Dear Peace members and friends of Peace,
Many years ago, I had the opportunity to attend a workshop about helping organizations discover their strengths. At the beginning of the workshop, the speaker asked us to finish this sentence: “The thing that is wrong with most organizations is…….” Then he said, “The answer that you have just given to this sentence is what you will be looking for before you begin working with a group. That is your point of view. If you are not careful, you will simply spend your time looking for evidence to justify the conclusion that you have already reached about most organizations.”
That was an important lesson for me. Not only are we likely to find what we’re looking for in organizations, but we are also likely to find what we’re looking for in life. If I believe the world is falling apart, I can certainly find evidence for that. If I believe no one can be trusted, I can find lots of examples of that. Our perspective, our point of view—matters.
Early on in Mark’s Gospel, Jesus pulled aside his followers and talked about the Kingdom of God. His perspective, his point of view, was significantly different than that of his listeners. “The kingdom of God is as if someone would scatter seed on the ground……the kingdom of God is like a mustard seed….the smallest of all seeds.” One of the things that characterized Jesus’ ministry was his ability to see beyond what things looked like and see the reality, the possibilities, for us and for the world God so loves.
In Sunday’s worship (9:30am), I’ll say more about Jesus’ perspective in a message, “Following Jesus in Mark’s Gospel: The Big Picture.” Pastor Joe will be back in worship and have a children’s message, we’ll share in the Lord’s Supper and prayer, and praise our good Lord with music. I look forward to worship with you!
See you Sunday!
Mark