Is this the end, or the beginning?

Walking down the street, Jesus saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked, "Rabbi, who sinned: this man or his parents, causing him to be born blind?" Jesus said, "You're asking the wrong question. You're looking for someone to blame. There is no such cause-effect here. Look instead for what God can do. We need to be energetically at work for the One who sent me here, working while the sun shines. Whe night falls, the workday is over. For as long as I am in the world, there is plenty of light . I am the world's Light."

John 9:1-5
The Message

Just got back from San Francisco yesterday. First a shout out to Blank Frank (his blog is listed on the right of the page, the "Ex-con" one.). Frank by the time I got to Turk I was too stinkin' tired to walk to Taylor. Next time I walk 4 1/2 miles in SF I'm not gonna wear boots. I yelled your name at Turk and Hyde.

I went with some friends to visit a community that calls itself ReImagine. They are essentially a church without a building, a group of people that have chosen to live in close proximity to one another in an intentional (as in specifically chosen and willed) community and try to live in the way of Jesus. They meet on a weekly basis for a hospitality night, share a meal, and discuss their faith and journey together.

Two noteworthy things happened while we were there. Mark Scandrette, the founder (along with his wife) of the community, made us awesome whole-wheat banana and chocolate crepes for breakfast.


Secondly, we went on a prayer walk starting in The Mission District, through The Castro, and ending in The Tenderloin. It was suggested that you periodically stop and reflect on what you'd seen. In some of the areas it was really easy to see darkness, to see the brokenness of the world. We saw addiction (drugs, sex, consumerism), mental illness, apathy, economic disparity and injustice. It would not take much work to see some of the situations as hopeless.

Two things you were to consider were how God was already present and working in the situation and to view everyone, even those that are so easy to judge as the maker of their circumstance, as worthy of God's love and our love. At the end each participant (except Joshua, who is a lazy bum) wrote a poem based on their experience. Such as it is, find mine below.

Cherry blossoms and concertina wire
Buddhist temples in Lutheran castles
Freedom from fear and t-shirt rainbows
Open Bible locked on Fridays
This is not the end
This is only the beginning