DISQUS

so well said and so true, in my humble opinion. so many people living out the kingdom of God now in such beautiful and amazing and powerful ways. that's alive & well...

hi jonathan, thanks for your honesty and for the beautiful story God is telling through you...i am just finishing the furious longing of God by brennan manning, i know you love his stuff as much as i do & your post just reminded me yet again of how light comes from darkness, how God is constantly pursuing us, how healing is where we learn the ways of Love. trusting the big story...peace to you as you sit and wait and soak and listen.

i'm looking forward to it! it's fun to see your dream come together....

hey jonathan, way to stir the pot. thanks for being brave and pointing out how typical this is. it was the first thing i noticed. of course, it's great that women are part of the day-to-day leadership of this network but the reality is that in supporting roles, the power differential is still clear. i dont' remember who made the comment about the reality that there really aren't any women out there with 25 years of senior pastor experience and that is what is required to be part of the core team, but i so agree with peggy: in the evangelical world there have been little to no opportunities for a long long time and there still really aren't, at least not at the top of the top. yet, many strong and amazing women are leading churches in different denominations, contexts, and combinations of ways, but for the most part none of them are "mega" and are probably pretty underground, doing the work of Jesus without the flash and book deals. i wish origins network the best, i am sure it will be helpful to a lot of people, and i am always glad for that. but for me, a small-time female co-pastor in the trenches with people on the margins, it just feels miles and miles away. .

jeromy, this is beautiful....thanks for sharing it with all of us....so much hope is being stirred in so many wonderful ways... kathy

hey, i read this this morning on my own, that was kind of weird when it popped up here in my reader. i thought it was beautiful, nouwen always gets under my skin. such good stuff. anyway, guess God is trying to say "hey, listen to this..." peace and hope to see you in march! kathy

yes! i so think so! i think less than 7 is great, too. i think wherever people are gathered something amazing happens. look at what you said happened "healing, and love, and god, and grace, and joy, and companionship, and brotherhood, and celebration, and a deep sense of awe." can't get much better than that! it's so fun, what God is up to you in your midst, i love hearing about it. kathy

geoff, yeah, this next generation will not tolerate what we many have tolerated and one or even a few leaders making all the decisions won't work either. there's something that has shifted that is hard to put our finger on but i see it in my day to day for sure & i think it is the desire for Jesus in the flesh, that talking about something just doesn't matter that much. it's in the real life, hearts reflected through actions. thanks for these thoughts.

hey jonathan just getting around to reading everyone's posts. i like reading this in light of last night. great words & thoughts & i know our nation, the world could be different if some of these things were lived out! kathy

hey jeromy, happy blog warming! the site looks great! keep writing! i always read even though i'm not the best commenter :)

yep, right back at you jonathan. i look forward to that conversation one of these days. meanwhile, just so glad we can all stay connected out here in blogland and continue learning and stretching and wrestling and experiencing God in all kinds of wild and beautifl ways. your friendship & encouragement means a lot & know that even though i don't comment much, i'm always reading :) peace, kathy

jonathan - beautiful! i think you hit it on the head: "and when I surrendered to being loved, I realized a startling truth. Love would change me from the inside. And the more I received His love the more I could reflect that love to the world around me. And the cool thing was there was no law against love. It was extraordinarily perfect. By loving, I could accomplish the very thing I had attempted to do my whole life. And this love became my pathway to maturity." thanks for sharing, kathy

love the imagery in all kinds of ways. always love your stuff.

love the imagery in all kinds of ways. always love your stuff.

that's an amazing statistic, wow.

hey jonathan, thanks for sharing. i just wanted to say that i am thankful for what you share here and even though i'm not the best commenter, i always read. blogging is a very vulnerable thing in all kinds of weird ways, because you can't always clarify and you can't always take care of the ins and outs of a thought, etc., and the truth is people just see things differently. i like that. but that's why respect and consideration is so necessary....keep stirring the pot....

great thoughts, jeromy. yeah, i think the challenge for all of us is to listen to what God is asking us to do in our context, where we live, the relationships we are in, etc. and to never assume because sometihng "works" for someone else that is what we are supposed to do. it is so hard to step out in faith & learn to be more comfortable in our own community's skin. it is definitely a process! i love what you said that the power is in the following not the formula...and yes, may God grant us courage to follow where he's leading us in all the weird and crazy places we find ourselves...

yeah, like tracy & raffi, i think it's possible, to just be reality in our head and it hasn't quite made it down to the nitty gritty yet. it will always be a continual process, can't happen all at once and there's always more...i think that's a critical piece of the spiritual journey for sure & when it's only camped out in our head and never makes it to affect we'll never truly experience it....

congratulations you guys & welcome to the world & a beautiful family, scout savannah! what a great birthday!!!!!

jonathan, i always really like your thoughts and i so agree with you, that it is always about relationships...not only our relationship with God but our relationship with each other. you ask the best question, are we willing to participate? will we risk what is safe and comfortable to step into radical places of vulnerability and sacrifice on behalf of others.

nicely said. thanks.

nicely said. thanks.

beautiful!

congrats, ted! so beautiful in so many ways....especially loved the same line phil liked & also this one:

"Step into Pentecost
watch it turn the world inside out
bringing in the hurting and dirty
from the margins of ceremonial cleanliness
centering lives in love
and sending the centered
out beyond boundaries
with new hearts and bold words of love"

so good! thanks for sharing with us...

congrats, ted! so beautiful in so many ways....especially loved the same line phil liked & also this one:


"Step into Pentecost

watch it turn the world inside out

bringing in the hurting and dirty

from the margins of ceremonial cleanliness

centering lives in love

and sending the centered

out beyond boundaries

with new hearts and bold words of love"



so good! thanks for sharing with us...