feeling special

in october of 2005, michelle and i spent a week in california to celebrate our 20th wedding anniversary. it was one of the greatest weeks of my life! we spent three days touring san francisco, then rented a convertible for four more days in wine country. the weather was perfect and the vineyard valleys were spectacular!

on the 5th evening of our 7-night trip, we were in glen ellen, a tiny village in the sonoma valley. we had eaten out every night, and while the food was excellent, we decided on this evening to grab some food from the hot bar/salad bar at a little grocery store within walking distance of the inn where we were staying.

while perusing the rather generous fare on the bar, michelle noticed one lone woman doing the same. she appeared to be in her late 60's perhaps, and clearly a local. so we asked her what she thought of the food, did she get her dinner here often.

"oh yes," she said, "two or three nights a week." she volunteered at the library in santa rosa, about 30 minutes from her home. we were sold, and piled our boxes high.

then michelle asked, "so, what is there to do around here?"

(you can see this coming a mile away, can't you?)

"well," said our new friend, "do you like wine?" (i almost laughed out loud, at both the question and the answer!)

"of course," we replied. "what wineries do you recommend we see?"

"well, i would recommend kunde, "she said.

(that was cool, because i had just had a glass of kunde cabernet a few days earlier, for the first time, and loved it!)

"and when you get there," our friend said, "have them call for me. i'll give you a personal tour." and as she said this, she handed us her card. her business card.

Kunde Wineries

Jane Kunde

President

whoa! how cool was this!

the next day, jane gave us a private personal tour, including places that normal tour guests don't get to see, like the barrel aging cave where hollywood celebrities have had their wedding receptions. not to mention free wine glasses - nice ones - with the winery logo etched into them. and some really nice discounts on a few bottles of their best stuff. it was the highlight event of a highlight vacation. i loved being treated so special.

i sometimes wonder... do people who visit threshold feel as special as i did? do we all understand how we, like jane, have that capacity? it seems almost too simple, but with just a little thought and attention, we can make a visit to threshold quite a special experience. in fact, some experts say that people decide whether or not to return to a church a second time with in the first ten minutes - often based on how they are welcomed.

so here's the deal. as you know, i am considering october 5 a second grand opening for threshold. we have reached out into a number of villages in our community to let them know we are expecting them. we have designed a fun, yet relevant series for the upcoming month. we are stoked about growing the kingdom of God in this place. are we ready?

being ready means treating every guest as special. it means going out of our way to speak to them, show them around, answer their questions. any of us can - and hopefully will - do this. but in addition, we are looking for a cadre of hosts. people whose very lifeblood oozes with the desire to see people lovingly welcomed to our very special place. we are hoping for 8 or more volunteers for each of the four sundays each month. their role, while not any more or less important than any other sunday morning role, is vital. 

so... two things:

1. if you love to meet people, welcome people, and make people feel special and at home, you should do this! if people have commented in the past on your amazing gift of hospitality, you should do this! if you love to fix up your home and invite people over, you should do this!

2. don't huddle. even if hospitality isn't your gift, you can shut down hospitality if you huddle only with the same few people each week. i know that part of what you love about threshold is seeing your close friends on sunday. that's cool. just keep in mind that newcomers are watching you to see if you are watching out for them.

kunde wine is one of my favorites. it's not the best wine on the market, nor the cheapest. it's good, yes, but i buy it primarily because the representative of that wine made me feel special.

this sunday, someone will come to threshold for the very first time.

whether or not they come back may depend on you.

and remember, you represent Christ.

will you make them feel special?

hanging out in bars

i had lunch in a bar yesterday. at the counter. alone.

sat right there on the stool and talked to the bartender over a bowl of wings.

irreverent? sad? grounds for dismissal? not so fast...

if you were in worship a few weeks ago, you may remember my challenge to not spend all of your time with other christians. to be around some people who don't know Jesus. and of course, for many of you, all you need to do is go to work. but i work with church staff - you know, religious people!

so what's a guy to do? or at least a guy who is also a pastor? well, i figured doing what Jesus did would be a good place to start. so what did Jesus do?

 

he hung out in bars. or at least the first century equivalent. 

don't believe me? take a look at mark 2.15:

"later, Levi invited Jesus and his disciples to his home as dinner guests, along with many tax collectors and other disreputable sinners (there were many people of this kind among Jesus’ followers)."

okay, so it wasn't technically a bar. actually it was probably worse. bars have rules and management. levi's (later called matthew) house was his own house and these were his buds. things could easily have gotten way more out of hand.

now, people who visit bars aren't all heathens, and you can certainly find heathens in lots of other places. but as local places go, if i want to begin to connect with people in our community who don't have a vibrant relationship with Jesus in the context of a local church, i figured a bar is as good a place as any. and this one is right across the street.

