It's Not About the Building

“By the time the summer was over, I was to become conscious of the fact that the only way to live was to live in a world that was charged with the presence and reality of God.”

Thomas Merton

As we break ground this coming Sunday on a new facility, my prayer is that our Lord would shepherd each of us this summer in the same manner Merton was guided so many years ago, so that we might come to discover the reality of God’s presence everywhere, and in so discovering, that we might also be impassioned and empowered to enter more fully into our community – actively serving one another, and our city. New walls, as beautiful as they will be, will still only be a vessel, and the ultimate challenge for mankind has never been building vessels. We’re very good at that. Our challenge, instead, is to live in such way that the vessels we build become filled with hope and mercy, forgiveness and restoration, holiness and joy. And that, of course, is our Lord’s passion for us. I pray it is our passion too, for that only is what constitutes a healthy church.

I've been blessed with a week of good meetings and conversations; with staff, members of our community, and neighbors as we held our annual block party. Now - today and tomorrow, it's time for a little break. More on Sunday - 12PM for groundbreaking - if you're in town.

cheers...