarity is essential for the Church of the poor .  Both pain and joy must be shared.  As one body we will experience deeply one another's agonies as well as one another's ecstasies.  As Paul says:  "If one part is hurt, all the parts share its pain.  And if one part is honored, all the parts share its joy" (1 Corinthians 12:26).

Often we might prefer not to be part of the body because it makes us feel the pain of others so intensely.  Every time we love others deeply we feel their pain deeply.  However, joy is hidden in the pain.  When we share the pain we also will share the joy."

Do you resonant with his vision of the church?

Going to the Margins of the Church - Nouwen

The below is a quote from Henri Nouwen.  Click "like" if you resonant with his vision of the church.

Those who are marginal in the world are central in the Church, and that is how it is supposed to be!  Thus we are called as members of the Church to keep going to the margins of our society.  The homeless, the starving, parentless children,  people with AIDS, our emotionally disturbed brothers and sisters - they require our first attention. 

We can trust that when we reach out with all our energy to the margins of our society we will discover that petty disagreements, fruitless debates, and paralysing rivalries will recede and gradually vanish.   The Church will always be renewed when our attention shifts from ourselves to those who need our care.  The blessing of Jesus always comes to us through the poor.   The most remarkable experience of those who work with the poor is that, in the end, the poor give more than they receive.  They give food to us. 

Ok, there is no "like" button...but if there were I'd like, like, like!

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HuffPost Greatest Person Of The Day: Kohl Crecelius Crochets For Communities

Along with his two best friends, Kohl Crecelius is expanding the boundaries of digital connection, philanthropy and retail with a business rooted in a very personal experience -- and a talent for crocheting.

via www.huffingtonpost.com

My boys are blowing up. Three guys from New Community in Spokane changing the world.  Here's their web-site - Krochet Kids International.  The pic is what they looked like the first time I met them.  Hilarious!

This is more their look today, but last time I saw Kohl (on the left) he was rock'in a seriously dirty stache. :)

Crossing the Line - Serve the City in Brussels and Beyond

Here is a clip featuring one of CA's churches in Brussels as they mobilize to bring true Shalom to their city.  The pastor is Carlton Deal explaining how it came about.

 

Urban Plunge: Crossing Lines

None of us knew anything ahead of time.  The only directions were:  dress warm, bring a sleeping bag, toothbrush, $5 in ones, and $1 in quarters, and meet at the church at 3 PM.  We were in for a full 24 hours on the Spokane streets.

Our internship team, under the direction of our fearless leader, Russ (who’s also our pastor), set out over that time all across Spokane to many different urban ministries that are making a difference in the lives of the impoverished and overlooked.  We had some amazing experiences.  At Second Harvest we learned that $1 donated produces six pounds of food that can feed four people.  We found lots of crazy items in the piles of donated goods when we helped organize for the Global Neighborhood thrift store.  We fasted until lunch the second day, but bought lunches for people on the streets and served breakfast to the homeless at the House of Charity.  We stayed the night beneath all the crazy wall art that street youth had drawn on the walls of the Cup of Cool Water drop-in center.   We got a peek into the missions of Christ Kitchen and YFC.  We walked a lot. 

Here were some of the most important lessons I learned about being incarnational:

1. Every city has lines:  There are lines between the rich and the poor.  The latter see them every day, while the former rarely know they exist.  In order to seek out the poor, you have to cross those lines. 
2. Time is worth more than money:  People without homes, without any control over their lives, oftentimes don’t need your money or your food—what they want more than anything is relationships.  They’re sad.  They’re lonely.  Jesus was compassionate; he knows their story and he wants you to know it too. 
3. Don’t fail to do something just because you can’t do everything:  We all have something to give.  You don’t have to change the world… start with something simple.  Obviously there are lots of opportunities to try if you look for them. 

I didn’t get to go into all the details and lessons here, but if you’re interested in reading more you can visit www.breanne-thebranch.blogspot.com and feel free to let me know what you think.

Thanks,

Breanne