The Christian Imagination

It’s 2010, and I’m thinking about what to write about this year. I received a comment on one of my posts suggesting I elaborate more on the topic. Most of my posts are not intended to be comprehensive. Part of the challenge of writing for an Internet audience is understanding what people are looking for. A long article may take too much time for many to read. A short post may not have enough substance. Elaborating more on topics like postmodernism, modernism, high & low culture, and such would be a good idea, considering that people are searching for info on them.

Writing on one’s own blog is the easy route in so many ways. Deadlines and topics are self-imposed. When busy, it’s easy for it to take a back seat. When I do write, it’s easier to write a short post than a long one, as it takes less time. I have a list of possible posts, and most of them will take some thought to write. I’d like to point out what Christians are doing that is encouraging and making a difference for Christ. I have some resources to draw from, but even that takes time. There are other topics I could write about, and perhaps some I haven’t though of. I’d welcome any feedback you have. I’ve also pondered writing a few articles and submitting them to other publications. We’ll see what the year brings.

I’m going to be writing about what we’ve been doing at our church, and specifically about some of what I’ve been involved in as we learn to serve one another and be in community.

Shalom.

When I’m around church people, I always check whether they are misled by the modern secular vision. Have they substituted the vision of service for the only thing that will make people whole—community? Are they service peddlers or community builders? Peddling services is unchristian—even if you’re hellbent on helping people. Peddling services instead of building communities is the one way you can be sure not to help…. Service systems teach people that their value lies in their deficiencies. They are built on “inadequacies” called illiteracy, visual deficit, and teenage pregnancy. But communities are built on the capacities of drop-out, illiterate, bad-scene, teenage-pregnant, battered women…. If the church is about community—not service—it’s about capacity not deficiency (1989:38,40)

That’s a quote from John McKnight. It resonates with me. Any comments?

McKnight, John. “Why ‘Servanthood’ is Bad.” The Other Side:38-40, January-February 1989.

The latest in this video series by XPLANE, The Economist, Karl Fisch, Scott McLeod and Laura Bestler. Comments welcome.

One newsletter I highly recommend is the Mustard Seed Sampler from Mustard Seed Associates.

In 2009, topics have included:
Encountering the “Other”
Suburban Missional Church and Rural Intentional Community
Community and Cohousing

They explain their mission better than I could:

Mustard Seed Associates (MSA) provides resources and a network for other committed Christians to anticipate the future, decode the culture, convey the Kingdom of God, and create new ways to be a difference and make a difference.

We work to inspire, connect and create in order to fulfill our mission… Believing God is changing the world through mustard seeds - the seemingly insignificant - MSA seeks to unleash the creative potential of ordinary people to make a difference in their communities and a world of urgent need.

To signup, go to http://msainfo.org/seed-sampler/