Hope

 Why would you ever complain, O Jacob,
or, whine, Israel, saying,
“God has lost track of me.
He doesn’t care what happens to me”?
Don’t you know anything? Haven’t you been listening?
God doesn’t come and go. God lasts.
He’s Creator of all you can see or imagine.
He doesn’t get tired out, doesn’t pause to catch his breath.
And he knows everything, inside and out.
He energizes those who get tired,
gives fresh strength to dropouts.
For even young people tire and drop out,
young folk in their prime stumble and fall.
But those who wait upon God get fresh strength.
They spread their wings and soar like eagles,
They run and don’t get tired,
they walk and don’t lag behind.

[Read more]

What if wind power didn’t require huge, expensive turbines? What if a little light and heat could be generated from little strips vibrating in the wind? Perhaps it can.

Robert Bruce is a man on a mission. Writing a new poem for every Monday, he puts words to the kind of gritty life that most of us live with a touch of hope that with faith things may be better.

While this one is good, it’s not among his best I think. There’s an excellent look at what loving our neighbor means, a cutting look at consumer culture and todays somewhat romantic look at what a life of sometimes-irrelevance can look like.

I’ve been a regular reader of Larry James’ Urban Daily for only a short while, but I have to say I have really appreciated the honesty and directness of the blog from the very start. Agree or not (and most times I do) on the topic at hand, he writes in an approachable style with real heart and a good aim.  (Yes, this a plug. ;)

As I’ve interacted with Larry some today on the conversation between faith ministries and communities of faith about how best to serve, I wanted to take a break to acknowledge the many great ministries out there serving hurting people. While I’m serious about promoting good communication between the two, I think electronic communication can lose some of the love felt when issues are debated or bantered about or discussed.

I’m heavily indebted in my service of the poor to people like Larry, folks like those over at Mission Arlington/Metroplex, the Life Shelter in Arlington, a gaggle of people over in Ft. Worth and so many others.

As I shared in an e-mail with some friends today, going it alone just doesn’t work and the things we desire most often come after we sacrifice for each other.

Since 1981, the United Nations has celebrated an annual day of peace meant to call people in all nations to a day of ceasefire and peaceful relations with their enemies. “This year,” the official site reports, “UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will ring the Peace Bell at United Nations Headquarters in New York in the company of the UN Messengers of Peace. He has called for a 24-hour cessation of hostilities on 21 September, and for a minute of silence to be observed
around the world at noon local time.”

Believe what you will about the UN, about the prospect of world peace through positive feelings alone or about broadly-themed days like this. Whatever you believe, I’d encourage you to take the day as an opportunity to forgive people who have hurt you. Take the day as an opportunity to bring a small bit of peace to the corner of the world you live in.

One of the most profound joys in the world is when our passions align with God’s heart.

Two great videos today. The first is one in a great series about a local service to the poor.

The second is a thoughtful presentation on blasting out distracting e-mails so you can focus on people and your goals for the day. Fellow office workers will understand how much time checking e-mails can suck out of a day.

[googlevideo]http://video.google.com/googleplayer.swf?docId=973149761529535925&hl=en[/googlevideo]

Some of you are aware that between my work hours for a non-profit in the Dallas, TX area I’ve been spending time developing opportunities to serve the poor and homeless with Mosaic Arlington, my community of faith.

It’s been an interesting two months as I’ve walked the streets of Arlington, Ft. Worth and Dallas with people who really do want to make a lasting difference. It’s often different than my expectations, but it’s always encouraging. Many well-off people want to make a lasting difference and many of the poor are very aware God loves them and wants them to serve others.

