eager feet

The Road goes ever on and on
Down from the door where it began.
Now far ahead the road has gone,
And I must follow, if I can,
Pursuing it with eager feet,
Until it joins some larger way
Where many paths and errands meet.
And wither then? I cannot say.

- J.R.R. Tolkien

Tomorrow we're setting up an interactive display on campus for a couple of hours in order to engage students in conversation about their internal realities and how the good news of the Gospel offers hope for transformation. Pray for good connections and the cultivating of much curiosity about Jesus.

This week One Voice is also committing to inviting our friends to study three passages out of John's Gospel over the first three weeks of November. These GIGs (Groups Investigating God) are a change to invite our curious friends to consider the things we've been learning about Jesus this semester. Pray for boldness as we invite and build community around the Word.

As we press on into the second half of this semester I am mindful that we are not always sure where the road is leading, but we are sure who is walking ahead of us. That makes all the difference.

sufficient

Confidence in the sufficiency of Jesus - my pastor in Tucson defined faith as such. I find myself agreeing with him more and more, especially as I step out into greater risks and invite students to do the same.

Tonight I am having to remind myself of this as I prepare to work on fundraising after a week full of other relational risks on campus. I am confident in his sufficiency.

living water

Yup, that's me - looking terrified in the last row and leaning forward.

Last weekend I fulfilled a lifelong dream: whitewater rafting on a legitimate river. I survived - thrived, actually - through the experience and it was every bit as exciting as I had hoped it would be.

Earlier in the week I had the opportunity to spend three days studying John 1-4 in the company of the Urbana Bible Study teaching team. In the final session we dove into Jesus' interaction with the woman at the well. While I am keenly aware of the way Jesus has been using this preparation time in each of the four passages to refine me, I've been mulling over the 4th chapter of John's Gospel for months now. This time Jesus' offer of "living water" stood out. We talked about living water carrying the cultural understanding of moving water as opposed to water from a well or cistern. For some reason I'd always associated that phrase with something tame, like a fountain. As soon as moving water came up in the conversation, however, the fountain image in my head gave way to a river: wild, untamed, and rapid.

As I rafted the living water of the Ocoee River I couldn't help but marvel at the invitation that Jesus offers us.

Our fitting response is to give it away.

On the last and greatest day of the Festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, "Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them."
John 7:37-38 (TNIV)