So, we have been praying for a week about our MC and I-HELP and Open Table. What are you guys thinking so far on them? Hearing anything specific?
09
Jan
09
So, we have been praying for a week about our MC and I-HELP and Open Table. What are you guys thinking so far on them? Hearing anything specific?
I guess in our meeting on thursday we threw around the idea of weather or not we could be effectively involved in both? We didn’t take a vote or anything, but it seemed like a pretty even split between both ministries. Also there were some new ideas like working with kids in bad situations, possibly at Thew. We also brought up the question of if and how we could be involved with the anti-sex slave movement. So, I guess maybe more to pray about. I also got the feeling that maybe the ministry we do, any one, would be something that everyone else would be ok with… Not to say that there wouldn’t be details to work out. Maybe that is too big of a generalization, but that is how I feel personally.
We 3 Senums are feeling like IHELP is where we are being led. The idea that there is some structure as we dive in is something we can get our thoughts around. It seems like there is the posibilility of many different opportunities springing out of the IHELP situation. The Open Table sounds good, just not sure how that would work out schedule-wise etc — and for our first try we don’t know if we have the experience for this(Open Table-but we’re open.
After what we learned this weekend at the Surge training, I am ready to just get started. Once we start and get momentum going, changes in direction can always be made if needed, so if ihelp is what that means then I’m ready to try it.
On Thursday, we discussed a little bit that a concern was if there is another group that wants to do ihelp, too, that it might be too much and sort of stand in the way of us building relationships with the people at ihelp because we would be rotating being there with quite a few people.
Personally, I would really like to see us do open table as well if we choose to focus on the homeless for awhile. My reasoning is that the mix of planting seeds over a wider population at ihelp while deeply getting involved and focusing on one life with open table seemed like a good mix. Open Table allows us to more effectively maximize the “family” environment we’ve worked so hard to establish and share it with someone else, too, which is a main reason why I was attracted to it.
On Thursday, we went around the room and talked about if there were any special areas other than the homeless that each member was already passionate about. Some of the other ideas that were mentioned sounded also worth looking into to me such as working with foster kids or a group home, and the sex-slave issue, which this weekend we also heard about a local coalition formed that is fighting that this is happening right here in the phoenix area. I would like to have more information about that stuff as well because these are issues I’ve been passionate about previously but not had the opportunity to dig as deep on locally. I know there were others interested in these topics, so if it comes to that, maybe a “committee” could be formed to do some research and then come back to the group with what opportunities might be available.
Joe mentioned that he is researching the possibility of getting a muslim mosque involved to host IHELP on Wed nights. We talked about how that would be a way to be involved with local muslims, internationals, the homeless, and each other. There are alot of logistic things to work out, one being hearing back from the mosque, so much prayer is needed.