The Real Thing

They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.  – Acts 2:42-47

Deeply moved.  Those are the words I come away with from our time in Chicago.  Nothing like meeting people living out Acts 2, and not just talking about it on a Sunday morning.  People determined to live without, sharing all, so they in turn can serve the poor, simply because they love Jesus. 

I am reminded of how this journey for Matt and I began, with a book called “Irresistible Revolution,” by Shane Claiborne.   If you haven’t read it – please do so (and prepare to walk away deeply challenged).  That was the first of many books that God used to wake us up to His heart for the poor, and His invitation for us to join Him in bringing His Kingdom here.

It’s been a three and a half-year journey for us, and finally we’re getting to meet communities living it out.  The neat thing about the two intentional communities we met in Chicago -- Jesus People USA & Reba House Fellowship, is how different and unique their expressions of being the Church were.  I’ve been told there is no prescription for living out God’s mission in this world, but truly you can taste the real thing when given a chance, and still see the originality with which they live out the gospel of Christ. 

Let me be clear, in case I over-simplify or romanticize what we saw: In all my conversations with people, like Debbie, Cindy, Andrew and Kate, there was such honesty about how hard it is to live in community and serve the poor.  In every conversation, they spoke about God using this to shape them and stretch them till it hurt; you could see pain mixed with joy in their faces as they spoke. The crucible theme seems to continue.  Only these folks have chosen it!

“For everything in this world tries to pull us away from community, pushes us to choose ourselves over others, to choose independence over interdependence, to choose great things over small things, to choose going fast alone over going far together.”  - Shane Claiborne, The Irresistible Revolution

Dare I hope that creating or being part of something like this is what God will write on our blank page?  Truth is, I’d also be relieved if He doesn’t...

Thank you JPUSA & Reba House for welcoming us so warmly.  It was inspiring to be with you...