How About Some 30-Year Goals?

Not to bring up a sore subject, but how are those New Years' Resolutions coming? Would it help if we called them New Years' Dreams? Most of us have a little more passion about the things we dream about. Often our dreams are centered on our own futures, or that of our family. If you dreamed about your life as a Christ-follower, what would that look like? What will your influence look like, and how will the Christ-followers around you be perceived by outsiders?

In the book unchristian, by Kinnaman and Lyons, the authors ask various well-known figures in contemporary Christianity to share their dreams for the church thirty-years hence. Here are a few to ponder as you generate your own.

• Christians build harmony among races. You always know that you'll be respected when you're around a Christian.
• Christians are the ones who love people, whoever they are –gay or straight, Jew or Muslim, religious or atheist, capitalist or not, conservative or liberal.
• Christians are willing to give their lives for the cause of peace. They will lay down their lives to protect the vulnerable from the violent.

While you're dreaming, you might want to consider what some of our neighbors here in Moscow are doing to give reality to the dreams. For example, Alternatives to Violence of the Palouse is dedicated to protecting the vulnerable in our community from the violent. There's a link to their site on the sidebar, where you can explore some of the opportunities to learn from their experience, support their ongoing education and advocacy programs, and even get involved. They have an (almost) free volunteer training series beginning Feb 26. If the $20 fee is an issue, email us and we'll see what we can do about it.