A Vision for our Future . . .

"All men dream: but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds wake in the day to find that it was vanity: but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act their dream with open eyes to make it possible."

— T.E. Lawrence Seven Pillars of Wisdom

Do you tend to dream in isolation or in community? Are your dreams for the future spent on your self . . . your goals, your ambitions, your comforts, your securities? Or do you dream of being a part of something much bigger than that? Something, perhaps, much more meaningful. I've been having a wrestling match lately with my own dreams. I think we all long for meaning, for our lives to count for something big, but often we limit the scope of that meaning by dreaming selfishly. I'm guilty of that. Self tends to cloud my dreams.

But lately my dreams have been much more grandiose. Perhaps more worthy of sharing with the public. I no longer dream in isolation, but in and for community. I dream for this community . . . Middletown & the surrounding region of SW Ohio. I dream for my family; Lisa, Malachi, and Michalyn, to be a part of a faith community at Towne Blvd that changes the entire surrounding cultural landscape. To be that church on the hill that radiates the light of Jesus Christ, propogates His glorious gospel, and contagiously and tangibly loves the people of this community. A church that produces passionate disciples of Jesus Christ who in turn reproduce themselves by making other disciples. A church the community looks to, not hides away from.

You see, 30-40 years ago, this church had a vision to bless the brokenhearted, to minister to the marginalized, to welcome the wounded, and to embrace the disgraced. Every Saturday an army of volunteers mobilized to knock on the doors of this community. And with each knock came an invitation. Over 800 children were regularly bussed onto the church property where they were loved and cared for. If their bellies were empty, they were given food. If they were cold and in need, they were given warm clothing. As for the army, many of them are still sitting on the pews at Towne. Although their work is not finished until the Lord receives them at home, the mantle was passed. And now it is in the hands of a new generation. It's our time.

But isn't it true that we are of the generation of "entitlement'? Don't we expect to be given . . . not to give? Are we not so inoculated with "us" that all of our dreams & goals are filtered through the old "self"? You know what I'm talking about . . . the part of us that the true followers of Christ are called to die to daily. The one that rears its ugly head every time we are on the brink of a major spiritual breakthrough. The one that we allow to hijack the dreams and vision God has for our future as a community of faith. So it is with "self." And we continue on . . . dreaming in isolation with moderate but mild thought given for the sake of others.

I recently shared all of this along with a vision for a better engaged future with both the young adults and students at Towne. Some of you will have to wait and see what that entails. VIsion inspires. Implementation actualizes.