As I look forward, some thoughts are taking shape:

1. Relationships are key to lasting work. One-shot projects are appreciated, but the value of a gift goes up dramatically when you spend time with a person on a regular (weekly often) basis.
2. There is a desire among many of the poor to improve their condition with the proper tools. What hinders many is bureaucratic miscommunication and the lack of a social network that helps them in a pinch. (We rely on our friends and family more than we think.)
3. There are many needs in our ow neighborhoods that we’re either blind to or lack the resolve to truly make a difference. Our temptation will be to go to the “glamorous” needs we can leave behind. Movement to a new need is not bad, but we have to do it with the right motivations and intentionality. (Followers of Christ in evangelical circles are particularly tempted ini this regard.)
4. A community of faith is heavily dependent on hearing the stories of people who have seen the need first hand and who can passionately share personal stories. We assume that we’re rational people. Most times we’re really not. We often need a story of success or failure to get in motion.

There’s much more I could say and hope to say, but that’s my Sunday AM brain dump. One question I welcome more thoughts on is: “How do we get people who aren’t writers or creators to share what God is doing (see 4) as part of their normal routine?”

This Saturday morning was yet another great day in a pretty cool week. My friend Mike and I headed to a part of Ft. Worth known as a hang-out for many of the city’s homeless people. It’s become the hub largely because three prominent shelters are all within a block of each other and because many churches come to the area to drop off food. “What part would God want us to play on Saturday mornings?” we wondered.

On what seemed a whim, my friend Mike struck up a conversation with some younger folks [1][2] who were obviously there to serve [3]. Turns out they were in close contact with a local church [4] in that neighborhood and came down every Saturday morning to build relationships and work towards longer-term solutions that many folks who brought food weren’t touching.

For the next three hours we hung out talking about the local situation, made new friends on the street, joined in on some impromptu singing, planned a mini-jam session next week, met their adopted grandpa in the woods and talked more with him and other friends over late breakfast. Who knows what next Saturday will hold, but we’re stoked. God is moving and I think we’re starting to get some glimpses of it.

I’ve blogged many times about the concept of “hope” and what it actually means. In a world marked with struggle, it can be an elusive thing. Perhaps we need to get our hands a bit more dirty and live life among hurting people more often to see hope played out. Perhaps God’s hope isn’t fully tangible unless we go to places where the pretension of “I’m fine” are dropped and we all admit the struggle that life really is, even in Christ.

I’ve just turned up the air conditioner again. The sweat from the steadily rising temperatures starts to get to me after a while and I’m not one who easily takes the heat. I suppose it’s one more mark that I’m my father’s son.

But tonight I think my unease goes beyond the temperature in my apartment. That, with some negotiation with the roommate, can go away I hope. Tonight, I’m uncomfortable with our attempts to say we’ll solve the worlds’ problems. I’m seeing those statements more and more these days. Themes of changing the world and ending particular needs are quite common. And often those who question such things are considered defeatist or lacking in hope for real change. Often those people are accused of not trying to make a real difference in the world around them. I don’t know if that’s really true.

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These past few weeks have been tough, but very cool. As part of the of a small group I lead each week, I’m hanging out with some folks who really know how to love the poor from years of experience.

In addition, I spent time last week before my small group met with a local shop owner who has lived in Arlington for years. This week, I finished out my evening after group with a few hours with another cool group of people who told me more about the roughest parts of Arlington.

I’m not getting tons of down time with all the work I have to do during the day, but I love it. There is nothing that energizes me like really knowing I’ve listened to and shown respect to other people who don’t always get it. There’s nothing like knowing you’ve loved people in little ways who Jesus wants you to love . I’m addicted.

PS. Know what else excites me? When I hear my sister is hanging out with folks like this: We do not have reservations to stay so pray that God provides. We will probably all just sleep in front of the train station - nice and safe with Italian police patrolling, and nice soft smooth marble to sleep on. Every time I sleep out there, I am reminded of homelessness. Every year so far I have seen the same homeless people there and we only stay one or two nights. Please pray that I can find the homeless lady that I sat with last year in July - I sat for 2 hours with her, gave her a cold ice tea to drink, she kissed my hand over and over and hugged me

God is doing some cool things. Don’t get left out.