John's Place is owned by John (who knew?!), whose last name i haven't gotten yet. he's a great guy, and his staff are welcoming and gracious. John seems glad to have us in the neighborhood - especially now that he knows that i mentioned hanging out there in one of my recent talks. everyone i have met there is a real person with a real life, and i have enjoyed asking them about those lives. and listening. my hope is that if they don't know how much God loves them, they will soon. so i'm hanging out there.

where are you hanging out? are all of your friends churched? are they all christians? i hope not. Jesus told the religious people who complained that he was hanging out in a bar that, “healthy people don’t need a doctor—sick people do. I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners.”

and he also told those who would follow him that they should follow his lead.

here's the deal. threshold exists because within our community there are hurting people. people down on their luck. people with problems at home. people in debt. people who feel like they haven't got a friend and haven't got a prayer. and a lot of those people, when life seems to be dragging them under, hang out in bars. and if they are ever gonna feel some hope, if they are ever gonna feel like God cares about them at all, if they are ever gonna have someone listen to them who really cares, we need to be there.

so pick your spot. and if you wanna tell us about it, then do. we'll hang out with you.

if you wanna hang out and be Jesus to others with me, well, i'll be at John's.

ASK

one of my favorite comedians of all time is steven wright. i love his plain-faced persona as he asks some really good questions. questions that make you go, "hmmmm....."

After eating, do amphibians have to wait one hour before getting out of the water?

Why do hot dogs come ten to a package and hot dog buns only eight?

If cats and dog didn't have fur would we still pet them?

(for a whole page of these, see http://www.corsinet.com/braincandy/stupid.html)

questions deserve answers, especially important questions. but way too often, questions never get asked. some people are afraid to ask questions because they're afraid they'll look dumb. others feel like they aren't even sure what questions to ask. others prefer just to remain uninformed.

when i first dreamed of threshold (sunday is the 6th anniversary of our first worship), i dreamed of a safe place to ask hard questions. i vowed that i would not shy away from questions that are hard to answer or hard to hear the answers to. when it comes to the full life that God intends for us in Jesus Christ, answers are vital. and answers come from asking.

for any of you who have questions- basic questions of the christian faith or harder ones beginning with the word 'why,' ASK is for you. ASK is a new 7-session gathering for any of us who wants to ask some questions about God, Jesus, the bible, the church, pain & suffering, how to live, you name it. we'll gather on thursday evenings at 7 for an hour and a half, maybe 2 hours (place TBD). it'll be a time of being real with God and each other. it'll be a time to get to know others who also ask questions. and it'll be fun.

the first session (please don't use the word 'class') of ASK  will be october 9, running til november 20.

if you are interested, how about hitting me with an email now so i can begin to get an idea of how many we need to find room for. and hey, if you're willing to host in your home, that would be awesome. lemme know.

jeff.gardner@thresholdchurch.com

oh, and hey, i think this goes without saying too, but just in case... what a great thing to invite a friend to. let them know it will be real and raw. we'll wrestle together. we won't be beating people with bibles. and if they are afraid to ask openly, tell them you'll ask their questions for them. or send it to me in advance.

looking forward to it.

DARE YOU TO MOVE

going shopping

after worship on september 21, i'm getting together with my cellmates (couples in my small group) and heading over to a local neighborhood. together we're gonna distribute grocery bags - one on every porch or door handle in the neighborhood. stapled to those grocery bags will be a note and an invitation to the homeowners:

"If you can't feed a hundred people, then just feed one. "  - Mother Teresa
Within a few miles of our front doors there are people who don't have enough food to eat.
And that's not okay. Please, join Threshold in caring for people who are struggling with the basics of life, and fill this bag with non-perishable food. We'll come back by on September 28, between 12-3, and pick up the filled bags. And thank you!
Threshold is a group of everyday people who love and serve God and our neighbors. We are here to help build strong marriages, healthy families, and kids with values. We believe that together, we can make a difference in this world.
Threshold meets on Sunday mornings at 10:00, at the Siskey YMCA.
We invite you to come.

we're not gonna knock or ring doorbells. we're not gonna witness to anybody (unless they ask). we're just gonna serve in a visible, tangible way.

if you are a follower of Jesus, if Threshold is your spiritual home, and if you are gonna be in town on september 21, i'm expecting you to join in. we're going shopping. shopping for food for those who can't afford food on their own. and shopping for souls. commissioned by Christ in the gospels, we are going shopping to save people from the ravages of sin in their everyday lives, and from the ultimate eternal outcome for those who don't call Jesus their lord and savior. it's why we exist as a church. it's why we ARE a church. so if you are part of this church, i will be expecting to see you.

neighborhood captains are being recruited this week, and sign-up posters will be in the entry hall this sunday and the following sunday. please get your cellmates or friends together and sign up to go shopping in the neighborhood of your choice. if you live in one of the targeted neighborhoods, why not sign up for that one?

after we shop, our cell is gonna grab lunch together somewhere nearby. maybe we can all crash the same place and bring them the joy of our celebration.

then, on september 28, we're going back to those exact same neighborhoods - this time to pick up those bags full of food. same rules apply. after worship we head out. after the collection, we grab lunch and party! and again, if you're in town, then i'm looking for you.

have panthers tickets?  sell 'em.

love to watch the panthers on TV at 1:00?  so do i. set the DVR. this is more important.

A LOT more important.

DARE YOU TO MOVE.