Speaking about Gerardo and Carola, Chadd said...The thing that comes to my mind as I think about this couple is the importance of investing deeply in the lives of others--and being patient to see what God may do with it all somewhere down the road.
Stay focused.
Jesus: "Do not greet anyone on the road" (Lk 10:4). Figurative language meaning stay focused on finding a "house of peace".
Jesus: "Do not move around from house to house" (Lk 10:7) Figurative language meaning once you've found a "house of peace", invest deeply there as Chadd said. "Be patient to see what God may do with it all somewhere down the road."
Why all of this talk about staying focused on finding and camping out with one particular house of peace? Because one God-prepared household can become a base of operations for the Kingdom for years to come. Because one God-prepared household can "infect" dozens (hundreds?) with the Kingdom "virus".
See Priscilla and Aquila.
See Gerardo and Carola.
Stay focused.
John
PS Looking for more stories about "people/houses of peace".
Hi there!
ReplyDeleteMissionaries from the other part of the world are here. ;-) I've been an attentive reader looking for ways to engage in the discussions, and here is a thought about the above post.
For many apostolic missionaries it's easy to stay focused when the peace household is engaging and willing to change. Challenges come when nothing changes or the attention of the listeners goes away. So, another principle may come in a way, do not waste jewels before those who do not want them. This is when common sense may advise missionaries to move on.
There are several questions that arouse here. How should one read the behavior of a household? What if things go in an unexpected way (people may naturally push back when prompted for change)? How do you know when it is time to move on?
I realize that many of these questions can be answered by 1) listening to hearts; 2) listening to God. What is asked here is particular signs or indications that point to next action.
So, what do others have to say to this topic?
When you find someone that you think is a person of peace, there is a measure of patience in discovery that must be lived out.
ReplyDeleteI am really struggling right now with finding families where the husband may be a person of peace for me, but there is too much chaos in the house for there to be a church planted there. It is tough to have a connection with someone, but to feel that the spouse is the major obstacle. I am currently feeling that we must work with the Lord in cultivating healthy families in our communities. My sense is that this will prepare for a ripe harvest of families of peace.
One question that I have been thinking about in terms of investing in people lately is, "Do you have a spiritual father?" If they do, I may be able to keep moving rather than stepping in on or competing with this other figure. That may be one sign to look for, but I don't think that is a hard and fast rule for me either.
That is probably not overly helpful to you anonymous, but they are my first responses.
I think the art of recognizing when we've found a house of peace and discerning the next steps and the timing of those steps is an important one--and one that perhaps can only (or at least primarily) be learned by experimentation. I suspect every situation is unique--no formulas, like we all regularly remind ourselves.
ReplyDeleteFor me though, having the Luke 10 paradigm in my "pocket" has been really important for the shift God is making in me. I think having my eyes opened to Jesus as the one who (it seems) 1st modeled this way of entering into new groupings of people--and then seeing how he comissioned his followers to try what they had seen in his example--and then seeing how the Luke 10 story and/or ideas from it was included in 3 of the gospel narratives as important teaching for the early church and their missionaries--all made me wake up to how normative this approach was...and I think should be.
Recognizing the stories I think is key.
There is nothing like getting our hands dirty with experience--learning from our own stories and from those of others around us--both stories that went well and not so well.
Over the last few years, we've "entered" into many houses--many failures, many stories that started really good--but then seemed to stall out--but perhaps they'll take a fresh turn down the road; a few that have continued to go well.
For me, some of the keys seem to be expectant prayer for "houses" with open doors, door "knocking" practices (unique--and even God ordained ways to be present, engaged and helpful in the lives of people in one's locale), patience as these seeds are allowed to germinate, and a "starting place" idea for when the door is suddenly opened. Of course, all of this is in the constant presence of God and listening prayer.
I think your idea, Hobby, of framing the conversation around a person's need/desire for spiritual help is a good direction to explore with people. I think this is likely a good starting place idea.
I'll stop. I notice I am probably rambling here. But instead of erasing all of it, I'll send it anyway.
Its cool to be in a good discussion with other practitioners.
I like the way Jesus debriefed with the 70 when they returned and celebrated with them! He knew what they were going through and was proud of them.
Thanks Chadd, I discovered this through a "listen until" reading experience in both 1 and 2 Timothy. I read the intro to both books and sensed the spirit saying stop and reflect on how and why Paul is calling Timothy a Son. The question emerged in the conversation.
ReplyDeleteThe disciples came back with a lot of success. I wonder what our expectation should be? I tend to be an optimist, but reality has been that I fail forward; not 100% success rate. Whew, I'm glad to get that off my chest :) What do you all think, what do you expect in terms of failing and succeeding? Is it helpful to have an expectation one way or the other?
I guess the thing with seed sowing is that it is so difficult to know what is going to happen sooner or later with those seeds, right? So much depends on the soil, on the work of God and others, on the work (often unknown) of the Enemy, on the timing, etc.
ReplyDeleteI long to see a vibrant movement of God. But at this point I only see small glimmers of hope.