This Is My Beginning (Week 7)

So we are down to single digit countdown…just a few more days until we leave for Canton!  I know this week is going to be busy, lots of you are going down to Alive…others have sports or other activites, but I would encourage each of you to take a little quiet time out of your days this week in preparation for next week.

Here are the questions for this week:

What stuck out most to you this week?  Why?

One thing that continues to stick out to me throughout this book are the photographs.  Each photograph tells its own story and adds so much more to the story that it is tied in with.  One photo that I would like you to take another look at this week is the photo of the church tied in with the story of Hope.  Why do you think this photograph was used?  Does church represent hope to you?  If so, how?

Carmen gives some really great examples of how she lives her life as ministry in really practical ways in the story called “A New Way of Living”.  What are ways that you can tangibly live your life as ministry?

I’m looking forward to next week and hope that all of you are beginning to get excited!  Thanks for all of your thoughts!

 

Where Do I Begin? (Week 6)

Remember that just because Mission Training is over it does not mean that we are done reading or blogging.

Thank you all for your thoughtful answers over the past few weeks!

Here’s a few questions for this week:

What story stuck out the most to you this week? Why?

One of the reasons why do service projects throughout the year in Flipd is because of what’s described in “Two Stones.”  We want our faith to rub against injustice.  Do you have an idea for a service project Flipd could do next year as a youth group?  What’s an area of injustice that you see in our city that Flipd could do something about?

How can you “start small” like suggested in “Friend With Money”?  What are some small changes that you’re thinking about now as a result of the reading we’ve been doing in the last couple months?

See you all on Sunday when we get back from Boston with the 7th Graders

This Is My Justice (Week 5)

(If you have not blogged for previous weeks, please do so.  Also do not forget to comment on others from the previous week)

This past week Joe Tucker came in to talk with us about his experience in “Mission Year.”  Joe spoke a lot with us about the story of The Good Samaritan.  The question he asked us to think about was “what is keeping us from helping others?” We all came up with four answers between the story and our own ideas.  1.) We have a hard heart. 2.) We are too busy and it would take extra time that we feel we do not have. 3.) We are afraid.  It could be dangerous for us to help others. 4.)  We want to ‘stay clean.’ Ministry can get kind of messy, as Joe talked about.  I hope that as you have been reading through the chapter this week and processing what Joe talked with us about you have been thinking through this.  I also hope that through hearing Joe speak, as well as through reading you have been challenged.  I know that as I continue to read the stories of others, I find myself to be challenged in different ways.

Here are the questions for this week:

Reflect on Marianne Williamson’s quote (pg. 108).  What do you think it means?  Why?

What is a part of your neighborhood, community, country, world that you see injustice in?  What can you do to help imagine and then live justice into that area?

“The Body is the most beautiful thing when all the parts are working differently, but together, for the same goal.”  Take some time to reflect on what this means for us as a team in Canton this summer.  What are some ways that you see this playing out this summer for us?

This Is My Beloved Community/Where Is The Justice? (Week 4)

(Make sure that you’re caught up with prior week’s questions & conversations before posting here!)

Because we read Chapter 4 together and had some good discussion I would like to focus mainly on Chapter 5.  However, I think there are some things that we can still keep in mind from Chapter 4.

To begin with, the very first story in chapter four is a great example of people learning from one another.  This is a huge part of community…people learning from you and you learning from others.  Having a mentor, such as Amy and Duffy in this story is a way for this to be accomplished.  Do you have a mentor in your life?  If not, I would encourage you to think about who you could ask to walk with you and challenge you and you could ask questions of.  Your small group leader or even your C2 leader could be good places to start.

In Chapter 5, what story most stuck out to you?  Why did this story stick out to you?

Justice is a central theme in the Bible.  The basic principle of justice is pursuing things to be as God designed them to be.  Where there is inequality, God desires equality.  Where there is brokenness, God desires healing and wholeness.  Where there is discrimination, God desires unity.  Throughout the Scriptures, God says that more important than the worship rituals we perform is the way we live our life by coming alongside the poor, the broken, the immigrant, the orphan (Proverbs 21:13, 29:7, Isaiah 1:17, 58:10, Psalm 82:3-4, Deuteronomy 10:18, Luke 4:18, Matthew 25:35 and I John 3:17-18 just to name a few). 

As I read through this book, I can see, especially in this chapter, these principles coming to life through the stories.  And each chapter has a way of challenging me each week.  I hope that you are also having this experience as you continue to read.

Read a few (2-3) of the verses listed above.  What do they seem to say about God’s heart?

From these two chapters, can you think of some ways that our team could model or become a ‘beloved community?’

