A Missional Metaphor: The Capital Streams

During my most recent cross-country adventures I enjoyed a few days on the train. First, from Chicago to Denver, and then from Denver to San Francisco. My train and route even had a name: "The California Zephyr". I chose this train and route after careful planning and review. I knew that it would take me to/through places I had never visited, and give me at least a glimpse of the fabric of Americana. 

                                                 

In short, I was not disappointed. The train's observation car allowed me to gaze in wide-eyed wonder at the passing landscape. From a comfortable seat I tried to capture an image or two as we whizzed along; sometimes as rapidly as 80 mph. In all honesty I often lost track of  time. The beauty of the surroundings, and the sheer vastness of the landscape were often beyond my poor command of language to describe. So with Nikon in hand, and a lens or two nearby, I attempted the impossible. I wanted a way to remember some of what I was witnessing. I wanted to be able to share some measure of it with my friends.

The two scenes featured were taken as we passed through the Rockies. The first was taken of our train from my vantage point in the observation car as we curved our way through a mountain pass. The second photograph was snapped as the sun peeked out from the clouds following a flurry of snow. The river below us glistened in sunlight. 

In February I want to try and communicate (in images and words) the unfolding discernment which our district mission strategy team is discovering
as it relates to God's mission among us. We are hopeful that the image of three meshing streams will help us to cast God's vision before the entire district. The vision is not so much a picture of what God will be doing as it is one of what God is already doing; going before us, and inviting us to wade into the stream(s) with God, one another, and all our neighbors. 

Those three streams could be described as follows:

      God in mission before us/with us, in our communities and the world,
      addressing the challenges and opportunities of hunger and human need.

      God in mission before us/with us among our growing Hispanic/Latino 
      neighbors; learning together as the stream carries us where God chooses

      God in mission before us/with us among children in our public schools,
      and their extended families, embracing the hurts and hopes we share.

God - in mission - before us - with us. The good news is we can already identify the God of mission in our midst, clearly and consistently  We are not left to our own strategies and devices, but called and led by God, who as one liturgy notes is, "always working for our good". 

In the weeks ahead we'll explore each of these streams more closely, with the hope that as we press into the streams, we might comprehend the true landscape around us.  What if God is inviting us to a journey to/through places we have never visited? Could God be inviting us to leave our familiar shores and discover the vastness of a landscape too expansive to be confined to a sanctuary?  I guess the only way to answer these questions honestly is
to jump in and discover.

In Christ,

Jon(theMethodist)