letting go of stuff

Stuff is dangerous.
Here is a question, is it wrong to want stuff? Jesus us promises the desires
of our hearts, Jesus wants to bless his children, I have excepted Jesus and
therefore am a child of God, God must want to bless me and give me stuff...
Right? Here is the thing the stuff I want is most often filling a space, whether it
is a type of success at my job or a stand up paddle board, the reality is,
whether I admit it or not,
I am trying to fill a void

I am seeking definition I am seeking a remedy for a longing or I am trying
to prove worth and achieve status.

These things become solutions and answers, they become Gods...
God does not want us to replace him. God wants us to be be made whole. God
wants us to be set free, and holding on to position and stuff only enslave
us to other Gods that are not good or loving. That sounds dramatic I know
but I think this is a question that matters to my heart and soul.

a particular kind of community

As I was preparing to enter into discussion with a group of leaders about energy and excitement for our regular gathering, I found myself needing to talk about more than just specifics and best practices, probably for my own soul more than anything, I wanted need to create a discussion that would remind us about what we are about. A large value for us is community; this is expressed in our program and budget as we seek to create a space for people to spend time around food and fun to connect. This value is true for most organizations that are geared around college students, so what is the difference between them and us? Does their need to be a difference? Clearly I think that there should be a difference but it is more than that we don't drink or swear, it has to be... we are a community that is being transformed by the creator of all things we are a community that believes this and seeks to celebrate it every week. Yet it has to be more than that as well, we cannot just gather and talk about how God is changing us or wants to change us, we have to be changed. This means that our community is one that has been transformed and is being transformed a community that has engaged something larger than themselves and is apart of a work in the world around them that is to big to go it alone. Because what God is up to is more than I or you can handle we go as a community, a particular kind of community that has encountered something more and engages the rest of the world in new ways as a result.