front porch looking In…DISCOVERY
Discovery is more than a channel on cable. We all have this innate desire to discover new things; a desire to learn something for the first time; or to find out the many layers to something or someone we already know.
It seems like all too often, people view their faith experience as a destination and not a discovery. We’re convinced of a truth and proceed to think that all is good because we’ve accepted that truth. But what if truth isn’t a thing but a person. We would never say that we know someone fully after meeting them just once or twice. Hence the reason why we value discovery when it comes to our faith journey.
For the next three weeks/posts, we’ll talk about what value at The Village. We’ve narrowed it down to three words, DISCOVERY, STORY, COMMUNITY. This is not because that’s all it takes to define us, but because those three words best describe our expression of becoming a community of people who follow Jesus and who live out his teaching about loving God and loving others.
Why Discovery?
When you value discovery, you also value humility (that turns into love), respect (expressed through gentleness) and learning (that forms our discipleship process).
Here’s how we word it, ‘We want you to discover God with us…and we want to continue to discover God with you.’ See how this places a healthy assumption on our faith journey, one that embraces people where they are at, while also reminding ourselves that we are never done learning and growing in our faith.
Psalm 34:8 may express this value best. King David, after sharing his thoughts about how good and powerful God is, says this, “Taste and see that the Lord is good…”. What’s he getting at? Why don’t you try God for yourself, why not discover him, and once you do, you’ll see that he is good. Kind of like Green Eggs & Ham for the Psalms. The food metaphor seems to be a perfect way to describe David’s point. Take the time to discover what God is serving, what he’s making for dinner, what’s on his plate, and see that it is ‘good’. Think about your favourite food or dish. Can you remember when it became your favourite dish? The feeling you had? The risk you took to try it? David is liking his experience to God in the same way. God is worth trying…worth discovering.
Discovery involves looking and searching. It takes effort and time to discover something. In Genesis 3, we find that God was looking for us. He enters the garden after Adam & Eve had sinned and looks for them. He asks, “Where are you?” “Why are you hiding?” He knows what they’ve done, yet he still wants to find them and be with them.
Later on in the scripture we find King Solomon receiving instruction to look for God…to discover God. “If you seek him, you will be found my him.” (1 Chronicles 28) As King of Israel, his most important role is to discover God.
Of course in the gospels we Jesus sharing stories, dropping clues, creating metaphors, all for the purpose of discovery. In Matthew 13, in one of Jesus’ parables, he says this, “The kingdom of
heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it
again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field. “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for
fine pearls. When he found one of great value,
he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.” Jesus says that God and his Kingdom are worth discovering; it’s worth the chase; ‘He’ is worth the effort and the journey. The person who finds the treasure happened to stumble upon it. The person who finds the pearl was looking for it. Both, however, discovered something so valuable that they did everything they could to obtain it. Are we that passionate about discovering God through Jesus? Are we willing to keep moving forward to discover all that God has for us? And possibly more important, are we patient enough with those that are just starting this journey, inviting them to discover God with us?
What do we discover?
– We discover Forgiveness, Grace, Mercy, Redemption, Love, Generosity, etc.
– We discover Community
– We discover Neighbours…in a different light then we’ve seen them before.
– We discover that everyone we meet eyes with (the family on our local street, the refugee escaping his home land, and the foreigner who we disagree with) all matter to God.
– We discover God’s story, with all chapters leading to Jesus.
– We discover a new mission…to share the ‘tastiness’ of God with others.
Back to your favourite dish. Do you discover what you love and then proceed to just make it for your sole pleasure? Or do you learn how to make the best version of your favourite food so you can serve it at your next neighbourhood or family meal?
At The Village we value Discovery. We want you to discover God with us…and we want to continually discover God with you.