the Journey

Mind-dump- January 25, 2009 // after the fast.

Posted by Andrew Jenkins

The picture here was taken from the iPhone several months ago in the "old" prayer room. As many of you know, that prayer room is now a staff apartment at the warehouse. We figured that since people downtown had needs 24 hours a day- and since virtually every secular club and drug dealer and every other bit of rescue people could need is open at all hours, we figured The Downtown Church would be, too. So, Rob moved into the apartment that was the prayer room and the empty room right below became the new prayer room (which is now bigger, has a window, etc.).

The whiteboard scribblings, posted by an anonymous pen, were written back after word spread about a leadership meeting. In that meeting, one of the guys rightly offered, "If we're not using the prayer room, we might as well make a kitchen up here out of it so that we can help feed the new moms, sick people, etc., when they need food." Funny thing is, now we're doing all of that- and praying.

Anyway, even though I don't like anonymous posts/ messages/ observations- and usually ignore them- I keep rolling back to this one. It seems right, actually (even though that was probably the only time that writer ever went into the prayer room). My prayer is that, even after the 21 days of fasting (which concludes today) we will continue going to that prayer room and see the power of God work through us to do something that only He can do.

Here's what I'm dumping off my mind and onto the keypad this afternoon:

* This was a great week for me. We went out of town for a few days- two quick ones- and met with Ed Stetzer, a few other church planters through Developing Churches Network, and hung out with the wives (they were allowed to go, too, which was a bonus for a "work trip"). I am continually blown away by the other pastors of the network- of their humility, of their love for Jesus and His Church, of their love for one another, and of their transparency. We talked about victories, shortcoming, failures, joys- and even prayed for one pastor that was on the verge of quitting until he saw these other brothers walking with him. This is an awesome group of men to be surrounded by- and they are the men that you all support when you give your missions dollars to church planting through our general offerings.

* Speaking of the network, one of the churches, My Church (pastored by Jeff Murphy) actually launched today. Rumor has it that their space was not ready- so they met outside in the cold on the parking lot. Will call Jeff and find out for sure. He is a great guy- and so I'm sure it went incredibly well, anyway. By the way, a few guys from The Village went to help him out last weekend, building the stage that the church would use for their services. The people at the church graciously surprised them with a big dinner on Friday night (Italian style), as well as a new wardrobe for each guy on Saturday. They call came back with new clothes. I know that Jeff and My Church will receive Columbus, Georgia (their home) in the same way. Pray for them as they get started.

* Back to the fast... we have been fasting for 21 days. Some of us with no food; some with certain foods; some with "The Daniel Fast." Or, other things as the Lord has led. This has been an awesome time to see what God has been doing through you. We have had reports of healings, addiction break-throughs, see people saved, and everything else imaginable. We will celebrate with a feast on Wednesday, February 18, 2009- at the warehouse. We will eat together and celebrate what the Lord has been doing. This is the normal "scheduled" time for leadership meeting; we are pushing that off this month so everyone can come. Their will be shuttle service from Southtown to the warehouse, for anyone wishing to come with us.

* In the Bible, Jesus said he would build His Church and he is doing it. Last week, I was amazed to see 6/7 men come down to receive prayer at the conclusion of the service in Southtown- in the third "practice" week. This week, I was blown away to see a dozen men and women come down to receive prayer on the first "real" week. It was odd, because we had no planned for that kind of response- and I had to call people out of the crowd to come pray for/ counsel with those coming down. You guys were incredible and came and led many of these people with prayer and tears and honesty and humility. It was great to see the church in action!

* By the way, we used communication cards again, today- for the first time in a while. If we don't have your contact info, please fill out one so that we can email you, etc. 

* With the ones we received from Southtown...we will be going "old school" and actually visiting these people on Monday/ Tuesday. Some of them need groceries, etc., and we have them (we get a load of several thousand pounds of food each Monday from Christian Service Mission and other places). So, we're going to add them to our list of visits and start serving them- and empower them to serve others in due time. Anyone wanting to go... we can use you. There were a lot of new people there today with new needs- and opportunities.

* Ministry teams: you guys did an incredible job today! You certainly make the pastors' jobs easier to do.

