One week after our Urban Immersion and I am coming to a close on my reflections on our experiences. It was an amazing time - we met so many incredible God-ambassadors, each with a story that could fill volumes. I wrote these posts in order to give you all (and remind myself years later) of the creativity in God’s imagination throughout this generation. I remember when all Christians did was “go to church”. Now it seems that with God on our side, there is nothing we can’t do!

After a clumsy and slow morning (we needed it after our late night on the streets!) we headed out to the north side of Austin, TX to the Storehouse. There we met Tim Abels, a Dell executive and passionate follower of Jesus Christ. He is actually the brother of Jay Abels, a man I met on my first short term mission trip down in Buenos Aires, Argentina!

When we arrived, all I can say is that we were a little apprehensive. We saw the outdoor sign and thought (great, I hope we don’t get stuck here for too long). I thought this would be another conscience-wipe for rich, guilty Christians. But I had heard the stories - that Tim and a few guys had started in his garage just giving things away to those who really needed them, and through a huge influx of donations have had to open up a 40,000 sq. ft. facility to hold all that they do there!

Walking in was like walking into many other thrift stores - clothes, furniture, old toys, and dismembered paperbacks filled the large open room that greets you as you walk in. It felt just like any other Goodwill, except you saw an occasional cross here or there. The prices I noticed were better than other thrift stores, but I had been told that it was FREE to anyone who needed it - what gives with the prices?

We sat down in a big back room, in a big circle with Tim, Jared Abels (another friend I continually find myself bumping into, and wonder what God has in store for our friendship), and a whole host of others who volunteer at the Storehouse. I was immediately struck at the diversity of people in the room - white, Mexican, Filipino, a deaf and blind man, old, young…they all were working on this dream together.

Tim began by sharing the vision - they want to be a presence of the Gospel to people who are in need and an hub for churches to work together through. And they do! We heard each volunteer mention a different church that they were a part of, and yet you could hear that those in the circle had become a church all their own!

The Storehouse provides a food pantry, ESL (English as a Second Language) training courses, finance courses, counseling, life skills training, a free medical clinic, disaster relief, job training (interviewing skills, etc), free worship space for new churches, housing (the police have a key to their building, and bring in victims of abuse during late-night emergencies), mentoring, work for those with disabilities, dental clinics, bible distribution, and of course a free thrift store.

“But how is it free?” I kept asking. Finally I got my answer. In crisis situations, people can come to the storehouse and take whatever they need without cost (take for example, a single mom has to leave an abusive dad, but has no furniture, clothes, cooking supplies, etc). She comes to the Storehouse, stays for a day or two. Counselors take on immediate emotional and spiritual traumas, while volunteer job consultants begin helping them find work if need be. Professional doctors come in to offer free medical help and examinations to the family and tend to their wounds. They are given financial counseling and prayed over by Christ-followers who believe that he is able to overcome any obstacle for them.

Then after they have gotten a place to live, the single mom is given a temporary job working at the Storehouse, earning “credit dollars” to buy more essentials for her new home away from the abusive man, who is not told where to find them. She makes $10 of credit each hour and at the end of the day can take home whatever she thinks she needs for her children, who have been at the Storehouse daycare. Over time, our single mom becomes attached to her new family at the Storehouse, and they share with her the Great News about Jesus Christ. She knows that Christ is among them there, and is baptized into a new life of love with a family she is already getting to know.

This is happening hundreds of times every year at the Storehouse! What is more amazing is that the volunteers simply can’t stop talking about all that God is doing! It just seemed that each person’s gift was being used in a way that was absolutely necessary to seeing the whole thing happen! From the precision of medical instruments to sorting hangers, everyone had a job to do. In a lot of ways it gave me a picture of what Ephesians 4 actually looks like:

“Out of the generosity of Christ, each of us is given his own gift…He handed out gifts of apostle, prophet, evangelist, and pastor-teacher to train Christians in skilled servant work, working within Christ’s body, the church, until we’re all moving rhythmically and easily with each other, efficient and graceful in response to God’s Son, fully mature adults, fully developed within and without, fully alive like Christ”

I think what I found most encouraging about the Storehouse was that it was a body that was “moving rhythmically” and in response to God’s Son, “fully developed within and without”. Not many churches are like this - if they do have a food pantry, people attend out of a need to serve their guilty conscience, not because they want to see people holistically redeemed.

Trina and I were left wondering what it might be like to see a Storehouse like this in Chicago - and what part we might have to play there…

Our heads were already spinning as we experienced the contrast between scenic, peaceful world of rock climbing and camping the night before and the multi-ethnic, cultural phenomenon of UT’s campus. But Friday night our “Urban Immersion” would put us right in the middle of South by Southwest (SXSW) Music Festival!