“Sing oh you righteous to the Lord
It’s right that the righteous should acclaim Him
Sing to Ja with your guitar
turn up your bass
and wack it up all the way”

- Sinead O’Connor’s song Psalm 33 [source]

Last night I heard the excellent news that a friend who has sacrificed much for God finally knows the treatment for a mysterious illness that has been with her for quite a long time. Is there a better time to praise God? Is there a more holy moment when we receive word that God is on the move?

Today, the long journey is still in front of her, but there is a bit more hope… a bit more grace received.

It’s a beautiful thing to see the sun on a rainy day.

There are many tragedies in life. I was reminded of this by a number of recent blog posts by Adria [1] [2] and Gwen [1], recent events [1] [2] and the ongoing challenge of adequately serving the poor. And honestly, it can be overwhelming at times.

For so long many of us have been given shallow phrases that “everything will be alright” and implied statements that every single event is a good thing. How could we ever believe that? I want the hope that recognizes our world is broken and that God uses every situation for good for those who trust in God. I want more of a hope that has eyes to see hurting and the strong heart to encourage other people to act on those needs.

So what does being a voice of hope mean in these days? What does it mean to live a life of hope? I think I need to read up on that a bit more.

Do you have anything for me to read, to study or to look in life and on the web about true hope?

Late addition:
A timely related post by Chris

God will bless people who are ravenous and parched for a life that God wants. They will be given enough to fill even their large stomachs. (personal paraphrase of Jesus words in Matthew5:6)

I’ve been reading through Matthew 5 this week as part of a daily e-mail I get. Today Matthew 5:6 struck me, especially in the Old English translation of the KJV. I want that kind of a drive. I will make times for rest and I will make time for important people in my life, that’s part of the pursuit of a life that God wants. I just want to embrace these moments and the moments of action on behalf of the poor and hurting with energy and life and passion.

This week, that means making a few extra phone calls to connect with guys who I have some influence with. And it means getting some nitty-gritty stuff done that I don’t really enjoy. Pray with me that I’ll embrace phone calls I enjoy and seemingly tedious things with passion and an eye for the long-term outcomes.

Tonight I went to a training meeting for the Tarrant County Survey and Street Count that I’ve mentioned before. It was a pretty basic affair, introducing the survey and some common courtesy tips. DON’T shine your flashlight in a homeless person’s face. DO let them decide how much and what they want to answer. DON’T poke the sleeping homeless person. (Yes, the trainer said someone had actually asked about doing that before.) I was a bit slow about going, but it was refreshing to talk with others very passionate about helping people, even if we might have some different ideas on how to do that.

One reason I think it was important for me to go tonight is that neither I nor my community of faith was running the show. It sounds pretty unremarkable, right? But how often do conservative evangelicals do that? How often do we insist it before our kind of event before we participate?

I’m not trying to through blanket guilt out there. Each person  is different and not all events are created equally. I can’t encourage events that implicitly deny my faith. But the reality is that many events out there aren’t like that. We can get caught in a rut though that wont risk being involved with any other groups just in case there is something hidden we don’t know about.

It reminds me of Paul stopping to talk with the philosophers in Greece. He showed up at their discussion forum and put his two cents in. Not everyone was happy with what he contributed, but a lot of people felt love and saw hope because he was there at a place good Jews probably weren’t supposed to be.

“Everything is not as it appears to be,” he told me before skittering down the alley. Still startled by his sudden comment and disappearance, I turned back to the city street, shaking a scrap of a newspaper clipping off my shoe.

Too many crazies on the street today - paranoia everywhere. “My friends and I are closer than that,” I thought. But I wondered. I remembered some old Twilight Zone story of aliens that caused chaos among friends in a small town by spreading fear. People cutting off their nose in spite of their face, again and again. Don’t they know that if I hurt the grocery clerk’s bottom line their prices go up?

I looked back at the clipping. “GIANT SAVES DOLPHIN” Maybe there was hope after all the brokenness though. Maybe the impossible does happen more often than we know.

