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Catching my breath
By Jeremy | March 5, 2007
After this ...
I needed this ...
Much appreciation and love to the Brooks family, Chris and his Queen and the heirs to her throne -- Selah and Gabriel -- for graciously returning me to earth Saturday night. (For those of you who've never experienced being serenaded by the Brooks kids, get in line.) Thanks also to Jon Peacock for hosting me at Willow Creek, and the WCA Student Ministries team of Bo Boshears, Greg Bowman, Dave Treat, Erika Dekker, Andy Cook, Keith Cote, Chanda Dies, et al for making me feel so welcome in their world. And thanks, again, to the wonderful UYWI:Reload family and their local hosts in Chicago, including North Park University, Ginny Olson, Phil Jackson, Brian Dye, etc. Finally, thanks to Tha House and River City Community Church for recharging my batteries after an exhausting week; to Adam Durso and Rafael Castillo for paving the way; to Jason Bowman and his family for taking the time to meet face-to-face after a two-year long distance telephone/email relationship; and to my friend Shoji Boldt from NYU for rooting me on during Shift.
Unprecedented...
Urban flavor at Willow Creek, including speakers & worship band
It's probably premature to call this year's Shift conference historic, but it has the potential to be exactly that. Chris has been reflecting on what the Kingdom might look like if suburban Christians and urban Christians and rural Christians and global Christians actually reflected Christ by fulfilling His final prayer for us, just before His crucifixion:
"My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me." (John 17:20-23)Willow took a giant step forward this week towards pursuing oneness, both in terms of how they structured the conference program (speakers, music, theatrics, set design, technology, etc) and in how they interacted with their guests. With transparency and humilty, they broached topics that historically have been treated as taboos, and appear eager to build bridges. U-N-I-T-WHY? Because it makes Jesus happy.
Related...
Blog notes and comments re. "From the Fellowship Hall to Full Contact Faith."Topics: race, reload, schedule, speaking, training, urban, UYWI, willowcreek, youth ministry | 1 Comment »
March 5th, 2007 at 5:42 pm
JD,
It was our pleasure hosting such an illustrious theologian as yourself in our humble apartment (all 5 bedrooms, right?). Thank you for your friendship, which is more meaningful than I can put in words. You my dawg, dawg.