We've Been Talking About You
May 20th, 2014 | John Chandler
As I mentioned Sunday, we were recently asked to share some stories about Austin Mustard Seed with our friends in the Ecclesia Network. This was a good opportunity to celebrate what God’s been up to, so here’s what I passed along:
By God’s grace, Austin Mustard Seed has formed a congregation out of many different stories and places. It has been a beautiful six months for us, since launching our weekly liturgy, to see the rich relationships that have taken shape. People who barely new each other, if at all, have moved toward one another out a sense of calling to be a church for North Central Austin.
We don’t have a strategy to reach a particular demographic other than our neighbors who live in North Central Austin. This is a place where people settle in as they begin to stabilize out of transition — they are launching into careers, maybe forming families, or have heard of the opportunities in Austin and moved here for a new start. Related to all of this, the most common story of those who God has gathered into our congregation is an openness to be part of a church community again. I’ve lost track of how many times I’ve talked with someone who had disconnected from church for months or years, but found us right as they felt a need to give church another go.
We’ve seen people openly sharing stories of grief, anxiety, broken relationships, doubt, depression — all of these stories shared by more than one. For some, these are episodes of days past, and some of these stories will be very present when we gather this weekend. So we pray for lots of hope that can journey alongside our uncertainty. We acknowledge we aren’t and won’t be a perfect community, and we remind ourselves of that all the time. As we turn our eyes and ears toward our neighbors in North Central Austin, we know that there are more stories like ours, so as we walk alongside each other, we do so toward our neighbors.