Silent Retreat

As a wonderful story from my experience at a Silent Retreat:

I went on a silent retreat this past Saturday for my class Faith and Discipleship. I spent the morning focusing on just being in to moment,praying for others, and for organizations/conflicts around me. After lunch I decided to walk the trails; it was during this time that I prayed about my future. I talked with God about how I felt that I was seeking and he was not responding and that I did not understand. I was lead to re-ask myself what God wants me/Christ-followers to do.

I had just read Irresistible Revolution by Shane Claiborne over fall break. While reading the book I was pleased to find that what Shane talks about is what is inside of me that I lacked the vocabulary to vocalize.

Thinking of that book, Jesus' example, and my own beliefs I realized that simple radical truth: God desires for me (for Christ-followers) to love (radically love, something so many Christian's do not do). God wants me to love a love that gets not just my hands dirty, but my life dirty. If we love someone then we get involved in their lives and help them (which can "mess up" our own comfortable lives). God reminded (okay, had to reveal to the silly narrow minded me) that I do not need an organization to do live out the Radical Love that Jesus lived out.

I felt once again re-affirmed in my plans to move to Pennsylvania. I do not know if I will end up with an organization or not, God may in fact lead me to an organization; however, I am very open to the possibility of being a full time lover without an organization. I could very well work at a "regular" job (like transfer to an Applebee's out there) and love.

This may sounds silly; however, to me it helped me move from just having the internal understanding of love to grasping the radical external lifestyle of real love.