Seeing A Dream Come Alive Made Me Cry

In October of 2007, we began a series at Status called "Life In A Tent Without A Campground."  It was a 9 week journey with the Hebrew people from Egypt, through the wilderness and into the promised land.

At the beginning of the series, we built an ebenezer - a pile of rocks commemorating the miracles God has done in our lives - like the one the Hebrews built after God had led them across the Red Sea.  However, our ebenezer was two sided.  One side of our stones was thankfulness for what God had done in our lives.  The other side of the stones was where we feel God leading us next.

As I led our community through that experience, I spoke of a vision I had been having (and continue to have) for the Status community and our generation : God has placed a blessing of leadership, wisdom and adventure on us, and He desires to change the world - not from the top down - but from the middle outward.

We have been raised in an historical context of top-down leadership where the coming generations have waited and relied on the previous generation to mobilize or challenge them toward action.  But the vision God had given was clear in my mind - looking something like dripping water in the middle of a paper towel - the water creeping out into the dryness from the center.

In the past year, we've come a long way, and - through many conversations and much prayer - we are becoming an increasingly inter-generational community (more on that here and the left column on this page).

Today, I met up with a forty year old British man named Chris who has been coming to Status for a few months, and I heard him say one of the most incredible things my ears have ever heard...

"I walk into Status and see all those young people there and think, 'bloody hell, why couldn't I have been born twenty years ago?'  Those people are so talented and motivated and can do anything."

To know that Chris sees this same blessing on our generation is amazing... and more than that, to know that God has led us to tear down the walls of our man made box of twenties ministry to allow men like Chris in, is even more beautiful.

I could hardly say it without my voice quivering from the tears of joy in my eyes, "Chris, you have a lot to offer.  Let me know how I can help you invest your gifts as a contributor to the kingdom of God through Status."