SoCM - 4

School of Christian Mission - day 4

Final day, wrap up time. The worship service was amazing with a script read for the scripture passage that included facts about world hunger, the war in Sudan and the plight of the poor. Communion was served outside on the lawn which in itself was interesting - "the church is not meant to be the building or these walls, the church is meant to go beyond these walls outside" said Wes Astin.

We drove home quickly and I donated blood and grabbed a quick dinner and then drama rehearsal.

Great week.

Home is wonderful though.

SoCM - 3

School of Christian Mission - Day 3

The most amazing thing about this day was the World Hunger Meal. I had a heads up as to what the meal would entail and so I volunteered to be part of the masses, the 60% of the world that has little or no food to eat. I also volunteered my three roommates. We got to the dining hall and saw a table set with linens and a candelabra and about 20 place settings. This was the wealthy 15% of the world population. They got to eat crusted pork loin, mixed vegetables, salad, glazed sweet potatoes, hot buttered rolls, and chocolate cake. There were also about 40 settings, very casual settings, for the 25% of the middle class population. The were served hot dogs, macaroni, and green beans. The remaining of us sat on the floor in the middle of the room and received black beans and rice with water to drink. It was a really interesting contrast. I have always been in the upper middle class and have never known what it was like to live on the edge, the margins of life. How easily it would be to slip from the lower middle class/poor into poverty. What an experience!

After the meal we enjoyed an evening with the Bear Mountain Dancers from the Monacan Indian Reservation.

Tomorrow is the concluding day and then we head home. This has been an eye-opening week. I hope that I take back at least a little of what I learned and can share it/teach it to another.

SoCM - 2

School of Christian Mission - day 2

Well, we learned 3 more disciplines that we as disciples should be practicing:

• remembering (our history)
• observing (God's acts and commands)
• telling (other's about God's love)

and a fourth which is actually the biggest -

• love (AGAPE!)

We also talked about Jewish festivals, a LOT about Passover, and the elements of communion. It was all very interesting and I learned some things I didn't know before (which is always a good thing to do when you're in classes learning something!).

Angelo Maker talked about the transition from Sudan to America and the culture shock that he went through. He asked to us to write down our questions and he'll answer them tomorrow. He also promoted S.A.L.T. and asked for us to prayerfully consider ways in which we can help with that organization.

We also got to spend the evening with missionaries and mission projects around the Virginia Conference which was really cool too.

Such fun, so much information ... I realized that I should be a more effective leader in the church, correction a more effection MISSION leader in the church. Maybe this time I'll actually lead the church in a missional opportunity.

School of Christian Mission

School of Christian Mission - day one (well, day 1/2)

This was a great day so far. I was assigned to the Faith and Food class

which I really wasn't too sure about (but its really quite fun so far!). My teacher, Jim, really hates the text that was required reading and he said we can find the information of suffering, famine rich country stats on the internet so why pound it in our heads. Instead the focus of this class is as a Bible study.

Opening with Genesis 18 we learned about extravagent hospitality afforded by Abraham and the blessing that he and Sarah gained as God created life - created Isaac - to make Abraham the father of many. Then we moved to a Lectio Divina on John 15. It was quite interesting. What I got from the passage was how extravagent God was and is and will ever be from the Garden of Eden through the sacrifice of His son through to our heavenly homes. Wow. I've never thought of hospitality in such a way.

We also talked about three disciplines that we each should be practicing everyday (because disciples need discipline):

• intentional listening
• lectio
• journalling

This evening we heard from Angelo Maker, a Sudanese "lost" boy who was brought to America by Wellspring UMC. He told us a brief history of Sudan and a hugely shortened bio up to when he arrived in America. He's still fascinating to listen to. I thought that his English had improved until he began speaking more rapidly and then I could barely understand him. I liked the three things his dying mother told him to always remember:

• remember God
• respect all others
• do not steal somebody else's things

Powerful words from a woman who had been shot by Islamic fundamentalists because she professed Christianity.

wordle is such fun!

Re-Creation

rec·re·a·tion

Pronunciation:

\ˌre-krē-ˈā-shən\

Function:

noun

Etymology:

Middle English recreacion, from Anglo-French, from Latin recreation-, recreatio restoration to health, from recreare to create anew, restore, refresh, from re- + creare to create

So I am making anew from a previous blog entry on another blog (that I have now deleted) because I was asked to censor myself.

cen·sor·ship

Pronunciation:

\ˈsen(t)-sər-ˌship\

Function:

noun

Date:

circa 1591

1 a: the institution, system, or practice of censoring b: the actions or practices of censors ; especially : censorial control exercised repressively

Technically I wasn't told to remove the blog entry.

