Day 1: The Organic Life

Hannah and I are moved into our new house now, and this week Moriah and Richard are visiting us from North Carolina. Richard was with our mission team that came up last year, when every day of the week was planned and structured to pack as much work in as possible. This trip is a little different...

Yesterday morning, our little family had Bible study together and were reading Psalm 92, where it says we will proclaim the love of the Lord in the morning and his faithfulness at night. The more I ponder this concept of beginning "organic ministry," the more this verse seems to make sense... what better way to serve the ministry of the gospel than by sharing His love and faithfulness all day and night? We began our morning with no idea what the day might bring, but our skin tingled and our hearts skipped with the excitement of anticipation. We prayed together that we would be ready and eager to serve the Lord, no matter where we ended up or who we encountered, and that He would keep our eyes and ears wide open to the opportunities he gives us... may our lives bring glory to Him, and may people know more of his love and faithfulness.

We decided to take a walk in the afternoon, and just see where it took us. We invited our friend and neighbor, Todd, to join us, and he suggested we invite some of our teenage friends along too. Two of the guys came with us and we followed the sidewalk about a mile or more into downtown Fort Wayne, played in Headwater Park a while and met some homeless people who were in search of a cool and quiet place to rest; we walked over the new Dr. MLK Jr. Memorial bridge and read his quotes about love and hate, peace and life; we swung from the rafters under that same bridge and potentially scared some passing cyclists and runners in the process; we watched the kids at the skate park in awe and explored the Fort and decided the fastest way home was by canoeing down the river. Then we walked home and enjoyed freeze pops, Cheerwine pop, and potato chips, and speculated about the neighbor who lived at the big creepy house across the street with the cat in the upstairs window, and then went over to meet him. It was a fun, impulsive, adventurous day, to say the least! By just wandering, observing, and striking up conversations, we got a good feel for our new community and how we can pray and serve and love here.

We will continue to live out and proclaim God's love and faithfulness all day and night, and see what exciting things He will do with it!