Mission partnership conversation

Some 40 Crescent Hill church folks and friends (including Children’s Fellowship regulars) gathered to eat Guatemalan paches, study scripture together, and draw, write, and talk about the following: What could you offer and receive from such a mission partnership? What hopes and questions do you have about a partnership? The drawings and text went on banners that the mission team will take to Guatemala.

The scripture passage we studied was Romans 1:8-12. In English: First, I thank God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is proclaimed throughout the world. For God, whom I serve with my spirit by announcing the gospel of his Son, is my witness that without ceasing I remember you always in my prayers, asking that by God’s will I may somehow at least succeed in coming to you. For I am longing to see you so that I may share with you some spiritual gift to strengthen you – or rather so that we may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith, both yours and mine.

In Spanish: En primer lugar, doy gracias a mi Dios por medio de Jesucristo por todos vosotros, porque por todo el mundo se habla de vuestra fe. Pues Dios, a quien sirvo en mi espiritu en las predcacion del evangelio de su Hijo me es testigo de como sin cesar hago mencion de vosotros siempre en mis oraciones, implorando que ahora, al fin, por la voluntad de Dios, logre ir a vosotros. Porque anhelo verso para impartiros algun don spiritual, a fin de que seais confirmados, es decir, para que cuando este entre vosotros nos confortemos mutuamente, cada uno por la fe del otro, tanto la vuestra como la mia.

After a wonderful dinner of paches and macaroni and cheese and additional conversation, half a dozen folks – one from each round table – reported on what their tablemates had said about what they’d drawn and written – or would have drawn or written – on the banners we worked on before dinner:

- Perry reported that folks at his table asked what the partnership was for and how long it would lost and how our possible partner churches in Guatemala engage youth and young adults. Folks at this table also said Crescent Hill folks have curiosity and reflection skills to offer and sharing and a faith on focus and spirituality to gain.

- The group at Ben’s table focused on a drawing by a child at the table and said mission partnership would build on family.

- Luke said people at his table wanted a partnership to flesh out the scripture about mutually encouraging each other in our faith.

- Jo Ella said folks at her table wondered what the Guatemalans’ expectations for the partnership were and wanted to learn how they live their faith and how they interpret Scripture.

- Jerry said folks at his table believed that we could work things out with the partnership. They too wondered about the duration of the partnership and wanted partnership not just to drift. We must also learn some green practices, folks at this table said.

- Folks at Ellen’s table wanted to learn more about Guatemala and the Presbyterian church in Guatemalan. They wondered about water quality in Guatemala and hoped we might learn more about simple living.

-- Perry