What was said was "I wouldn't have put that up". Yes, it was my own conscious that led me to take it down. Now, the blog that I was told to take down will come next. This will be a re-creation of a field trip that I took.

Water's Edge Church in York County. I was hugely excited to take a field trip to this church because I have heard rumor that it is a rapidly growing church that is led by young adults and attracts young adults. Of course I no longer fit into that realm of "young and beautiful" but I wanted to experience this church for myself.

1st impression - the parking lot greeters were lively and energetic. I felt as though I were an airplane being directed to the gate as the young man ran backwards making hand signals for us to follow his lead and then turn into a particular parking space. That was kewl!

2nd impression - the door greeters. Actually, they were no more hospitable than any door greeters at any theater. They held open the doors and said welcome. The only thing they didn't do was rip our ticket in two.

3rd impression - the foyer. Lots of people. Families checking their elementary aged children into various and assorted classrooms, a greeters station that offered a wide assundry of brochures, a hostess station with fresh baked chocolate chip cookies (yum!) and coffee, and two doors with signs that read "These doors open 10 minutes prior to service". Wow. Aside from the children's classes it could've been the Chrysler Hall (which also offers an open bar, not that I

drink).

The band was extremely well rehearsed though they only play three songs which was a shock and disappointment. I guess I always assumed contemporary meant lots of praise songs!

There were a few announcements that I didn't really pay attention to since they didn't really concern me. An interesting thing that did happen though was a pizza eating contest where they literally drove a Mini Cooper on stage to "deliver" Pizza Hut pizza to the contestants who had to wolf down a slice in a minute. The winner was given a coupon to Pizza Hut.

Pastor Stu followed with a thirty minute message. (the following was cut and paste directly from the removed blog)

The message was about our sin and God's mercy and justice. About God disciplining us for our sin and yet covering our sin by the sacrifice of an innocent lamb. History lesson ... what is Passover? Then he tied it all in to Jesus' last Passover Feast and the sacrifice of Jesus as the lamb whose blood was shed to cover our sin. Then he explained communion which we shouldn't partake in until we understand what the bread and juice are, the composition, the meaning; ask yourselves two questions: What does God think of me(immediately I thought "I am a horrible sinner who is unforgivable and unlovable) and What do I think of God (of which I had no thought)? Then we closed our eyes and pondered those two questions.

Here is more of the honesty part because I said that I would be totally honest on this blog. I have a distant relationship with Jesus, sitting at a small table and waiting patiently for me to come around. John doesn't agree with me on this - God actively pursues us, he doesn't sit around waiting for us to respond. I get this, finally. While at Water's Edge it hit me, on the head like I was a nail. THIS, meMonica, is what I've been telling you for the past four years. There I sat, eyes closed and tears streaming down my cheeks, and I walked over to that table and approached Jesus and he looked at me with absolute love and understanding and he stood there and opened his arms and I just let myself be engulfed in his presence. I let him cover me - cover my sin. And then a weird thing happened ... I smiled and I danced with Jesus. Right then I could answer the two questions. God thinks of me as forgiven because Jesus has covered my sin. And I think that I can develop a relationship with God because Jesus is walking beside me. I understood the composition of the communion wafer and the juice. I could take communion. But I didn't. When the pastor said "if you can answer those two questions, then peel open the wafer and place it in your mouth" I just sat there. I couldn't open it there because it wasn't the place for me to. I still needed more conversation with Jesus and I'll have that tomorrow, at my own home church at the rail on my knees before the cross.

THAT is my final impression of Waters Edge - the place where I turned to Jesus and collapsed into his arms and wept. For that I am extremely grateful.

And here is where this blog will end. The original continued for another paragraph but I'll censor myself. Amazing, huh?

Censorship Sucks!

I was blogging the experiences of a young start-up church service, placing my thoughts and feelings, lessons learned and ideas gleaned into the pages of a blog. Some the posts were extremely personal as I shared how I was deeply affected by some actions that had occurred. Yesterday I was asked to "censor" myself. "You don't need to put every thought you have on the blog Monica!".

WHAT!?!?

So, in retaliation, I've pulled the plug on the church start-up blog and I've created a personal blog that can't be censored!

Take THAT establishment!!