Apparently, Martin Luther King was not the only one with a dream, for I get them all the time. Over the years I have developed a test that helps me determine if a dream or vision is from God, or just a figment of my overactive imagination. If it is indeed from God, then it will remain alive in my heart, and even grow over time. But if it is from my own thinking, then it is quite possible that I wake up one morning, and the idea is simply gone.
We have been involved with church and ministry for over 40 years, and when I look back at what we have done over the years there is a very clear pattern. Those things that were done in the context of community bore fruit and are still alive today, but everything else that was done outside the framework of community has mostly vanished.
So I have had this dream for many years, and especially since we moved here to Sweden last fall. The best way to combat the wretched spirit of individuality in this culture, we need to move in the opposite spirit, and so I have been dreaming about a big house where a larger number of people can live together as a community. Specifically, I am thinking about a place for interns or leaders in-training, a place with ongoing training and spiritual formation, with a prayer room that is open 24 hours for anyone in the church. A place where we can host guests, and even the homeless. Rather than creating an ingrown club, this should be a missional community that reaches out to the neighborhood.
Wether to buy or rent, and how to finance this whole project remains to be seen, but I am inviting you to pray and dream with me, and to keep your eyes open for a suitable project, preferably already this coming fall. I would appreciate your thoughts, confirmation and input, so mail me at norbert.bauer@vineyard.se .
Dreaming on,
Norbert
