But God...

Awhile back, I posted about a project called Nieucommunities. The following devotional is written by someone at the Nieucommunities site in the West End of Glassgow, Scotland.

(The following is not written by me, just shared by me because I liked it.)

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. (Ephesians 2:4-10 ESV)

Meditation

But God… We all have them, right? Those times in our walk with God when loving him with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength seem effortless. Fully alive moments of success in relationships or service that make our passion for God so real…our calling so clear…our ability to sacrifice so natural. Moments when we can almost hear our Father in heaven saying, “This is my son…my daughter…in them I am well pleased!” We actually feel the “immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.”

But then, there are other times…times when love grows cold…times when each step stirs fear, indecision, and doubt. They are the seasons of death and darkness…seasons of the cross. But God… Our community in Glasgow is walking through one such season. We witnessed and endured brokenness in ways that we always hope as children of God we won’t have to experience. In many respects, we watched the ministry God built slowly disassemble before our eyes. It is a season of asking many questions about our calling, our purpose, and our reason to exist.

But God… It is in these times that it is the hardest to believe that he has not made a mistake—that “we are his workmanship.” In these times, it is the hardest to believe that we have a purpose“— good works, which God prepared beforehand.” It is hard to walk the steps laid out for us.

But God… A thought, an idea, which I hold in my mind and heart, fuels my passion in the hardest of times. It is as if Paul writes these words for me at this pivotal moment between what was and what is. Between what has been and what will be. It is my Lord Jesus walking step by brutal step toward his greatest moment of darkness and his greatest gift of love.

But God… It stirs the heart in the deepest place. Could it be that God is still intimately and strategically moving in and out of our lives, shaping and forming all that we are, fixing that which was broken, finding that which was lost, making us into what he has always dreamed we would be? Could it be that the weight of this world does not have to rest on my shoulders…but that it rests on the crucified shoulders of this “great love with which he loved us?”

But God…

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Nieucommunities part 2

I mentioned liking the video and also asked several people for any more information they had on the outfit. This is an excerpt of some info that my friend Steve sent:

"Chris,I don't know much about CRM/NieuCommunities, but what I've seen I've really liked. They appear to be a mission organization that has formed itself around a real missional/incarnational/neo-monastic kind of ethos and model, living in urban areas among the poor and reaching out. I would definitely encourage you to investigate it further and prayerfully consider participating in one of their "road trips."Here's a blog from one of CRM's leaders defending the emerging church movement: http://www.undertheic... That's always encouraging to see!...

BTW -- Another organization that has an almost neo-monastic kind of ethos and ministry model is Word Made Flesh: http://www.wordmadefl... And of course I've gotta put in a plug for my own organization, SIM (Serving In Mission), which has a wonderful ethos and many opportunities to serve in holistic ministry (in HIV/AIDS ministry, urban centers, among the poor, etc.): http://www.sim.org/ ..."

Thanks for the info, Steve. If you're wondering what neo-monastic or "new monasticism" is about, go here.

Steve's also promised to become a regular reader of this blog, thus hastening my inevitable takeover of the blogosphere. Bwah-hah-hah! Of course, that was sight (site?) unseen, so I'm sure I'll scare him off. In which case you'd all miss out, cause he knows a lot of neat stuff. Solution? Go here.

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This is AWEsome - Nieucommunities pt 1

I've included a group called 'nieucommunities' in my link list, just on the strength of their video and website. I don't actually know anything about them or their sponsors (CRM? These people aren't crazy, are they?) beyond what they say about themselves. But it's really cool, and humbling, to see people live their faith so fully. I actually stumbled across them a few months ago, and was considering doing one of their Beyond Borders Road Trips next fall. No idea with my current hunting-for-a-job status if that's in the plan now or not. Either way, they seem beyond-words-amazing.

(Update 3/19/08 - edited the post to imbed the video here on the website, rather than making you go to Youtube.)

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