What’s So Beloved About Community (Week 3)

(Make sure that you’ve posted and responded to the first two weeks posts before continuing with this week.)

I have thoroughly enjoyed reading all of your comments and thoughts the past couple weeks.  Thank you for being honest with your responses and dialoguing with each other. 

Here are the questions for this week:

What is something that stuck with you from the reading this week? Or something that grabbed your attention and made you think?  What are some ideas from this chapter that we should consider as we live in community this summer in Downtown Canton?

What’s a community that you feel connected to and loved by?  How do you feel connected to this community?  What are the things that make this community good?  What are things that could be done (either by yourself or by others) to make the community even better?

My favorite story out of this chapter is Anne’s story.  She makes some really great observations about what other people are teaching her through the way that they live.  What is something that you have learned recently from someone through the way that they live? 

For this Sunday, we will be reading Chapter 4 together so make sure that you have your book with you Sunday morning!  Looking forward to more discussion…hope you are having a wonderful week

This is My Neighbor (week 2)

If you’re reading this & you have not blogged about the first chapter (Who Is My Neighbor?) yet, please go do that first!  Also, don’t forget to participate in the discussion on last week’s questions.  You need to comment on at least 2 teammates posts.

I hope you are all having a fantastic week and found the reading this week to be interesting and thought provoking.  Here are the questions for this week…

Why do you think the one story (‘Towel Dry Conversations’) says “I am also aware that to Jesus I probably look a lot like Bobby, and He still takes time to listen.”?  How does this statement make you feel?

The overall question of last week’s reading was “Who Is My Neighbor?”  In this week’s reading we read several stories about who Leroy (and his friends) have as neighbors.  Short stories of how they embraced individuals as neighbors in their lives by loving, caring, listening, and being with them.  So how about you?  Tell us a story of someone who has been your neighbor…either that you cared for like William & the guys that threw the party for Fernando or someone like Mrs. Bishop who cared for and listened to Claire.

See you all on Sunday! (if not before…if you are joining us at The Gathering on Friday night)  Come Sunday ready to discuss our reading and have some more fun as a team!

Who Is My Neighbor? (week 1, 2011)

So…Here we go, our first official blog post for the Canton Trip!

I am thrilled that each one of you is coming on the trip this summer.  I know that Canton may not be the first place that pops into your minds when you think of a missions trip, but I think that God has a lot in store for us this summer and the fact that we are staying in close to home only adds to what God can teach us and how He can use us!  And it all begins with us reading our book and meeting on Sunday mornings.

So let’s begin…Each week I will have a couple questions on here for you.  Please take a few moments and respond to them below by leaving a comment (so that I can know who is posting please include your first name and last initial on the comment).  Along with answering the question posed here take a few moments to also go back to the previous week’s blog and read what other’s have written and respond/interact with them.  Be honest when you are responding to your teammates thoughts…and take your time.  This time should allow us to build relationships and trust in each other.  There is no limit in how much you have to write (so write lots!) but please take your time …the more you think through it, the more it will help you be prepared!

For this week’s reading…Think of a time in your life when you were suprised by someone like Matthew Fowler was (pg 29).  What was your initial reaction?  And how did you leave the situation feeling?

Take some time to think about how you respond to people who live in poverty and to homeless people in light of what you read this week.  What do you think the 6 stories this week tell us about who our neighbors are?  What is something that stuck out to you?

Canton 2011

So here it is…the place where we will be meeting throughout the week to share our ideas, thoughts, questions and so on about our book and our upcoming trip!  Glad you found it and so excited for us to get started.

What Do I Bring?

As I have read each chapter in this book, I constantly look back to the chapter title, because each little story is either answering the question that was asked through the chapter title or affirming, in some way, the statement that was made by the chapter title.

This week’s chapter is “What Do I Bring?” and we read stories about what different individuals brought with them to the communities they lived in, the people they spent time with, and life they lived. So take a few minutes to think about this one before you answer and then share with me, in a couple paragraphs, about what you bring. You can think about a special talent God has given you, a certain mindset you possess, or a character trait that you have. How do you use that attribute to affect people around you? Act like Leroy Barber (the author) asked you to write your own little chapter in this book…what would you say in answer to “What Do I Bring?”

This is my beginning.

I’ve really enjoyed the photography in this book.  I think it adds a lot to the stories.  One of the pictures that stuck out especially to me is in this chapter.  Why do you think the picture used in the thoughts on Hope was used?  Does church represent hope to you?  If so, how?

Carmen gives some really great examples of how she lives her life as ministry in really practical ways in the story called “A New Way of Living”.  What are ways that you can tangibly live your life as ministry?