While the question of what, if any, buildings faith groups should build continues in a world of excess and self-focus, I though this article was interesting [credit: Dustin]. It speaks of a new church in Italy that uses a special coating that “eats” smog in some fashion. Now let’s be honest. It sounds like it was an accidental, fringe benefit, but it sparks the imagination.

What if people designing churches rethought their strategies? What if they set up a whole new criteria of what a good build was? Perhaps they might think about these things…

• What is the least wasteful way to build this building?
• What creative artist can we contact to design a shape that conveys God’s value on love, hospitality and community?
• What rehabilitation ministry for the poor, home for single mothers or immigrant services project could be incorporated on site to keep the body directly engaged in the community?
• What community center could be built that would open for just about anyone (in church or not) to hold an event?
• What design elements could be chosen to consistently reduce waste of power, water and perhaps even cut down on smog?
• What “would be nice” comforts should be sacrificed for the above so that it was clear the church was going out of its way for the sake of those who were different?

More than new stone buildings requiring tons of low-paying labor, I’d love to hear of more churches that feel led to build considering these elements as core aims.

How much cooler would this new cathedral movement be than the early ones we now wonder at if they were not only artful but incorporated both a love for God and a love for the outsiders and forgotten of their cities?

I sigh beneath a bank of gray
No hope
Forlorn
Thoughts miles away

And you know my heart is still with you
The pain
The struggle
The tears so new

But days must come and so I drive
To pick up warm and warming cup
To read the news from far away
To set to work these hands today

The letter came
I know not when
It’s brown and rumpled edges rough
The stamps of land so far away

The joy it brought I cannot share
The hope that good could still be found
The hope that good could still be done

So now I sit
Dark gray turned white
In hopes that daybreak and morning light
Will help us see for a little while
The good
The change
The way ahead

A response to this.

Dear Josh,

It’s never easy when someone choses not to stay in our faith community and even less so when the person is someone we’ve grown to or are growing to love. I’ve experienced in a few places in a few states now and I’m sorry to hear you’re going through it. I can never empathize enough online and I’m afraid I can’t be an encouraging friend where you’re at. I hope God is that for you as God has to be for so many of my other hurting friends who I live apart from.

I guess I wonder if respect is even part of this kind of stuff. Throughout most of my life, the word respect has been a cold and distant step-child of love once-removed from hate.

Maybe that’s the silver lining on Saint’s admittedly quick statements. We’re in this painful struggle to love the people who hurt us and I don’t know if respect is our final destination. I do know that a simple respect for the choices of those who have hurt me and my family is short of where God is calling me, even as I get ready to write a letter of apology to one of those people this week. Perhaps its more a rest stop along the way towards healing.

If that’s the case then I think respect can come because this person is made by God and respect for God can come because we see the beauty He has made. Like you so rightly point out, it’s not a full understanding. I don’t know if I’ll ever really understand my friends’ choices that much. After all, for me to leave would be to leave family. It’s unthinkable unless God asks it.

So as I sit down to apologize for my errors to a person that has hurt me, I hope that God continues to show you how to respond in these cases, even if it’s just something like waiting on God. I wish it didn’t involve the back-biting and hate you’re experiencing. I know it pains God. Do let us know how we can be praying and we’ll be here to listen.

Today as I worked on a number of things for my community of faith, I watched a video of Bono’s trip to Africa with Brian Williams (free iTunes download). What I heard surprised me. It wasn’t the wild-eyed Bono talking about the death of millions. It was two men walking down a paved road in Mali talking about real changes that were happening - still a bit talking about needs, but with hope and faith.

I’m a cynical young man many times. But I won’t let on to you that I am because my role is still to make things happen. Even if I’m not sure of the outcome, there is usually someone I need to be strong for so we get to some place good.

But do I really have hope when I see good things happening? I’m not sure. I have hope that God can make anything happen, but so many times death, corruption and sickness holds sway.

