Ain't Got Time to Blog

You know that famous Jesse Ventura line from one of his movies? "I ain't got time to bleed." Well, we've been having so much fun getting Light of the World off the ground, that there hasn't been much time to sit down and tell you about it here. So, don't let the absence of words in this space give you the idea that not much has been happening. Because MUCH has been happening, praise God.

God has been busy. Very, very busy. We have been gathering on Wednesday nights for six weeks now, and each week we are setting up more tables and welcoming new people in. I think there were 90 people last week! People keep inviting their friends. What a genius way to start a church. Duh.

But I don't want you to get the idea that God's busy-ness is only related to inviting people in. It's what happens when we are gathered that gives me the most goosebumps.

One night, I pushed people to take a risk and sit down one-to-one with someone they never laid eyes on before and have a conversation about what matters most to them. To deeply listen to their story. I expected the introverts in the room to revolt, but here's what happened instead. The introverts (and extroverts) all asked to do it again. They found that listening to each other's stories is being on holy ground. They found that what's cool about Christian community is that we know that we are known by someone -- and that we matter. So, if you visit Light of the World and someone comes up to you and really thinks you are interesting, it's because that's who we are becoming...a group of people who value real relationships.

Another night, we had a community conversation about what will happen when we're no longer meeting on Wednesday nights at the golf course. When we start worshiping in December on Sundays, what do we want to keep? What do we value most about what God is up to among us? People said that they value that we are relaxed, joyful and include people of all ages in worship. They want to keep meeting on Wednesdays for a meal and small group learning and community time, even when we start worshiping on Sunday mornings. They want to keep having one-to-one conversations. What God has been doing is good!

Every night, we have a whole table full of middle school boys who are eating and worshiping together. And they sing. Really. They help lead us in prayer. They like my messages. They like each other. They invite friends. What is God up to in that?

Last week, we decided to give our entire offering away to another Farmington grass-roots organization that has decided that it is not acceptable that anyone in Dakota County go to bed hungry tonight. People gave $790!

And every night, we ask kids to draw a masterpiece for God and put it in the offering basket when it comes around. Most pictures have these words written underneath: "Light of the World Rox."

I think so, too.

Deb