Love is a Verb

In John 21:1-19, Jesus gave Peter the invitation that would shape his life from that moment onwards: “Do you love me, Peter? Then feed my sheep.” Verbs, not nouns, drive the storyline forwards, yet is the presence of Jesus that provides the wild abundance.

Jesus was utterly present as he stood on the shore, deeply connected to the waters of the sea, deeply connected to the schools of fish below, and deeply connected to the disciples, weary from a night of fishing. And because he was present and deeply attuned, there was this moment when three things fell into alignment: the school of fish, the boat, and the disciples. At that moment, Jesus calls out to them, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat.”

Here’s the hinge moment—it’s all in the verbs. The fishermen listenedand threw their nets into the water, one more time. As they aligned their actions with the deep knowing of Jesus, their nets filled up with the fish. Wild abundance entered their boat. Together, Jesus’ deep knowing, with the disciples’ responsive actions, created the abundance. 

As we align our actions with the wisdom of Jesus, what wild abundant love might Jesus draw us into? As you ponder that question, here is an unfolding story of small actions growing into abundance for you from our very own Madison! 

This past Sunday, I proposed that, as a church, we form a new service team to prepare and serve meals at the Cloverdale Community Kitchen once a month, beginning this fall (see ‘Mending the Net’ section, below, for more details). 

This proposal came from seeds planted earlier this winter. After our All IN Sunday in January, when we made snack bags and delivered them to folks at the White Rock Warming Centre, Shaylyn Peters expressed interest in volunteering with me at the Warming Centre. I had been hoping to find opportunities to volunteer with youth from the church myself, so this was exciting to hear! After the Warming Centre let us know they were at capacity for volunteers, we shifted our sights to the Cloverdale Community Kitchen (CCK). We’ve volunteered at their food bank a couple of times and have enjoyed the hands-on service we get to engage in, alongside other volunteers from the community. As we got to know the staff at CCK, I reached out to their volunteer coordinator and discovered that there was a potential opportunity for our church to form a Meal Team — a chance for this experience of service and connection with the wider community to open up to others from our church. We’re look forward to seeing where this goes!

Deep peace,

Anne & Madison

New to Southpoint?

At Southpoint, it all begins with God’s love. Just as a plant grows, it receives sunshine, so we grow as we receive God’s love. At Southpoint, we are growing in our capacity to love God, ourselves, one another, and Creation.

We seek to be a community of grace that is intentional yet organic, spacious yet authentic, grace-filled yet accountable. * We are fully welcoming. *

We encourage relationships rather than run programs, yet we recognize the importance of intentionality and structure as we nurture life together.

As a community, we seek to put our love in action. We value helping out on Sunday mornings, sharing food, and showing up in hard times. We keep our church life simple so folk have time to build relationships with family, friends, and neighbours. We encourage folk to serve in tangible ways within the wider community. We rent space rather than own a building, allowing us to do more with less, supporting missions at home and abroad.

Curious to know more?

These six slides express what motivates our ministry (best viewed on a monitor). Here’s the bio of our Pastor, Rev. Anne Baxter Smith.

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