Today I want live with hope again. I’m not asking for utopia. I am not expecting to see everything change. But I want to stop the walk forward for a few more times each day and recognize the good things that are happening. I know they’re there. I just think I run past them a little too often.

As the week draws to a close, I look around with gratitude.

• There is still great uncertainty for some close friends, but the moment of crisis is not yet at hand.
• There is a growing number of active and wise young people here in Arlington, seeking to love others and honor God with both their words and their actions.
• Opportunities to love more people are around every corner.
• My family members are in places of purpose and difference, though not always easy.
• A great many people - friends old and new - stand by to encourage, challenge and laugh together.
• The needs of those in our immediate faith community seem met for the time being. Tomorrow we’ll all get together and hear some exciting stories from Mexico and it looks like some people with great potential are coming alive in new ways.

Fragile still
Broken always
God is working
We have the broad blue sky one more day

(I’d still love to hear your thoughts about my last post on loving women in our communities. We won’t all fully agree, but this post is all about listening so please do share what you’re thinking. I’m not setting the groundwork for a debate.)

The war started about a year before Benjamin Franklin was born in the British colonial city of Boston, Massachusetts. Through the fall of colonialism, the discovery of electricity, the rise of the US on the world scene, two world wars, the invention of the computer and the establishement of the internet the waring powers of Rote Island fought skirmishes small and large. Was there any hope for peace among the very divided people there?

Yesterday in the course of my work I was looking at a story about Bible translation work that the people of the combined 10,000 Rikou and Oe Pao people. These two groups are among many on Rote that have been at war of some level for an estimated 300 years.

Today, people from these two communities are working together to share the load of translating the New Testament into their language. The coming of faith in Christ didn’t end the war, but God’s love might just heal old wounds and demonstrate an amazing level of forgiveness over time.

I think about this today as I hear about more fighting in the Middle East, about peace talks in Uganda, about the harmony that new East Timorese leaders are tasked with pursuing and of old wounds now healing. There is no easy answer to any of these struggles for lasting love. Even God’s love requires deep sacrifice of our pride and a willingness to bear terrible insults. But there is hope - hope that peace can come if we want it and will sacrifice enough for it.

I am consistently impressed by the quality of Tony Kahn’s Morning Stories, a program for WBGB in Boston. Thanks to the wonders of podcast subscriptions, I get about one story a week that shares one person’s unique life experience and some insightful thoughts that often inspire.

The latest podcast download is an interview with famed cellist Yo-Yo Ma. During the brief 9 minute podcast, Tony and Ma range in conversation from horse-hair fiddles to the things learned while traveling. One quote in particular caught my attention:

[While you’re traveling] you cannot take anything for granted. There’s no shorthand that you can rely on. So it could be the hotel bell boy. It could be a taxi driver. It’s those chance encounters that really make a huge difference.

Maybe this is true even when we’re not traveling in some distant place. Maybe we, whatever church label we wear, need to recognize that it was simply the fact that Jesus was ready for thos “chance” encounters with the poor, the lame and the sick that made all the difference in His expression of God’s love for people.

[If you don’t want to subscribe to the podcast or can’t find the audio on the main page linked above, click here for the direct audio link.]

Francis Schaeffer and Neil Postman are well known among certain circles for his intelligent questioning of how the introduction of different mediums (art styles, television, movies, radio, etc.) have shaped our perspective of the world in ways we still don’t fully recognize as a culture.

I have often wondered though who is the modern-day equivalent to these men - someone who who will write deep and insightful books about the emergence of the internet and the changes that are coming not just with immersive 3-D worlds like Second Life or World of Warcraft, but with much subtler technologies like RFID chips that can in theory track your location wherever you are in the office and then tell the coffee pot to get ready for you.

I still don’t know that I have the answer to that, but it’s good to see people like Adam Greenfield thinking about it. I hope in time to see more about these things from followers of Christ that have their hands in the thick of life. It’s really something we can’t afford to ignore.

