I won’t lie, March has been an “interesting” month...
It has been a fantastic month, with spring slowly beginning to unfurl around us, and lots of time and space to ‘sink’ into prayer and learning. This year I decided to take part in the Order of the Mustard Seed’s(OMS) Preparatory Year.
‘The OMS is a scattered, missional order seeking to be True to Christ, Kind to People and Take the Gospel to the Nations.’ - OMS
Historically, the OMS originated with a German Count, Count Zinzendorf, as a way to help him and his friends base and live their lives around the principles of “Being True to Christ”, “Being Kind to Others” and seeking to “Take the Gospel to the Nations”. These principles also influenced the 24-7 Prayer Movement in it’s development and focus and the year I spent in England as part of the Transit Course was spent focussed on these three principles, and how they could be worked out in our individual and communal lives through the practices of Prayer, Creativity, Mercy & Justice, Hospitality, Mission and Learning.
The OMS is not a cult. It is not prescriptive and it does not ‘demand obedience’ in any way. Rather, it is an ever-growing group of friends, committing to one another to help and support one another to live lives built upon these biblical principles.
I do not know if I will, at the end, officially, “take the vow” (the only physical thing that changes is you wear a ring to signify the commitment) although I do already try to live my life by these precepts, but the preparatory year is an opportunity to, in my case, to revisit these ideas, go deeper, and learn more and build on what I’ve learned about them in the past 10yrs, in the hopes of growing and living more truly in the love of Christ for all people!
I’ve really been enjoying the process and refreshing and development and discovery of ideas and understandings, and am incredibly grateful for the breathing space I have in my schedule, to do so.
But, this month has also seen the onslaught of Brexit, with all the seeming chaos and frustration and uncertainty and idiocy that has come with it. For many people, it may not seem like a big deal and, simply one that they’d like to get over and sorted. ‘Does it really matter what the outcome is?’ ‘The EU isn’t perfect, why shouldn’t the UK get out’, etc? For me, it means the reality of whether I can remain in Germany or not. As you can imagine, this has been a fairly emotive question for me, as although even if I am able to apply for a residency visa (if freedom of movement is lost), my livelihood and dynamic of living here currently wouldn’t allow me to qualify for one. This then would open up all sorts of other questions as to where to go, why, to do what, not to mention a number of readjustments to the direction of and hopes for where my life is “going”...
I am currently still hopeful that a, at least partially positive, outcome might happen, and I also do know and trust that regardless of what happens, there will be positives and joys in whichever opportunities happen next for me.
But it has been quite frustrating and fatiguing, especially as until I do know what the Brexit circumstance will allow or disallow, it’s difficult for me to really move forward in any way. The Nordic countries are hosting a regional, 24-7 Prayer Nordic Gathering at the end of April which I had hoped to go to and support, but if the UK leaves the EU on April 12 I may not be allowed to return to Germany if I leave; can I/should I be further speaking to the Volkshochschule about the possibilities of working there, when I may not be here to continue the process, anyways? And there are various other travel plans I would like to begin organising (a trip to the UK in the summer to see family, the 24-7 Gathering in the autumn) but which I don’t feel I can do yet, because I don’t in fact know from where I will be based! So, we all continue to wait, and hope, and pray, and trust, as we see what eventually will come to pass in the next days...
So, it’s been an interesting month! The community here have been fantastic in giving me their support in the midst of all the uncertainty, and are trying to see if they can “make a way” to enable me to stay, even if the worst happens. But as even Germany doesn’t know yet what the possible options will be, there’s not a lot of practical aspects that we can act on!
But in the meantime, spring is definitely springing, I am being well-loved and supported, and I am pressing ever deeper into the goodness and trustworthiness of God!
No comments:
Post a Comment