* During the fast, I learned (or, admitted) that I am too busy. Effective last week, I have handed off the day-to-day operations of The Village. I am also training people to manage Quickbooks and do some of the other things that need to be done to keep that machine rolling. This will free me up to interact with "The Village people" (couldn't resist that expression) more on a pastoral level and less on a management-level, which is what I was having to do. It will also free me to teach more, study more, pray more, and do what I'm called to do more... I'm already excited and feel a weight off of me.

* By the way, this transition is only possible because of the incredible staff at The Village. Pray for them as you think about it (Tyler, Kate, Mike, Rob).

* Tomorrow (Monday) I have a meeting at Park Place. This will help give structure and idea to the "Day to Make a Difference" that Pastor Brandon tossed out today during the announcements. On April 4 (a Saturday), we will partner with several other churches to converge on the area and serve, doing whatever needs to be done. It is our hope, too, to continue praying in a tent in that area for a full week, throw a massive Easter party on Sunday, April 12, and then blow it out with a worship service that night. We're praying that a church will be birthed there- another service one mile down the street. More about this after the meeting.

* By the way, our goal is to have a church service within walking distance of anywhere downtown. After that happens, we''ll see what's next. That is the goal for the next 18 months: 1000 people involved in a church within walking distance anywhere in the downtown area. We can't do it; God can- and will. He is!

* I'm on Twitter. Follow me on it to stay up on the micro-blogging throughout the week- and I'll followo you back.

*I bought Emma (7- turns 8 this Saturday) a laptop computer at Circuit City yesterday. They are going out of business, so we got one for less than half prize. It's one of those miniature ones- perfect for little hands. It's not a mac, but I can work her up to that later. She has been writing, penning her own stories, and will likely start blogging here in the next week or two. I'm sure she'll be on email (to me, her mom, and her grandparents, as well as The Downtown Church email-updates) before the end of the week. Nonetheless, she is asking me to show her how to set the thing up so that she can get to her stories that she's writing... So, I'm off for now. More mind-dump later.

Enough for now. Pray that even though the fast is over prayer would still happen and we would see an orchard of fruit. The Father is willing.

Southtown- on a day like today?

i don't know what it looks like outside your window today, but it is nasty outside mine. well, outside the door, as there are no windows in TDC offices- kinda creepy now that i think about it. we should get a window.

anyway, it's gross outside. it makes me sad, a little.

i really want to nap. or do anything but work, or go outside.

strangely, though, i am drawn to Southtown, a government housing community just down the street where we now meet for worship and whose people we now claim as our own, as a part of us.

family.

this afternoon, we will be delivering a truckload of food- fresh bread, cakes, frozen veggies, maybe a bunch of frozen chicken- lots of food- and dropping it there for many of the residents to use and enjoy.

we have been blessed to be connected with another local ministry called the christian service mission, who serve the poor, hungry, homeless, and those ravaged by natural disaster all over and so stinking much more (you can see more about them here). they receive donations from local food suppliers, grocery stores, and such of overstock or out of date items that they then redistribute through local ministries (if you have ever wondered what happens to food in the stores that passes the "sell by" date, it often goes to places like these. when it reaches the date, stores cannot sell it anymore, but that does not mean it is bad and should be thrown away. much of it is perfectly fine, and goes to fill hungry stomachs who need it).

follow me for a second here- we have another ministry here called the village (it is a restoration and re-entry program for men coming out of prison or off the streets- you can find more info here) which houses about 50 men in t our multiple locations near downtown. the christian service mission (csm) began bringing a great deal of food to the village for the men here, which was an amazing blessing- the expense of feeding 50 men is high, so the donated food was much appreciated. as we built a relationship with the man who runs csm, Bobby Nix (an amazing guy, by the way), he learned of what we are doing in southtown and the need there. so, he began adding a lot more food to the truck headed to the village, where we divide it out for use with the men and then head up to southtown with a truckload of food- get this- every week!

it has been an amazing resource that God is using beyond our imaginations.

the first time we took food to southtown was just about a month ago, and it was a van load of bread. we dropped it off and told people to come take it, and you would have thought we had left gold coins sitting on the counter. people were so excited, and so incredibly appreciative of something so simple.

and it is so easy. there is nothing hard about taking some bread to some hungry people.

they want it.

if they knew they could have it, they would go get it. but they don't know. they have to be told.

