One but not the same

Poatina morning Tea devotion given today

My son Daniel is being operated on for his appendicitis as we speak.

Time in Canada was special. It’s the first time the local Fusion work elected its own leadership, and is not being directed by Fusion Australia.
Its getting towards a very religious time in Canada – ice hockey season! Matt Coppin took Dave Campbell and me to a game. Edmonton got smashed by Phoenix. You can check out the video here:

an Australian take on the hockey

It was fun to be somewhere different. Locals were saying it was quite balmy at -5?F – you its cold when your nose starts to freeze.
There are quite a few mature people joining the leadership team.

Two National Secretaries elected – one is a Professor of Microbiology, the other a Social Worker.

It was a joy to connect with the guys at Taylor College.
David (the head guy) deeply loves Foundations and what it offers. He comments that the Glory of God unit… “others write/talk about it but they all miss the point”. They like the practical Christianity that Foundations presents.

It’s a gift to have people who come from different backgrounds come and work with the team.

How do you go working with people who are different?

Ephesians 4:3

“…mark that you do this with humility and discipline—not in fits and starts, but steadily, pouring yourselves out for each other in acts of love, alert at noticing differences and quick at mending fences.”

Henri Nouwen said:

Community is the place where the person you least want to be with, is.

Community takes a lot of work and a large part of that work is mending fences with people who don’t think like you.

Ephesians 4: verse 4 onwards says:

“You were all called to travel on the same road and in the same direction, so stay together, both outwardly and inwardly. You have one Master, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who rules over all, works through all, and is present in all. Everything you are and think and do is permeated with Oneness. But that doesn’t mean you should all look and speak and act the same. Out of the generosity of Christ, each of us is given his own gift.

T-groups go through six phases. First one is “Can I join? Can I be part of the group?”

Second phase is “Can I be myself in this group?”

Easy to be “one” if we all think the same, but Paul is saying it means we don’t think, act, talk, the same as others.

Teaching at Taylor – once they got the main point, they brought such a depth because they came from a different background and had different experiences.

There is hope for Fusion Canada – with so many different people.
It’s the miracle and mystery of the journey.

Picture of Trinity – one but not the same.

Journey for all of us, in Fusion, in Poatina.

Many strong leaders create a strong culture, where people tend to adapt to their leaders.

How do we put up with the messiness of people that are different?

Its right for me to go out after morning tea and be with my son. Its complicated, becomes messy with missing meetings.

But its ok to be a Dad in this moment.

Its ok to be part of Fusion’s next phase.

We have work to do on being one; and we have work to do on being different.