Last Sunday, we talked about God's Big, Beautiful Dream at our gathering and the Community Budget Meeting that followed. And the excitement of what could be was palpable in the room. For we are beginning to see that the Spirit of God is out ahead of us, beckoning us.
And I am so thankful to our board and to so many wonderful community members who are committed to investing in this Dream together.
What is the Dream, you ask? Why, I thought you'd never ask!
We believe that God has a big, beautiful dream for us and our neighborhoods.
And it includes everything and everyone.
We have a conviction that the Creator God is at work to heal and remake the whole world. Our own lives are a part of that renewal project and we are invited to join God in the ongoing work of making all things new. To follow Jesus and join Him in His mission is to become agents of renewal in our neighborhoods, our industries, and our city.
We want to join in God’s Dream by engaging in practices that ground us in the love of God and love of neighbor. For we have this crazy dream. And it is a dream that we as the people of God would no longer be asleep, irrelevant and indifferent to the world, but that we would actually live into what it means to follow Jesus, to embody love, and to be his hands and feet in the earth.
It is a dream of catalyzing ordinary folks like you and me to go into the world (Seattle Metro Area) in the places we live, work and play to announce and demonstrate the good news of Jesus. We believe that it really is good news and that we must reinterpret the gospel through new lenses of love and grace in the particularities of our everyday lives. We dream of groups of sincere followers of Jesus, starting here in Shoreline, but eventually all across the Seattle area, who are joining God in the renewal and flourishing of their neighborhoods -- who are listening, caring, praying, and joining in God's healing work in their everyday lives. And we believe that the Spirit of God is already out ahead of us, in our neighborhoods and workplaces, inviting us to see, to listen and to attend to Her movement.
Okay -- so this is a nice Dream -- but HOW will we live into it?
We will live into this dream by engaging in formational, missional, and communal practices.
And I am so thankful to our board and to so many wonderful community members who are committed to investing in this Dream together.
What is the Dream, you ask? Why, I thought you'd never ask!
We believe that God has a big, beautiful dream for us and our neighborhoods.
And it includes everything and everyone.
We have a conviction that the Creator God is at work to heal and remake the whole world. Our own lives are a part of that renewal project and we are invited to join God in the ongoing work of making all things new. To follow Jesus and join Him in His mission is to become agents of renewal in our neighborhoods, our industries, and our city.
We want to join in God’s Dream by engaging in practices that ground us in the love of God and love of neighbor. For we have this crazy dream. And it is a dream that we as the people of God would no longer be asleep, irrelevant and indifferent to the world, but that we would actually live into what it means to follow Jesus, to embody love, and to be his hands and feet in the earth.
It is a dream of catalyzing ordinary folks like you and me to go into the world (Seattle Metro Area) in the places we live, work and play to announce and demonstrate the good news of Jesus. We believe that it really is good news and that we must reinterpret the gospel through new lenses of love and grace in the particularities of our everyday lives. We dream of groups of sincere followers of Jesus, starting here in Shoreline, but eventually all across the Seattle area, who are joining God in the renewal and flourishing of their neighborhoods -- who are listening, caring, praying, and joining in God's healing work in their everyday lives. And we believe that the Spirit of God is already out ahead of us, in our neighborhoods and workplaces, inviting us to see, to listen and to attend to Her movement.
Okay -- so this is a nice Dream -- but HOW will we live into it?
We will live into this dream by engaging in formational, missional, and communal practices.
We believe that living into the way of Jesus takes practice – and that our faith is much more than something we add to our already busy, stressed-out lives, but rather, it is a way of life.
If we truly want to live into God's Dream, we will have to swim upstream against the strong currents of individualism and consumerism. We will need each other to reengage our faith as a profoundly earthy, bodily, and communal experience in the midst of an age of frenetic lifestyles, anxiety, and fragmentation. We will engage in practices that call us to faithful presence, root our faith in a place, and embody the presence and compassion of Jesus for the flourishing of our communities.
• Communal Practices connect us deeply to the gift of neighbor and the beloved community in all its diversity and beauty until we recognize that our flourishing is inextricably bound together.
[Weekly Neighborhood Meals, Small Groups, Parties, Shared Life, Living Intentionally in Neighborhood]
• Formational Practices heal and form us more and more into the likeness of Jesus, reminding us of the story we are living into as we grow in faith, hope and love.
[Sanctuary Gathering, Godly Play, Spiritual Direction Groups, Prayer, Bible Study, Theology Pub]
• Missional Practices connect us to God's healing work in our neighborhoods as we practice presence, pursue reconciliation, work for justice, embody compassion and seek the good of all.
[Tutoring, Turning Point Community Meals, Coffee + Breakfast on Aurora, Social Justice Book Club]
Invest in the Dream
The gospel invites us into a life of radical contentment, generosity, gratitude, trust and simplicity. Our faith in a generous God is formed and refined in the act of giving. We can free ourselves from of the tyranny of the American dream, engage the needs of our neighbors, and invest in God’s Dream.
Take the 90 DAY GIVING CHALLENGE --
We are beginning a 90 Day Giving Challenge and we are asking every member of our community to participate and to test God in this [Malachi 3:10]. Please pray about what you can give and let us know your commitment by this Sunday, February 11th. You can either turn in your commitment card or fill out this form online!
If we truly want to live into God's Dream, we will have to swim upstream against the strong currents of individualism and consumerism. We will need each other to reengage our faith as a profoundly earthy, bodily, and communal experience in the midst of an age of frenetic lifestyles, anxiety, and fragmentation. We will engage in practices that call us to faithful presence, root our faith in a place, and embody the presence and compassion of Jesus for the flourishing of our communities.
• Communal Practices connect us deeply to the gift of neighbor and the beloved community in all its diversity and beauty until we recognize that our flourishing is inextricably bound together.
[Weekly Neighborhood Meals, Small Groups, Parties, Shared Life, Living Intentionally in Neighborhood]
• Formational Practices heal and form us more and more into the likeness of Jesus, reminding us of the story we are living into as we grow in faith, hope and love.
[Sanctuary Gathering, Godly Play, Spiritual Direction Groups, Prayer, Bible Study, Theology Pub]
• Missional Practices connect us to God's healing work in our neighborhoods as we practice presence, pursue reconciliation, work for justice, embody compassion and seek the good of all.
[Tutoring, Turning Point Community Meals, Coffee + Breakfast on Aurora, Social Justice Book Club]
Invest in the Dream
The gospel invites us into a life of radical contentment, generosity, gratitude, trust and simplicity. Our faith in a generous God is formed and refined in the act of giving. We can free ourselves from of the tyranny of the American dream, engage the needs of our neighbors, and invest in God’s Dream.
Take the 90 DAY GIVING CHALLENGE --
We are beginning a 90 Day Giving Challenge and we are asking every member of our community to participate and to test God in this [Malachi 3:10]. Please pray about what you can give and let us know your commitment by this Sunday, February 11th. You can either turn in your commitment card or fill out this form online!
To hear more about WHY it is good for us to give and to orient all aspects of our lives around the Way of Jesus, you can listen to last Sunday's Talk or read our giving statement online!
And if you would like to see the budget, just email me and I'll send that info along.
I am so excited to journey with you into all that God has for us as we seek to live into the Dream!
by Jessica Ketola
And if you would like to see the budget, just email me and I'll send that info along.
I am so excited to journey with you into all that God has for us as we seek to live into the Dream!
by Jessica Ketola
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