The Retreat Chronicles III - Guaranteeing True Community

"Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them." -- Jesus, to his followers

We're not stupid. We know the right, churchy answers. Shoot, we're the ones teaching them to everyone we come across. This is a "ministry staff" retreat, for Pete's sake. We've committed our lives to dishing out Jesus to everyone we know. We know what Jesus told his followers...

 

To give up everything, all attachments to this world, and attach to him.

To die to ourselves, letting our lives be at his disposal for others.

To love each other in a way that it is humanly impossible, so that the world knows that Jesus is God's son.

 

But we were (once again) on the longest journey of any human being's life...the remarkably difficult and adventurous 12 inch journey from "knowing" in our heads to "living" from our hearts.

 

Back at Jesus' "ministry staff" retreat in John 13, Jesus had just washed his followers feet and reiterated that they should love each other in the same extreme, unpopular, detail-oriented, inconvenient way that he has loved them...and that it's mandatory if they want to be blessed.

 

We're not stupid. We know this story. We know this simple teaching. But here we are at our "ministry retreat" with Jesus looking at each other, wondering what the next step is. How do we love each other, give ourselves to each other, care for each other in such a way as to be a real, true blessing...and so receive one.

 

We needed Jesus in the room, coaching us. And we had him, in all of us. We started with prayer, pairing up with our spouses and praying with eyes wide open, heads up, looking around the room at each other, we all asked God, "Lord, let us give ourselves to these people." It was cool.

 

My wife and I took turns praying as we went around the room..."Lord, give us to Bruce and Edie...bless Bob and Caron through us...bless Doyle and Christy's marriage by sharing ours with them...let us be weak, God, so that Jesus can be strong to Landon and Kristen through us...give us to Craig and Vicky...give us to Kyle and Jen...give us to Jim...give us to Brad and Karen...give us to Phil and Kim..." and on and on we went. It looked right, and it suddenly felt like we sealed the deal for the course of the day by praying for it. God was going to answer. He was going to show us, coach us, and bless us in how to "wash each other's feet" today.