But before we hit the streets, we met Kester Smith and his family for dinner. They are planting a church in downtown Austin for those without hope (Immanuel Austin Community). While he is a pastor of a church, he also works for Book People, a huge bookstore that attracts a pretty diverse crowd right off of 6th St. To these people he’s sort of seen as the “token Christian guy” since he’s the only one working there AND is a kindhearted guy who shares his thoughts. Co-workers pick his brain to try to figure this whole Christian thing out - I’m glad he’s God’s ambassador to those people.

As the sun set, we said goodbye to Kester and headed out in pairs onto 6th St, the main hub of SXSW. The only thing that outnumbered the bars were the people traipsing up and down the streets.  Katrina and I were together, and for the next several hours our “assignment” (good ole’ Kent, always finding moments for teaching and learning…) was to keep our eyes open to what God wanted to show us, and to try to have some meaningful conversations with people.

Well, Trina and I knew that last bit was going to be difficult the moment we walked into the first bar. The music was so blaringly loud that there was no way we could hold a conversation AT ALL much less delve into the mysteries of the universe.

We walked out the back door of the bar and into a filthy alleyway. The underbelly of 6th St. It was here that we began to see what God wanted to show us. Learning to see with God’s eyes is a little like trying to figure out one of those “Magic Eye” comic strips.

At first all you see is trash and darkness. You want to get out of there as fast as possible. You feel threatened by the darkness. But soon your eyes “adjust” and you begin to remember who you are, and whose you are. Your vision comes to you and you begin to see a couple over in a corner making out, and the man looks like he’s taking advantage of an uncertain woman.

A few drunken rich college-aged students are stumbling around the corner, working hard to forget the pain that they carry around with them. We saw a woman digging through the trash with great focus and intensity, looking for aluminum cans (what for, we don’t know), and shooting harried glances up at passers by.

Our eyes began to see things everywhere that it seemed were at first invisible to us. We began to see the pain, the loneliness, and the abandonment…(and even unrestrained joy) of the entire mob of 6th St. It was unnerving.

Katrina said she was glad to have gone, saying that she would have stuck to a safe, quiet pub somewhere and just people watched. I personally get really energized by entering into unknown situations where I am completely disoriented. I just pay attention more in unfamiliar situations - and therefore pay attention to what God is doing in a bigger way.

I enjoyed my time out on 6th Street, I met some amazing people with incredible stories (or maybe it just sounded more incredible since they were screaming their stories to me over 30′ speakers). SXSW is a community well in many ways, and I believe Jesus Christ focused in on community wells, meeting women (and men) who needed life-giving water. I pray for more “training” from the Lord at community wells in my everyday life, and training in keeping my eyes open.

After only being gone for 4 days, it feels like an eternity since I’ve written on here, and I’m excited to share with you what God revealed to us in Austin, TX during our Urban Immersion experience. Over the next four posts, I’ll give you a spotlight on some of the events that took place, as well as some of the creative harvest workers doing some amazing things in that area of the world.

So Thursday morning bright and early (well, sorta…we had a few late bloomers that morning…ME!) we left for Austin in a caravan and made it with only a few potty breaks to Reimer’s Ranch - our first stop on the trip.

This was my first chance to “lead” a climb, which means setting up the course for anyone else who follows. Its a little trickier and admittedly my hands used a little more resin to keep from sweating, but in the end it paid off. We reflected later that evening on the experiences of the day and I realized that I am a leader. That is hard for me to take in sometimes, and most of the time I don’t feel up to the task. But it was helpful also to be reminded that even though I may be a leader, I will never lead alone. Someone is always helping me with the next step; finding the next hook to hold on to. And there is always someone attached by a rope to catch me if I fall.

The next day we drove into Austin and met up with Tony and Felicity Dale. They were doctors over in England and let the Lord use them in helping hundreds of doctors and patients to follow Christ. Back in 1987 they came to Austin to do the same thing, only to be severely disappointed. Over the course of 10 years they waited for the Lord to show them what to do next, and finally he did.

He helped them wrestle with what “church” was really all about. They began to hear that the Church is not restrained to pew sitters soaking in words from the “sage on the stage”. They read 1 Cor 14:26 where it says, “When you gather for worship, each one of you be prepared with something that will be useful for all: Sing a hymn, teach a lesson, tell a story, lead a prayer, provide an insight…”

Father was teaching them that the Church is about each and every person learning to use their gift, both in AND out of the gatherings.

Now they are leaders in with House2House Ministries, a go-to point around the nation (and the world) for helping people learn and get connected with organic church principles and participants.  Their website has the most extensive listing of house churches I am aware of.  They also put out an awesome print magazine by the same name, and help pull of a national House Church Conference every year to help raise awareness that God’s Church is leaving the building.

Felicity taught us about “Storying” which will probably be a blog post all of its own some day. Its a powerful, simple tool for sharing the stories and principles of the Bible to illiterate and alliterate cultures (like the USA). She told us of how God was leading hundreds of thousands to Christ in India and Pakistan, and how storying was a means of developing these new disciples in their own homes, with or without any real education. Pretty sweet!

