Aj Schwanz

Apparently they do for me. Yesterday we had a gathering of folks to discuss Cool Church Jive - I donít really know what to call it: itís kind of the ìemerging conversationî, itís kind of ìthe state of the churchî, but mostly it was a group of people with a concern that weíre missing the mark in the church world, so what are we called to do about it?

Things I noticed:

ñ That the Holy Spirit *does* actually work and isnít some defunct lofty idea that had power in the NT but doesnít relate to today. Folks shared in the room their concern and compassion for our lives and culture - some voiced a restless aching, others wanted to hear more, a few were dragged in by their wives. But so many similarities - themes - strains - ideas - words - thoughts were the same: you could almost physically see the Spirit drawing a line from heart to heart and words to words, connecting our concerns while bringing out the individual flavor and strength of each unique experience.

ñ That itís an intergenerational thing going on. The reason I got into this whole ìsomethingís wrong with church, Iím gonna google it to deathî search was because my friends no longer attend church - itís not that theyíre not spiritual, but theyíre turning to other means to try and satisfy that God-placed ache. So I figured it was just my generation - we were dissatisfied because of the way we were raised or because of our generational experience. But folks from *all* ages were present, and affirming that things need to change! What depth of wisdom and experience that brings! And I shouldnít try to box people in according to their age: some of the most challenging, not-satisfied-with-the-current-status words came from folks older than me.

ñ That Iím a crier, and though I hate it, itís part of who I am. Gregg asked me to share some of my story, and though Iíve told it a couple of times and thought about it a lot, something touched me, and I ended up blubbering through most of the story. Crying, in front of all these people I really respect or people who donít know me: I *hate* doing that. I blamed it on being on pain meds (any meds lower my emotional tolerance level - me on non-drowsy meds for a couple of days is an ugly, ugly beast). But my wonderful friend Steve ìelderedî me, saying I need to stop negating my emotions - theyíre not bad, theyíre the way God has wired me! Itís gonna take some work - Iím used to being around folks who shut down when a flood of emotions are shown, but with the Spiritís help, I hope to come to terms with and embrace the way Godís created me.

ñ That none of us seem to have ìThe Answerî, but that weíre willing to offer up our piece of the puzzle. So how do we create more opportunities where thatís available?

ñ That more people read my blog than I know, so a) I probably should stop telling poop stories about my son (poor kid) and 2) Iím really encouraged that my writings arenít just for me! If you have any thoughts, please feel free to leave comments - this is me throwing out my puzzle pieces: Iíd be honored if you felt called to do the same here.

Right now seems like the lofty, idealistic stage. If things progress, tension will be created; some people might be called to go - will we bestow or withhold blessings? How willing am I to follow my call? How willing are you?