[The link above and here are to a well-written article on the subject. I’d encourage you to skim through it at least. Greenfield makes a compelling case that someone needs to think about the impact of all these new technologies and it sounds like a clear open moment for followers of Christ to step forward. You might not be the one, but you might know someone who should be.]

I punched the button again. No soccer. No futbol. No GOOOAAALLLL!!! Giving up, I hit button 1 - commercial. I hit button 3. Finally, something I had some interest in listening to. I settled in for the rest of the drive as the country singer strummed his guitar and crooned.

It’s these moments, with country music on the radio and a wide open road in front of me, that I remember. I remember my ancestors that made the Pennsylvania railyards productive. I remember the up-country farmers who carved a living out of stoney Pennsylvania hills. They too were the blue-collar folks who made work and Christianity happen for their family… their people. They too were the ones unafraid to talk about their faith one moment and how to repair a rail line the next, unlike so many modern people and musicians.

There was a dark side to that as well though. Like today’s country singers, faith could quickly become a passing topic that only women and children were  earnest about. God could become a powerful being up in the sky that you spoke highly of one minute while looking down on African Americans the next. As long as you were “good,” you could get away with cheating a neighbor.

And as I think about all this, I wonder. In what ways have I accepted a mediocre substitute for faith that truly changes things… for a relationship with God that hits on the deepest love I have to give… for a story that brings hope to everyone who hears it?

During our one sight-seeing/processing day, we stopped at Wayfarer’s Chapel for some rest and contemplation. I’ll share more of those photos over time, but this one captured so much of the joy of a day of rest after so much discussion and thinking. (Plus, it gives me another day to put some notes together about the conference.)

Perhaps tomorrow you’ll see more people than just the Texas crew [Christina, The Bishop, Nathan and Stephen] here at the conference, but for now here’s a great picture that turned out so much better than I could have hoped. I love the character captured in each of the expressions.

This conference is a great opportunity for followers of Christ to be re-energized to love their communities in deep ways - to act on all that Jesus said. Already there are quite a few ideas percolating and tonight Stephen, Nathan, The Bishop and others had some good discussion with Dean on how Voxtropolis may fit into all of that. It’s an honor to spend time here with so many passionate and creative people. It’s exactly the kind of encouragement I need to step my creative work and love for other people up a notch.

[See my “Maytravels” photostream for more photos from the conference and the trip.]

Today I looked through boxes of old papers and assorted memories. It made me think. Each of these things -a yo-yo, a toy front-loader, a stuffed panda, a “check” I created with my brother and sister and honor roll certificates - each of these was part of shaping the person I am today. Isn’t it amazing? Isn’t it odd and wonderful that a pile of seemingly unrelated toys and papers were used to shape a child into a man?

Of course, it wasn’t the items that really did anything at all. They’re evidence of a change fueled by something more - by parents’ that love and a God that is active. But that they were used at all… that the course of human development includes play and fantasy and spheres of colored glass… who would have planned such a thing that is at once mundane and life-changing?

I don’t know about you, but it gives me more than a little hope to see the small to do something large one more time.

Today, I spent a great day with family and close family friends, a pastor and his wife. It was a very encouraging day for me as I spent focused time loving, being loved, and perhaps most importantly, hearing stories of transformation. A few of the highlights:

- hearing about how my mom and dad continue to have great opportunities to welcome in the goths to the jocks of high school life into our church’s gym. I’m normally skeptical of these “coffee house” times that churches host, but it’s clear that a) high school and college folks have a safe and fun place to be that isn’t the local diner till 10 that b) my folks are there for these kids when hard things happen and the people trust my parents enough to be vulnerable and that c) God is using this time to begin or encourage true life transformation.

- hearing about my sister’s friend’s coming service in inner-city Philly. He’s already sacrificed to serve there on weekends and will now move into the neighborhood, helping with musical praise of God at gatherings and other acts of love in a city that deeply needs it.