"the bread is free. take it."

we tell them.

suddenly that thing Jesus said about the cup of cold water begins to make a little sense (matt 10.42, mk 9.41).

so, this afternoon, in the rain, we will go. because we have bread, and vegetables, and cakes, and chicken to give to people who need them.

we will unload it in the rain, and we will laugh and probably splash in the puddles along the way. it is actually starting to sound fun, now.

hopefully, we will also take the Gospel with us, and as we give them the answer to the physical cry for help- the answer to the growling in their bellies, we will also give them the answer to the cry in their souls- their sa'aq (see my post Jesus Wants to Save Christians or Rob Bell's book by the same name).

we will love the people. we will give all that we can. we will share, not just stuff, but time, thoughts, and laughs. we will wonder together how we can make our city a better place.

and soon, we will have the answers.

so, yeah, today is the day. because we have bread.

(now that i think of it, i find something fascinating. just this morning, i heard Pastor Andrew talking with some of the village guys about david and goliath (1 sam 17). he said that there was this one thing he saw in the passage that he had never heard anyone teach.

why did david go to the battlefield?

did he go to fight goliath? that was not his purpose originally.

he went to carry bread and cheese to his brothers to eat (vv 17-18).

that's it.

nothing grandiose about it. just a shepherd boy obediently following his father's instruction.

since he was obedient in the small task his father gave him, he found himself right where God wanted him to be.

then he had the opportunity to slay the giant and save an entire nation.

he went to carry the bread and cheese.

he saved a nation.

which brings us back to southtown and the bread- the cup of cold water. come. go with me.)

Floored by all of the stuff!

Yesterday was a great day. We've been praying for God's provision- and we've been planning as if it's coming. Today God showed Himself mighty and faithful on our behalf.

I stopped to check the mail on the way to the office this morning, and pulled out what was a generous check from a local church in our city, Church of the Highlands. The remarkable thing about the check was that the team of people at this great church have not yet been to The Village to help in a substantial way (a new friend and brother in Christ who is helping lead the Transformation class for recovery on Thursday evenings is a member there, and I have recently gotten to know one of the missions leaders there). Based on the relationship with these two men, as well as the mission of The Village, this church has generously extended grace to us. They are, according to Outreach Magazine, the fastest growing church in America for this past year. The pastor is a man of humility and boldness- and I have been impressed by all of the leaders I have met under his direction. An incredible thank you goes to them.

After scurrying through a few envelopes (there were no bills this morning!), I saw a returned address labelled "Regions Morgan Keegan Trust." Unsure as to what it was, and as it was addressed to The Village, c/o me, I opened and found a $150 check. Let me explain...

About two months ago, we applied (The Village did) for a grant through The Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham to start a staffing agency to help people find jobs through The Village, as well as others in the area that are coming to us for help. We received a $20,000 grant from them to do this project, which we should receive funding for in the next few weeks.

Come to find out, they have "donor advised" funds, as well. A donor heard of our project and wanted to contribute from their own private funds over-and-above what the foundation was already doing. Enter the extra $150. This was huge- someone who has not seen us or met us (that we know of, at least) has contributed to further the mission.

I set the mail down (a small stack) and went about my routine.

Finally, about an hour later, I walked back into the office to sort through the mail. Amazingly, at the bottom of the stack, I found an envelope addressed, again, from Regions Morgan Keegan Trust. I opened, excited that I was going to find $150 more dollars from an anonymous donor. I didn't happen.

I opened the envelope and found that we had received an additional $10,000 check!

Thinking something may be wrong, I called The Community Foundation for verification. Everything was correct. We had received the $20,000 grant- as well as checks from other donors that heard about our project and wanted to assist.

The day got better, still.

We've been working with Bobby Nix from Christian Service Mission for several weeks now in what is turning out to be a great long-term partnership for local ministry. We regularly receive massive amounts of food from them that we redistribute throughout The Village, as well as throughout the downtown area in some of the areas we are serving and striving to launch congregations. Instead of bringing bread and pastries, yesterday Bobby brought the massive truck full of bread, pastries, cupcakes, pies, lunch meat, butter & other staples, vegetables galore, and steak! It usually takes our small army of volunteers about an hour to unload and sort. This week it took over 5 hours- and it's still going! What a great feast to pass on to those in need!

I am grateful to this church, to the foundation, to the Christian Service Mission, and to the donors that we have not met. Thank you for your help in our efforts to change the city from the inside out.