Wednesday, April 12, 2006
one day
My wife's cousin Michael came to visit on Monday of this week, and I took him around the Bay with me. I had a great time really getting to know him and talking a lot about ReIMAGINE and just how it is I spend my days. At around 9:00 PM we arrived back at my house in Concord, and I was exhausted. In the morning we drove to the Mission District and checked out the local spots where I normally hang out and meet with my friends to plan, scheme and dream new dreams for how we can be a part of the Kingdom breaking into San Francisco. We drove to the Lower Haight and spent the day at Page Street Community Center with a wonderful mess of people: white and black, short and tall, coherent and confused, happy and depressed, gay and straight, with homes and without. Michael got to spend some time with a man named Twilight. We spent several hours making new friends, and I spent some time with many people who are now old friends. I realized that in the few months I've been around the neighborhood I'm actually getting to know people. People are beginning to trust me and open up to me, but it wasn't an overnight type of thing. Part of the process is me learning how to love and how to communicate. We worked hard, sorting through produce, stacking boxes, organizing the food for the crowd that was about to arrive. I reminded Eric that I'm bringing a group of middle school students by in a couple weeks...that will surely be interesting...and wonderful. As the day drew to a close we got back into my car and drove to a Country Club in Danville. Now surrounded by 50 something very upperclass white people who attend a suburban church, it took me a few minutes to get used to my surroundings. I appreciated the group's welcoming and open spirit. I spent about a half an hour of this small group's time, speaking about the radical Jesus of the Gospels and what it looks like to truly love our neighbors in the Bay Area. As our time ended we walked back to my car and drove, finally, back to Concord. Kayla was already in bed but my brother, who is now living with us, and Andrea were glad to see us. As I sat in the chair, still unable to fight off this cold that is driving me crazy, I realized that I had a long and slightly weird day. I encountered incredibly different cultures and tried to let God use me to make some impact, to teach, to bless, to help, to love. I realized that sometimes I'm not quite sure what to make of these days. Which world do I belong to? How do I fit? Where do I have the most impact? WHY IS IT STILL RAINING? Today as I sit in this coffee shop in Concord and catch up on my email and the book I'm writing and my voicemails, I wonder if I should try to rest and get over this cold. Or should I go and talk to find the homeless folks I was looking for this morning? I have some things to talk to them about, but with the rain I'm not sure where they are right now. Hmmmm...I wonder if anyone will read this rambling post...
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
5 comments:
I read it.
you're writing a book? sweet!
I spent a day last semester on Skid Row in LA, and then the same night attended church at Saddleback, not thirty miles away.
On Skid Row I watched people shoot up, have sex on the street, steal, starve, and hate. It wasn't that this was shocking, because I know it goes on. The remarkable part of that day was ending it being completely disgusted not with the community at Skid Row, but at Saddleback.
It might have been the millions of dollars they were spending on building a water park at their church, or the millions they had spent on remodelling buildings, or the overall Disneylandish-Church feel of the place, but whatever it was it greatly overhshadowed everything I had been soaked in that morning.
I guess what I'm trying to say is that I can relate to your pull towards two different worlds...and how hard that can be.
I read it too. And enjoyed it. And chuckled at the question about rain. And...
...a waterpark at a church?
I'm trying to resist immediately condemning them (bad habit of mine),
but...
...is that really the best we can do?
Help.
A waterpark?? I too have to fight to resist the urge to jump to judgement and choose love instead. Shane Claiborne has some interesting thoughts in his book about getting back from working with Mother Theresa in Calcutta and interning at the big and beautiful Willow Creek.
Post a Comment