- hearing my fomer pastor and his wife talk about how God has been helping them understand the deep value of loving the community with no strings attached. Mark my words, this spiritual grandfather of mine has quite a bit of life left in him and I’m pretty sure God’s going to use him to make a difference here in Pennsylvania or wherever he goes, especially in the established churches that need to hear this reminder.

I am often reminded that God does not work in the ways human expects. God sent one of his prophets to tell his people’s oppressors that God loved them despit all the oppression. Before woman’s rights was ever an issue, God sent women (gasp) to the remote people groups of the world (sometimes over the objection of their mission boards) that now passionately love God. And here in Pennsylvania, God is still changing people, helping them love more deeply and care more passionately about their communities. We probably won’t read about it in the hottest pastoral book and it won’t be published in the latest curriculum as the model movement, but it is very, very cool.

Yesterday morning I began a process that I hope to continue - spending a half hour meditating on God’s truths and focusing on the person of Jesus without distractions. When work settles down, I should be able to fit that in and resume my walking on a more consistent basis before going to work.

This morning I was reading some of Matthew in preparation for a coming series of Sunday gatherings about the life of Jesus that our community will be going through. And though I didn’t read the passage I kept thinking about the woman found in the middle of committing adultery. I can’t really tell you why it came up, but it became a way for me to focus on Jesus and His qualities while here on earth as I pictured his act of helping the woman to her feet and repeating the words of today’s title.

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This weekend was truly one of rest and renewal for me. I was able to attend a gathering of Christ followers in San Antonio and spend a significant amount of time in moments of peace, quiet and reflection. And there were also some great times of truth, passionate discussion and the joy of the moment.

One of these “joy of the moment” times was our Friday night along the San Antonio Riverwalk and especially the part of a great jazz set I saw with a very good friend. I didn’t really even realize where we were headed until we turned the corner and he turned to me with a smile.

It had been so long since I had been to a true jazz club that had the right combination of dark atmosphere, good food, nice hot coffee and excellent playing. It was perfect. As the various players pulled off amazing solos that dipped and soared… as my friend shouted out his encouragement… as the group put all their energy into a sweet blend of music… as fruit and coffee danced across my tongue… it was nearly all too much. It was a moment of transcendence. Here was a beauty of community played out on stage in ways that still move me as I type in the hotel lobby.

There are many moments like this in life that are found in the midst of the regular day. We should seek and value these. But every once in a great while I think we need these times of purer joy to help us remember the ultimate reconciliation with God that we seek.

Joseph took a moment to share that his habit of googling sunrise times for whatever place he’s in and it got me thinking. Wouldn’t it be cool if we had sunrise pictures from all around the Vox city? Sunrises are such universal pictures of hope that it would be a shame for us to miss out on sharing what that promise of a new day looks like where we are.

This isn’t my example (it’s a sunset picture I had on hand), but I’ll be trying to get a picture up sometime soon. Let me know if you do so I can feature your blog in my sidebar.

You should take a moment to read two recent posts by the writer of “God is Moving” and Deana from our fair city. While they are two drastically different moments of life, they both demonstrate God at work, community care and ultimately, joy. Normally, I don’t recommend longer posts (and the lack of paragraph breaks might slow you down) but both are really worth the read as people share important moments of their lives that may help you explore how you look at joy and experience a tiny piece of the writers’ lives.

More than a few times, I’ve heard people talking about the romance of “getting away.” Sometimes the whim is accompanied by talk of followers of Christ free from religious silliness or people who live free from the worries of daily life. It’s all a lie.

If End of the Spear didn’t convince you, let’s be clear. There are denominational fights in other countries. Pastors make power plays in other countries. People abuse power and position on a regular basis in remote locations. Sin is around every corner and on the fringes of every noble heart, even lionized missionaries. That could be a very discouraging thing to hear. Is there any hope that things can get better?

