Putting Some Shape to TJP

Well we met last night, although not all the members were present, and it seems like we were able to bring clarity to what has been a long, meandering, and muddied discussion. I believe in my heart that this is what TJP needs to be, and that the form it will take (which I will get to in a moment) is a faithful expression of who we are and what we are to be about.

Throughout this discussion we have moved from talking about TJP being anything from a benevolent mafia, to a zine, to a church plant. Although each of those ideas had their merit, none of them seemed to capture the essence of who we are and what God was doing in us both individually and corporately. What has been manifestly clear through all these discussions is that each of us are in a sort of search mode in life, each of us on this journey called The Way are asking questions like "What is my life to be about? What is God calling me to? How do I overcome the encumberances like fears, insecurities, anxieties? How do I overcome the besetting sins in my life? What is God doing in my heart and life right now? What does it mean to follow in the Way here and now?" As a community we have not been intentional about these things in each others lives, or at least as intentional as is required given the gravity of the above questions. But there is a need, a deep and penetrating need, for us to be a community that is intentionally committed to pursuing these things together.

As Nate clearly remarked last night TJP needs to be a community intentionally committed to seeing Christ as the center. We need to be a band of disciples committed to our Master who is the center of our very lives and is Himself the Way we must tread. Just as Jesus' little band of disciples ultimately were called to go in separate directions (from India to Egypt, from Spain to Turkey), they all discovered during their time together what it is God was doing in their lives, and discovered the Christ who brought liberty, justice, and reconciliation both individually and corporately.

Some Clarifying Questions:

Question: What is The Jubilee Project's function?
Answer: The Jubilee Project exists to promote discipleship in the Way of Jesus as an integral component in kingdom life.
Question: What is the The Jubilee Project's form?
Answer: TJP's form is a quartely gathering of a community of disciples committed to following in the Way and encouraging each other as they follow in it.

Some Clarifying Values:
The Jubilee Project Values
1. Community as God's gift of companionship along the wilderness way
2. Reality, being both honesty and truth, as the only currency in which God deals and a primary means of formation in Christ
3. Grace as the center of the Gospel and the only way that reality of both ourselves and the world can be embraced.
4. Love as that which binds a community together in grace and reality.
5. Growth as essential to discipleship and the fruit of a life of love.

Where Do We Go From Here?
1. Is this something that each of us are committed to?
2. Establishing regular quarterly gatherings in which TJP form, function, and values are brought into the inner life of TJP. These would look like one weekend day every 12 weeks where we would spend time in community prayer, devotions, and Spirit-led truth talk in one anothers lives. To be sure these are not to be devoted to the consumption of beer and cigarettes, in fact I think it would be best if those things are marginalized as they can be a distraction and can impede to commitments of TJP.
3. Regular prayer for one another as we are listening to God on behalf of the others
4. Clarifying who TJP is and who it is not. This means deciding "who's in." What TJP is seems to necessitate boundaries here, not that we want to be aristocratic or cliquish, but to be committed to one another at this level would require a clear sense of who TJP is and who it is not. Right now it seems on our roster we have about nine guys (Jed, Nate, Aaron, Dan, Daniel, Josh, Justin, Jason, and myself) as well as some others. I am fine with opening it up to 2 or 3 others upon recommendation, but I can't see it being any more than that. If any of you are not willing or unable to commit now would be a good time to clarify that.
5. The blog can function as a forum in which we can post requests, emergency meetings (maybe there's a big decision and we need to pray for a member), regular quartely meetings and the details of those meetings, as well as posting things that are inspiring us or things that we would like to share with the other members.
6. Have a sort of "defining" meeting this fall where all of these things are talked through, clarified, and committed to.
7. Establish our next quarterly meeting and plan it.

Maybe God will use this to call us together to something more, or maybe He will use it to call us apart all for the sake of the kingdom. To God be the glory!

Looking forward to your responses