early morning coffee time "really church"... and thinking about Truth...

January 29, 2009

I am loving going to this early morning coffee time, where people are just free to talk together about whatever is happening in their minds and hearts and the rest of their lives... there just isn't any "gossip" or "politics" although all kinds of topics come up... there is honesty and thoughtfulness... and people LISTEN to each other with respect... and freely ask questions ...

So I went to the third installment of The Truth Project last night... lots of people there... topic was "anthropology" and wound up with that was the whole question of "evil"... it was really interesting, compelling, well covered...
Some things I'm thinking more about (again, things I've thought about before, but finding I'm needing to think through again, more...) ... Abraham Maslowe's whole thing about self-actualization, and meeting/ following our personal inner desires as our ultimate purpose in life ... and I think I'll take a look at Theodore Dalrymple's ideas...

I got tangled up again inside about some "church" issues, and started to gripe about them to others ... but You have quietly but very clearly reminded me, "You are released.." ... and it struck me that I'm not just released from a place or or a system or a formal group or organization or "politics" - but also from "talking about" things, either not at all if it's best to keep one's peace, or if it is worth/ needs discussing, not in a way that is griping - and "gossip" ... still a choice to make, eh!

Yesterday I read: "If you don't like something, change it; If you can't change it, change the way you think about it." (Maya Angelou). Well, now, that's profound! (And biblical too, in many ways... well, biblical is hugely profound, isn't it?!!)
Yesterday there was an interesting article posted up on "Tribes of Christ" about the things in the Bible that puzzle us, and that, to our way of thinking at least, do not "fit into the character of God." - Like the order from God to Israel to destroy (violently!, bloody!) all the inhabitants of Canaan, including women and little children and babies and all - which today we would call genocide, massacre, etc etc etc - Well, of course I've wondered about that (and wondered, and wondered...) - and found the "right" answers ("they were evil so God destroyed them" etc) to sometimes be too "pat"

(I guess like I found some of the "discussion" after that video last night... that's what I like about the video itself: while in a sense the guy is really only doing an introductory level presentation of the topic (how much can you say about man and evil in an hour?), he doesn't present it in the form of easy and pat explanations - he asks hard questions - and while he gives answers, with conviction, they don't come across as... I don't know... well, "pat"!)...

but some of the discussion afterward (not all of it, though!) seemed pretty "pat" ... Okay, so can I, sitting there, find a way to change the discussion - or if not, can I change the way I think about it? How? I need Your wisdom, for sure!

So this morning I went to the coffee time again... and as it unfolded, there was some discussion around the video topics (since a couple other people had also seen the video)... and it was worthwhile, because it wasn't just "pat" ... and yes, You were part of the discussion, but not in a "preaching" way, but as one of the guys said, who isn't a Christian, he doesn't mind taking part in discussions about You at the coffee time, because the conversation is "respectful" : I think he meant that questions are accepted and alternative viewpoints are listened to and discussed respectfully, even while making You an important and relevant part of the conversation.... Like someone said the other day about the coffee gathering, "This is really church!" (church as your people just being together, and You there, and others not only hearing about You but seeing YOU living through Your people.... Yay!)