Yes… yes there is. And really the answer isn’t far off from where we’ve been looking. There is a lot of truth we need in other countries, just as in the early missionary days our people carried important truths that others lacked. I think that instead of thinking that primitive equals better though we need to remember that holy equals better. Is some part of God’s truth in the urban jungle? Grab it! Is some part on the plains of Mongolia? Write it down quickly! Just be careful to never turn off your senses or assume truth is not found in the domesticated streets you walk. God is here and will do good things not just in distant, romantic places, but also in dank, boring places you live now.

In my online journey this morning I came across two travelers who I thought would be set in their ways for some time. I had encouraged greater patience and grace, but I was unsure if it would come. But when it does come… when God makes it personally clear to people that right and wrong is less important than patience and love in a particular setting it’s a beautiful thing. And that’s when I realize again that the Holy Spirit is speaking quietly even here, a place that is a nowhere of scattered electrons and an everywhere of computers in homes around the world.

If you read up on any tech blog like Make magazine’s blog you’re bound to stumble across a growing revolution that might just change the world… if it hasn’t already. Cue Dean Kamen, inventor of the Segway and now pioneer in low-cost energy production and water filtration.

Kamen’s latest project is two washing machine devices meant to provide low-cost electricity and clean drinking water on a micro scale across many remote places that need just those things to combat major health problems. Yeah, you heard that right, in a recent CNN Money article Kamen estimates that “Eighty percent of all the diseases you could name would be wiped out if you just gave people clean water…”

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As we get closer to “Labor Day in February” this Monday, check out this post by Erik. Erik talks about his new job in the city planning group of the City of Sacramento’s Development Services Department. I won’t steal his thunder. You need to take the time to read his post yourself, but I think his post would be a great model for someone who wanted to join in on my “Labor Day” concept and talk about how God is present in the places we work.

As I’ve noted before, if you’ve already used the idea on your blog or if you’re in career ministry, take the time to shine light on a friend and how they’re honoring God through their work. I know for a fact that most of our friends have important stories to tell, whether administrative assistants or Chili’s hosts.

It is a thing of wonder to observe animals at play. It is even more amazing to share that experience with people of other countries and cultures. Something transcends language, and for a moment, “they” become “we.”

How can I tell you all the exciting things and cool people on my mind right now?

Should I tell you about a lovely woman who has sacrificed for a struggling son, a sick neighbor and who continues to influence influential young college students from around the world?

Should I tell you about two guys who have lots of reasons to hate God, but who are fighting to believe? Should I share the story of how God preserved one from jail through a grace that is truly from God?

Should I tell you about a couple that is on the financial edge, but continues to extend themselves for the poor and struggling around them in ways that humble me?

Should I tell you about my new supervisor who is breathing fresh life into my role and calling out strengths in me that I thought were dying?

And how can I possibly speak about the hope of a heaven and a God present and active in the lives of these people and me? How can I cup the joy that wets my eyes and give you a taste? Some days… some days it’s just too much good… too much hope.

In these times, though many things are frustrating, I bow my head, spread my arms and give all of me to praising a Divine Being who defines my being.

While listening to Tony Kahn’s WGBH Morning Stories, I heard about the US-Africa Children’s Fellowship, a cool partnership between schools in the US and schools in Africa. A couple visiting Africa realized that many text books, clothes and toys worth little in our disposable culture would be a great benefit to schools in various countries like Zimbabwe. Praise God that there is a greater recognition of what we can do.

52 weeks + 1 This past Sunday was a second great day of celebration as a few of us went to a partnering community of faith that helped us tremendously in our first year. After an overview of the pictures from the past year, we shared how God changed  us personally and the story of two great guys who found Christ and a renewed passion for God against all expectations.

It was also a great week to celebrate the wedding of Jorge and Corinne in good Tex/Latin style. We shared a beautiful ceremony led by Stephen, some great Mexican food and a great party with family and friends.