Lord I am Yours, dryness doesn't matter nor affect me!

Thanks for your kindness, Konti!

I'm always encouraged when my meandering blatherings do something good for someone!

Of course, that only encourages me to blather on...(& on, and on and on...!).

Shalom, Dena

Konti: Hey Dena,

I read your post in "Involving Children" and as I was reading it, I kept envying you and saying to myself: "how lucky some people are". :) It is because your post speaks volumes of what church life is. It is wonderful for the church to meet in the basis of continual fellowship.

Dena: It's such an amazing, unforseen blessing -- we got kicked out of church 4 years ago (long saga), due to our marriage being healed (got to talk about it on TV recently which was hugely ironic). God brought us some dear friends, who moved from Texas to Oregon, to be in fellowship with us ... as well, He's brought some others, locally, to connect in some amazing ways. But, it took time, and some pain, and some letting go of how we thought simple church was "supposed" to be...!

(the change happened, quite frankly, when we stopped all the "Christian" stuff, and spent weeks playing games together -- Balderdash was a bonding experience!)


Konti: I have been waiting for many years to see the birth of a church here in Athens, and you can understand that being involved in a church life, I see it as a privilege, while others may take it for granted.

Dena: I do understand!


Konti: Sister, can I ask you a favor? If you find time, can you send me an email where you could tell me a little about your church? It would be refreshing for my spirit to hear how She function under the headship of Jesus Christ.
I'd be happy to share ...

Dena: We started out with 65 folks, but that was too big, and many were here either in support, or out of curiosity. Over the 3 years, God seems to have pruned it down to just 3 families, as a core, with others who come and go. Those of us who are here are rather un-orthodox (not as in based in truth, but in our unconventional views). We've become hungry for all truth, and that means letting go of what we've been previously taught.

We're not afraid of exploring controversial questions, such as, "what is hell", and "what does the Bible really say about the parousia (second coming)?" "Is the Bible, or the Spirit meant to be our Guide for life?" Why do we do what we do...? What IS Church?

We mostly hang out and talk ... not much that looks religious ... not always do we "open" with prayer, or sing, or read the Bible together ... but we share whatever God's been doing in our lives, or showing us. We laugh a lot, and we do practical things (helping out with remodeling or yardwork). Our kids know each other, and are growing up together (we all happen to homeschool, or really, unschool). We study historical documents about Jesus ... we read "The Shack" at the same time, and the author, Paul Young, came down to share his thoughts about it with us, last summer ('07, before it got BIG).

We always eat a shared meal ... and we share communion as a part of it... but that's starting to feel "ritualized", so we're looking at it.

We're mostly in each other's lives ... the family who moved here from Texas live in our guest house, across the driveway (a stone's throw). We can see in each other's windows... literally and spiritually. They were going to look for a house to buy, but now even across the street feels too far away, so we dug out the guest house basement (a 1910 Craftsman bungalow, next to our 1900 Victorian, in a small town in Oregon, right on Main Street - very Mayberry RFD!), and how they have their own 2-bedroom home down there! We all plan to grow old together. We sense that God will bring others here, to live in community -- separate homes with shared lives -- my dream is that the whole block would be bought out by those in community, with the pickett fence extended all around, and the backyards shared space ... a pool and garden and a playground, and a BBQ pit, and a gazebo, and a picnic spot ... if it's of God, the dream will come to be!

So, it's more of sharing lives, than "doing church" ... and I believe only God can cause such a thing to be -- but you can ASK Him to knit you together with others, of His choosing... I believe He delights to do just that! Be open, just start loving folks where they are (even those who don't yet "know" Jesus!), and see how they respond ... everyone wants love and truth... even if they don't realize it yet!


Konti: Thank you sisster for your encouraging posts. It has helped me to strengthen my hope of having soon a church here in Athens.

Love in Him,
Konti

Dena: I'm glad I can be an encouragement to you, Konti -- your posts have bouyed me up, as well...!


Shalom, Dena

"The unanswered questions aren't nearly as dangerous as the
unquestioned answers."

"We turn to God for help when our foundations are shaking only to
learn that it is God shaking them." - Charles West

"Naked is having no clothes on. Nekkid is having no clothes on and
being up to something."

"Our truth, when it becomes the ONLY truth, ceases to be truth."

"While we're not fearful of tasting new things, we don't necessarily
swallow all that we taste."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Konti - God never starts a thing that He doesn't complete. So, if He put this desire in your heart (and who else would've?), then it's for you to cooperate with His plan for you and others. Pray along with the unfolding of it (not asking Him for it, but asking Him to align your thinking, desires and actions with His). What else BUT His will would be done...? ;)

He's impregnated you with this desire, this dream, and it's incubating. It will take as long as it takes, but it's not a "wasted" time right now -- ask Him for daily divine encounters, with those who already know Him, and those who aren't awake to Him yet, and enjoy the ride. He has delightful things in store for you!!!

Shalom, Dena

HE IS THE WAY OF LIFE!
HE IS THE WAY OF LIVING!!
GLORY TO HIS NAME!!!

Hi konti,
Is the millennium doctrine now obsolete and unimportant? Please see www.bibleone.net/TheMillennium.htm. Thank you.

Brother Konti,

You did not offend me at all.

I was just kidding. :-)

Hi there Fellow Traveler

Brother Konti, are you and yours safe from the fires near Athens?