In part 2, I’ll talk about an amazing renewal going on throughout the University of Texas campus.

Well, I feel as if I’ve made it out of some long tunnel and have finally breathing some fresh air again after an arduous semester!

Some reflections on this semester (even before finals are technically over!):

- I’ve made some great strides in learning who I am. I spent most of my energy this semester (for better or for worse) learning and thinking about my religious heritage: Churches of Christ and the Stone-Campbell Movement that began in the 17th Century. Kind of a peculiar place to start, looking at my values. I have however lived deeply into this fellowship, developing a taste for its best principles, and doing my best to reject the parts of the movement’s fallen nature that can be seen in any human system. I drank deeply from the wells of Barton Stone, David Lipscomb, and T.B. Larimore. I also wrote a major research paper on my own grandfather, Cecil Willis. Learning his stories, his values, and his very humanness allowed me to see a lot of myself in my grandfather, and made me aware of my own potential short comings; what my propensities are based on what I have learned from my family. In short, this semester has opened my eyes to myself.
- I’ve given myself over to the temptation of “academia”. I don’t like to admit it, but I was sucked into the the library, when my heart was elsewhere. I felt that I needed perfection in my studies, partly because I valued the projects I was working on (see above), but partly because I’ve lost the tight-knit community that kept me accountable to the mission work I was so focused on last year in MRNA. I guess when I really sit down to think about it, I turned down the opportunity for a missional community of two or three, and instead took up the life of a hermit, seeing how far I could poke my nose inside a book. Of course, this also affected my blogging!

- I grew deeper in interdependence with others. I won’t lie. Our “abbey” holy experiment has been a difficult one. It’s not always natural, its not always holy at all. But when we confessed to each other our frustrations in the midst of a greater community a few weeks ago, we felt the very presence of our Lord, and gave ourselves over to one another. We are learning that life is lived better when we may have less personal space, but have more chances to work and live and love together. Trust is still something we are learning, but our next steps are becoming clearer.

- It’s become so clear to me that I NEED 2 or 3 brothers who will fight for my heart. This kind of relates to the previous reflections, but this is so central to it all that I need to restate it here.  No, I need to write a whole post on it. No, I need to create a whole new blog on it… wait, maybe I should just try living more deeply into it.  Why do we think that we can stay focused on God, live a life on mission with him, pay our taxes and whatever else, without a band of brothers that truly know each other?  It’s absurd!  It’s preposterous!  It’s the American Way!

Whatever happens in the coming weeks and months, I know I have been changed over this past semester.  I anxiously anticipate looking for God’s fingerprints as we move forward in this grand story of redemption.

Now that I’m looking back on this past semester, I’m anxious to spend

A couple of weeks ago, Duane and Marcia, a few friends partnering with Kent Smith in the MRNA program asked if they could come over to talk. Katrina and I weren't sure exactly what for, but we've come to love them over this past year, so we were eager to have them over.

It wasn't at all what I expected when they asked us to move in with them. "You want us to do WHAT?" I was honored, and yet immediately skeptical. "Do they think we can't live in our own house?" flashed through my mind. As they explained their invitation, I came to see what an awesome opportunity this might be.

The Missionary Residency for North America was originally dreamed up to be just what it sounds like: a residency program. Kent, Karen, Duane, Marcia, and the other ACU GST faculty who helped shape the program were hoping that students would actually live on location with the professors, eating breakfast together, shooting hoops together…you name it; the sort of "communal living" you read about in the 60's and 70's.

Only this type of living is based on the Gospel. Like I wrote in my last post, I believe that the Gospel is not just a proposition (a list of facts and statements to agree or disagree with), it is a visible, tangible LIFE. Anytime the Gospel is proclaimed, there is flesh and bones surrounding it. In our American culture, as in all cultures, the Gospel finds its meaning in the story of Jesus Christ crucified. However, the American Gospel in our generation will clothe itself in profoundly communal realities. The American workforce coming home to a giant, empty, cluttered house teeters on the brink of exhaustion. We can no longer do it on our own.

My wife (I like to use the term "my wife" when she does something totally awesome) sensed the innate need for communion and fellowship in our culture almost as soon as we entered it as adults (as we were leaving the "college life"). She has since been impressing on me her desire to find another family to join with in simply living life together. It has been her dream that our family would be communally intertwined in our Christian Mission with others. (For a great scholarly book on a nearby topic, check out Roger Gehring's House Church and Mission.)

As we move in together, I pray that our love might overflow onto the loneliness of those around us. I pray that our friends would enter our home and experience what it means to "die to self" as they see our two families serve in the name of Christ. I pray that our victory would be in our living into the Gospel of Christ, and that it would find its place in the hearts of those who are in proximity to us.

This is just one way God is saving his people in North America.