Meeting #1

After months of discussing the community we wanted to be part of we finally met up (sort of officially). We met over pinoy spaghetti and beers at the veranda of our 30th floor condo in Mandaluyong, Manila. I was excited but in some ways a bit anxious. I'm always anxious when ideas become reality. Especially when it's my idea. It's the whole rubber meeting the road thing.

Here are some things we talked about. First we discussed our desire for the group to be highly participatory. We've all been part of structures where our voice was never heard or even asked for. We wanted something different, something we could call our own. I brought up how we need to rely on the Holy Spirit to facilitate, guide, and prompt. Then we talked about whether we'll be studying a certain book or passage during our meetings. Dave brought up a way of studying the scriptures he had gone through which was very participatory. It was a study which dissected scripture passages of the gospel through individual comments and questions. It was non-threatening because anyone could ask anything and it was participatory. I thought it was a good idea but Shiloah was a bit against it. She said that it may be too soon at this point to commit to something. Will outsiders feel comfortable in this type of setting? We decided then that we should spend a few weeks simply hanging out and deepening relationships and that it was inevitable that the topic of a study would come up later.

We all agreed that this group should be missional. We need to be reaching out. With a number of us involved in communities and projects I don't think it'll be too hard. It'll be interesting to see what cause the group decides on.

I need to confess that although we are trying to be organic and spirit led I am so used to structured settings. That's all I've known. I think I'll be learning a lot.