Those Crazy College Kids

Sunday a couple of our college students from Cascade College brought two folks from Dignity Village. Dignity Village is a transitional tent community that is becoming a city, within Portland, for homeless people. Those crazy college kids have no boundaries, no fear, and no desire to spiritually die as many of us already have.

Lori and I spent 3 hours at Dignity Village today (whenever you visit Agape, we visit you). What a blessing. What a wonderful group of people. What hearts. They spoke of the college students with a smile and shining face. Seems that these kids every Wednesday pool their money, make a Taco Bell run, and bring tacos to the community. They called them the taco girls (isn't it interesting how historically females have had this heart for the poor--sometimes males do but less often). We were humbled.

Lori and I left talking so much about what we were wanting to do. We want to bless these folks and want so much to listen to their stories, their community, and their reflections about God. Yet, we are indebted to the students who continually show us what it means to be like Jesus. I went away with some sounder conclusions:

1) I love Lori more and more every day. She beams when talking to the people and is so comfortable with anyone. I know that we will always be a team and love visiting with people together.
2) Our boys are going to love going with us to help in whatever way we can.
3) College students are not idealistic--they are courageous. If we want to lead them we had better be too.
4) I was taught that hard work brought success and financial stability. This is a lie, sometimes things happen and you lose it all, no matter how hard you have worked and saved.
5) Jesus has spoken to me through the Bible, a book called the Irresistable Revolution, and a group of college females who love people as we should.

My prayers are that Agape will be able to lead these kids when they return for the Fall. My prayers are that Agape will minister to Dignity Village with love and compassion and learn from them the wonderful lessons of community, support, and human courage.

Houston We Don't Have a Problem

Thank you to all of our supporters and those praying for us. There is so much to say, and so many emotions running through our minds and hearts at this time. God is good and we are excited to officially be in Portland as a new church.

You can visit our website www.missionagape.com to pull up the Powerpoint presentation of our first worship service. Sorry--I don't know how to copy the link here!

Summary:
105 people attended
12 visitors attended the after worship session to discuss home communities
4 responses from the area due to our mailout
Many responses stating they will return Sunday, even to help come early to setup
20 people who were looking for a church home attended
The Custodian continues to attend and came over for lunch
2 people ready to attend Core Values class
All 5 home communities will be full in the next couple weeks
This comment from one of the visitors in the nearby apartment complex. He emailed Brad Barbarick, one of our home group leaders...

Brad - It was nice talking with you today. I'm still in a state of shock. I just can't fully come to grips with fact that a church is
meeting in the cafeteria at Lincoln High School. This is a blessing! I will be attending regularly. Look forward to talking with you again.

Core Team did an excellent job and made contacts during the egg hunt and the worship.
Launch team did an excellent job getting us ready.
Park Plaza team did an excellent job helping us get ready. We had 20 show up to help us prepare and follow up. What a wonderful group of brothers and sisters. We strengthened our relationships and developed strong spiritual bonds. They worked very hard and encouraged us greatly.
Kairos Church Planting has once again prepared a church to launch and begin a new work in a city hurting and seeking relationship with God.

I could go on but the pictures say it all.

Please keep us in prayer as we continue our outreach this week.

Life On The Farm: Ruin, Roots, & Recovery

I walked the mountain this morning and made a discovery. A few weeks ago a series of small, but potentially large, fires burned in the forest near and on our farm. Today I found where fire breaks had been cut by the forest service and walked the length of one.

Powerful, indiscriminating equipment left a swath of crushed rock, raked bark, ripped earth and twisted saplings. The forest’s beauty was gashed, bruised and battered. The saplings appeared to suffer the worst, but from them I learned the most.

They are recovering. Though the limbs were ripped from them, though the bark was skinned away, though they were knocked to the ground and trampled by enormous weights and forces…they’re recovering…resprouting from the root.

New limbs have begun to bud. In a few weeks, they’ll be launching sunward, producing leaves and seeds. The damaged parts will eventually die, though removing them altogether would be most healing. No, these saplings will never quite be what they were intended, but they’ll survive and they’ll thrive. People can too.

Bull dozer size events bowl over children, innocents, good people. They’re trashed by some maniac driven by the fire of Hell. In a moment of unconcern, he rakes across them without discrimination, and leaves smashed, scratched, and shattered lives. The wounds are deep. Irrevocable. Why are beautiful lives battered? How do they recover?

I believe the saplings demonstrate the cure. They start at their roots. Who we are is not dictated by what happens on the surface, but by our connections in the deep hidden center. Find the source of your life and you’ll find the strength for its recovery and renewal. “I am the…life,” said Jesus. Scripture says about God, “In him we live and move and have our being.”

The scars, the twists, the wounds don’t define who you are. Cut them off. Draw on God. God loves, nourishes, feeds, cares and shapes. Reach for the Son. Pursue his will and ways with all your heart. Focus, as everyone should, on things above.

Just as it was never God’s plan for bull dozers to level the forest, he never had in mind that we should be hurt. But Evil exists, and people are pulverized. Like rich soil, God is near, able to nourish recovery, deliver life and produce new discoveries every morning.