Southpoint News June 2, 2018

Growing Together

“At Southpoint we value the intergenerational nature of our community. We seek to gather for worship, build relationships, and structure our community life in ways that include children and youth well. We believe that children and adults learn from one another and reveal God to another.”

Months ago Klein came up to me and said, “Anne, I want to help plan an ALL IN service. This is my idea: Usually, during ALL IN services, the kids stay up with the adults. But I think we should have an ALL IN where the adults come to our classes and join us! They can break up into little groups and do what we do. This past Sunday, Klein’s vision came to fruition. Klein and Angela met together and designed 5 amazing stations scattered inside and outside the church. Each station explored the gift of the Holy Spirit. At these 5 stations, we claimed this gift of the Spirit for ourselves, practiced paying attention so we can learn to hear the Spirit, practiced “finding our voice” so we can learn to speak out the message of the Spirit. We also named our dreams and vision and explored what it means to have the Spirit pour into us. It was a beautiful morning, and Klein seemed radiant. Our collective experience illustrates one of the core promises of Pentecost. Acts 2:17, quoting the prophet Joel, promises this: ?”And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams;”

This text claims that when the Spirit of God comes and fills God’s community, something really beautiful will happen. The young and the old will be given gifts, and these gifts will be for the strengthening of the community. Our children will begin to prophecy – they will begin to speak and share words that have their root in God. Our young men and women will begin to have vision – they will speak and share ideas and inspiration that have their root in God. Our elders will begin to dream again – their hard won wisdom will be anointed with God’s wisdom. They will speak and share words of possibility and hope that have their root in God. Collectively, these intergenerational voices will reveal God: God’s heart, God’s desires, and God’s purposes will become clearer. EACH and EVERY ONE is an important voice in our community – the youngest voice, the oldest voice, and all voices in between. Together, as we learn to pay attention to the Spirit and share the words, visions, and dreams imprinted on our hearts and minds by the Spirit, we make audible the Revelation of Divine Love. This past Sunday, the Spirit gave Klein, one of our “young men”, a vision. He had the courage to voice it to me, and then work with Angela to bring the vision to pass. Because of that, our community was ministered to and blessed, and God’s Divine Love was revealed. One of our core values at Southpoint is intergenerational ministry. Behind this value is a theological presupposition revealed this week – we seek to be intergenerational because God’s revelation is manifest most profoundly when all of us, young and old, are valued contributors, learning to be attentive and responsive to the Spirit. We are an intergenerational church because the sum of who we are together is so much greater than who we are when we are silo-ed off and separated. Questions for Reflection: What is one action you can take to help us grow as an intergenerational community, where the different generations learn and bless one another? What dreams, visions, and words might the Spirit be speaking to you?

Pastor Anne Smith

Calendar

Sunday, June 3rd, 10:00 am: Worship at Sunnyside, Pizza Lunch for Newcomers

Tuesday, June 5th: Youth Mentorship Group

Sunday, June 10th, 10:00 am: Worship at Sunnyside

Sunday, June 10th, afternoon: Hike at Golden Ears Prov. Park (Lower Falls), with the Junior Youth

Friday, June 15th: 13+ Youth Group Endf year party!

Sunday, June 17th, 10:00 am: Worship at Sunnyside

Tuesday, June 19th: (Last) Youth Mentorship Group – outing to beach, weather permitting

Hike at Golden Ears Provincial Park, Sunday, June 10th

The Junior Youth invite the church to join them after the service for a hike to Lower Falls at Golden Ears Provincial Park. Bring a bag lunch!

Lectio Divina in June

Anne will be leading Lectio Divina at Third Space (1381 George Street) Tuesdays from 9:30-10:30 during the month of June. We will use the lectionary text for the following Sunday to form our prayer. All are welcome.

Stay Tuned: Something New!

During the first three Sundays of July, we will be experimenting with a new rhythm of worship: worshipping outdoors! We are envisioning a simplified worship under the dappled shade of trees, worshipping on blankets and folding chairs from home, relishing in the goodness of Creation and the beauty of God. We are exploring A Rocha’s Brooksdale Environmental Centre and Kingfisher Farm as possible venues. Stay tuned for more details.

Southpoint for Newcomers

“Chestnuts in the offering basket?!” In this age of electronic interactions, we want to symbolize the act of giving for our children. The nuts are a visible expression of online giving happening behind the scenes. Feel free to put one in the basket if you give on-line.
“How can I give on-line?” There is a link on our Southpoint webpage for donations. Pre-arranged monthly giving is also available. Simply contact Southpoint’s financial admin wizard, Sarah McEvoy for forms and instructions.
“I’d like prayer.” It is our delight and duty to pray for one another.  If you have a prayer need, you may come up for prayer after the service, or you may pass on your request to John Hardy who heads up our prayer chain.
“I’d like to serve.” We have volunteer teams for almost every aspect of our service (greeting, serving coffee, teaching kids, serving communion, etc). We encourage everyone who attends regularly to join a team. Worship is a communal offering – many hands make glad hearts and light work! To explore how you may get involved, please contact Anne or Angela.
“What are Gathering Groups?” We have six ALL OUT Sundays a year. On these Sundays, we meet in smaller intergenerational gathering groups that help us practice being neighbours to one another. In these groups, we eat, play, swap stories, adventure, pray, and serve. Gathering group members also function as “first responders” should someone in their group have a need. Some gathering groups find times to meet more often. If you are new and would like to join a Gathering Group, please contact Anne.