My friend Randy Lovelace is a pastor in the Redeemer network in New Jersey near Manhattan. He has made a number of contacts in the community through reviving an old passion of his, cycling, and joining a cycling club. A great idea which would serve us all well, if we pursue the right passion in the right venue.
Most of my passions are rather solitary. I mean, you can ride a bike in a pack; reading on the other hand is not much of a group activity. However, at the Braden River branch library a couple weeks ago I noticed that they had an ongoing book discussion group. So, I checked out the current selection and dove in. The book was about a sixty year old suburban mother whose daughter announced her engagement and whose sister left her husband on the same day. Two hundred pages of suburban life, some of it redeeming, but all of it out of my interest zone.
But that was alright. Then I went, with some trepidation, the the discussion group. As I drove to the meeting, I told Hannah, my daughter, “I hope this isn’t just a group of three single women.” It wasn’t. It was a group of six single women. They were all very nice, but I did not fit in – at several levels.
The experience has me curious: what does bring people out of their houses for serious interaction? Most people will generally not attend random library book groups just as they will not attend random church events. I inquired about a group at Books-a-Million. They tell me they used to have such groups, but discontinued them since no more than three would actually show up.
I’m back to square one. It seems clear what God is telling me. If I want a group of thoughtful non-Christian people, I will need to invite them myself. I have some ideas. I’m interested in yours.