Spontaneity and Proximity
I’ve thought about calling it “proxineity” but I think that might bring confusion. Spontaneity and proximity are two basic and core realities for people to do life together. They go hand in hand, one relies on the other. Proximity leads to spontaneity.
As we work toward planting Renovatus’ daughter church plant in downtown Vancouver, the more we talk about doing life together, about being a community, and about being the church the more we are finding spontaneity and proximity to be necessities. Doing life together in a way that both allows for the planned occasions and encourages the spontaneous gatherings cultivates a more authentic sense of community. Are we really doing life together when I always wash my face, get the lint of my sweaters, and vacuum my floors before we gather? Or is a new sense of authenticity developed when a fellow worshiper sees my home in its disheveled state, when a neighbor sleeps on my couch, or when a friend sees my wife and I argue. This reality of spontaneity and proximity allows community to enter
into a place of vulnerability and openness. It becomes messy and dangerous, it requires more of you, and causes you to ask yourself if you are willing to follow through with your commitment to follow Jesus down the path of dying to yourself. Dying to self is easy when I am able to get ready first. But dying to self on my neighbors timing—on God’s timing is much more difficult!
While creating and maintaining boundaries is an essential aspect of healthy community, these boundaries can only be created and enforced when a communal context allows sufficient space for boundary intrusion. There is no place for healthy boundaries if there is no proximity to others or if there is no spontaneity in your life because essentially your boundaries have already kept others away!
As we look for partners to work with us in downtown Vancouver one of the first questions we ask is whether or not you are willing to live downtown. This is because we believe that proximity leads to spontaneity, and spontaneity fosters a deeper experience of community that is harder, more transformational, and a more powerful testimony of gospel in our community—a testimony that is desperately needed.
* This article was originally written for my June 2010 newsletter. You can access my newsletters here.
Surgery
Will you all be praying today for my mother-in-law Pam as she goes in for a double mastectomy today at noon. We have only been aware of the cancer for one week now and are praying hard that it has not spread to her lymph nodes. It’s great to be a part of a faith community though! Her church is providing meals (among other things) for her and her husband. And even Jessica and I are being cared for and blessed by Renovatus. We may not be orphans or widows, but i’m pretty sure that James would be willing to define this as pure religion.
peace.
Garden, Backyard, and Burning my Face Off
Just some more updates about our garden, our backyard, and a fire that nearly burnt my face off. You can click on the images to enlarge (some facebookers might not be able to view image. If so, go to www.downtown.renovatus.com)
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- Our Backyard
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- Thats right, our fire was made from an assortment of wood that contained: broken kiddie chair, kitchen chair, fence board, and a table leg. Started with recycled computer paper!
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- The backyard fire got a little big
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- Our backyard…again…from a different angle…yes, it’s a bit redundant
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- Lemon balm is taking over
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- Potatoes in a random old broken rubbermaid
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- White Cucumber and some other random things
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- Onions, dying cilantro, and a few squashes
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- Some celery, kale, hidden purple and yellow carrots, and an assortment of peppers
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- Second back yard garden. LOTS of tomatoes: red, yellow, purple, orange, pink…
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- Got rid of the chickens and turned their coop into a playhouse!
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- Our rain barrel…that my son drained!
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- Our back yard box. Pole beans, dying sweet peas, bird house gourd…
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- Got to love compost!
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- Our front yard garden box is the forgotten one. It’s surrounded by an ugly fence to protect it from killer cats
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- Onions, yellow squash, round squash, and some dying sugar snap peas
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- a few types of lettuce and some purple bush beans
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- Mmm, wild flowers
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- The corner of our disgusting yard has mint, a nearly hidden mini-pumpkin plant, and a random purple bush bean plant.
