A dream glows

Sometime, my dream for our community glows like a firefly clasped in my closed hands. If you peek in, you can see the light. But it is nowhere near a city on a hill, or a lamp on a stand, or a lighthouse in the dark.

At 3:46 A.M. the other morning, I awoke to wonder if our community dreams were worth it. An unexpected guest made me realize that the reality that goes along with them will surely impact our sleep, our privacy, our life. The reality will be inconvenient and annoying. My dreams involve sunshine and happy times; arts and crafts and snacks. They don't typically dwell on the real characters who will dance two steps back far more often than they step to the front - an ever backward-winding electric slide.

But if I really believe that "The proclamation of the gospel is the incarnation of our communities", the reality that goes along with my dream should be what I live for - learning to find peace in the areas of discontent, learning to tolerate inconvenient differences of choices and life rhythms, learning to choose to put aside my view of how things ought to be and instead delighting in the moment of how things are.

I wonder - Will it make a difference to those around me if I am present and peaceful? Will it be contagious within the community?