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road tripping



Whew! I just came back from my third road trip in 7 weeks and though I love traveling and driving, I am glad I didn't say YES to a fourth one to Nashville this week!

I am continuing to read Velvet Elvis by Rob Bell and would recommend it to anyone who is interested in truth, reality, and embracing the constantly changing journey of faith in a refreshingly honest and accessible way. One thing he says that has stuck with me is how the reading of the bible has become a solitary practise when it was always meant to be read and discussed and wrestled with in a community setting where questions could be posed and multiple viewpoints, additional knowledge, and various insights could give one a more balanced and definitely more interesting reading experience.

In fact, I would daresay that many things that we do privately in our individualistic culture are meant to be done in a community setting, especially where matters of faith and character development are involved. You can't hide in a community; you can't isolate yourself in a community; you can't get away with bad attitudes in a community; your inadequate beliefs will be challenged in a community; your inconsistencies will be brought to light in a community; you have to be honest with yourself in a community; and you will learn to love your neighbour in a community. These are all good things.

Spending countless hours with others in a car or at a retreat is a small taste of community life and I can testify that I am a better person for it, because it challenges me to be open and honest 24/7. It also presents me with a bigger picture and a larger experience of who this wonderfully creative and multidimensional God is as I come in contact with many who are very different than I am yet nonetheless, totally made in his image.

This is a horse in New Brunswick hoping for a snack instead of a photo op. Sorry, buddy.

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Shelley said…
thanks for this Matte. I am going to use the community part in a talk I am giving on 'Team'. Well put.
7:21 PM
shane magee said…
road trips are where it's at. alli and i travelled 55,000 miles in nine months last year all over north america and have done a further 40,000 km since we moved to nb in april! http://tinyurl.com/yrd7l8. community in a minivan is 'interesting'! http://tinyurl.com/23zvh6 is our take on fighting in close proximity!
8:55 AM
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