thoughts from Abbotsford

Recently Eric and I were in the Vancouver area for a conference. Since we were flying in and out of Abbotsford, we stopped in to visit with our good friend Brad Jersak. Brad is the pastor of FreshWind, a church that is unlike any I've ever been to. It was a real treat to attend FreshWind and visit with Brad.
One of aspects of FreshWind that will stand out to most visitors is the number of handicapped people in the community. What impacted me was the extent to which these residents were part of the community, just like anyone else.


On a personal level, this is significant to me because Pam's brother is severely autistic. He has to live in a special home, with round the clock home care. He cannot talk and is a strong, fully grown man, who has the mental development of a 2 year old. He's a good mannered guy, but he can be quite vocal and physically decisive when he wants something. Ever since I met Ian, I have found it a real challenge to interact with him. I simply don't really know how and often feel quite uncomfortable. While I have become more comfortable over the years, I still have a long way to go. I simply cannot imagine being one of the workers in Ian's group home and I have a deep and profound respect for them.

Being in FreshWind stirred up a lot of these feelings again. The lack of "uncomfortableness" among the regular attenders of FreshWind hit me like a brick. Of all the things that make their wonderful church unique, the love, respect and inclusion of the residents was what hit me most. I just don't know if I could do it. I guess the truth is that maybe I like 'my' church a little too sanitized; maybe 'my' church is still too much about 'me' and how 'I' like it.

These days we're talking about being a 'prophetic community' at The Canopy. I found FreshWind to be one of the most prophetic communities I've ever been to. Here's why: if 'the testimony of Jesus is the Spirit of prophecy', then a prophetic community needs to declare and display the character and person of Christ. Too often I've been more interested in the 'declare' than the 'display' part of the prophetic. The inclusion of the residents into their church community shouted prophetic truth at levels several decibels higher than any other verbal prophetic words; at least to my ears.

Just some initial thoughts. More to come