This week we have looked at the perspectives of three members of Rob and Lauren Maine’s Community Group as they reflected on throwing a block party for their neighbors.  I hope these perspectives have been helpful and encouraging to you, perhaps even spurring a desire in your heart to do the same thing in the neighborhood where your community group lives.

I wanted to share one last perspective with you.  This perspective comes from Bert Guinn, a Community Group Cluster Coach in the East End of Louisville.  Before I share Bert’s post, I want to explain what a Community Group Cluster is and why we have them here at Sojourn.  Recently the leadership at Sojourn reorganized the Community groups into “clusters” so that coaches would no longer be leading groups in various sections of the city; each coach is now over a specific geographic location in Louisville.  For example, there is a cluster made up of all of the groups that meet in Germantown, a cluster made up of all of the groups in Shelby Park, etc.  This geographic shift has a threefold benefit.  First, it allows coaches to not have to travel back and forth across the city to visit the groups they are responsible for, spending a great deal of time travelling when they could be coaching.  Second, it allows the coaches to truly know a section of Louisville and to be able to lead Community Group Leaders in that area of town.  There is a sense of ownership over an area of the city that was not possible before the geographic shift.  Third, it allows Community Groups to be on mission together.  It is very encouraging to know that there are six groups within a two-mile radius of where your Community Group meets that could assist you in serving your neighbors.   Ultimately, these benefits boil down to the fact that geographic clustering allows Community Groups to be who they are where they are together, which is the essence of gospel community.

So, without further adieu, here is the post from Bert, as he shares how two groups in his cluster tackled loving their neighbors.

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Sojourn’s new geographic reorganization is now in place and on the move. Here’s an update from the field:
The newly formed East 7 (a.k.a. E7) is a cluster of seven community groups that meet in close proximity of Sojourn East.

We are already off to a big bang working together to reach out to neighbors in the area. In the last week alone, E7 had two major events in two different hoods. The first event was on July 3. CG leaders, Jason and Lyndsay Magar, took the initiative of contacting the mayor of their local community to partner with him on an annual Independence Day celebration that begins with a fire truck parade through the neighborhood and ends at Hounz Lane Park across from Tom Sawyer. The mayor provided free food and E7 provided free ice cream. Each group was responsible for bringing one tub of creamy indulgence and a box of cones. We passed out flyers for the upcoming Sojourn Kids Art Camp, sparked up conversation with locals, and served up the good stuff with a smile. Lyndsay even organized games with prizes for all the kids. We met quite a few people in the neighborhood, and it was remarkable how they were so responsive to hearing about our church. Some had even noticed the new Sojourn sign at old Mother Goose and had wondered what it was all about. One man was there with his three young boys who told me that he had moved to the area from Ohio more than a year ago, but had yet to find a church home. I have a feeling we will be seeing that man again soon. In addition, the mayor was quite enthusiastic about our involvement, and I was pleased that he led everyone in a word of prayer before eating.

Our second bash was on July 6th. Rob and Lauren Maine’s group meets in a hood directly across from Sojourn East. Prior to the shin dig, doors were knocked on and personal invitations were made. It was an outdoor event with tables, chairs, and cornhole in the front yard. There were dogs, brats, chips, fruit, and of course, ice cream! The turnout was incredible. I was amazed at how many neighbors showed up. There was so much diversity. One lady originally from Ethiopia was there with her young daughter, and we struck up a conversation about recycling and how disconnected Americans, myself included, are from appreciating the abundant blessings that we all enjoy everyday. A young couple with a one-year old boy took me by surprise when the dad said he was from England. It wasn’t long before the conversation with them turned toward discussing our loving Father. Running down this list I saw two young couples, a single mom with one child, a grandmother with her young granddaughter, an elderly German man who brought a case of beer, quite a few other older people (60′s and up), and still others were there whom I didn’t even get to meet. One of my favorite comments I heard was, “so you all just decided to ask your neighbors to get together for a party to get to know each other? I don’t think anyone has EVER done that before. What a great idea!” It was such a rich time of getting to know the folks in the neighborhood and also getting to know my CG leaders.

In hindsight, two things stood out:

1. How simple and easy these events were. It wasn’t rocket science. It involved simply meeting people, eating together, laughing, commiserating, and sharing our lives with the people that are all around us everyday in real, not manufactured community.
2. Needs were identified effortlessly. For instance, the Ethiopian lady randomly mentioned that her A/C was out in her home. Likewise, another young couple asked me if Sojourn had a Day Care because they desperately needed to find a trustworthy one in the area. I think this is just the tip of iceberg, but it shows that it’s not hard to get out and identify ways to solve problems and help in your community…even in the East End.

How refreshing it can be for a group to get of their socially-isolated comfort zone and extend grace to others in their physical community. As group members, it is common for us to get stuck in a rut of repeatedly psychoanalyzing ourselves and obsessing about our individual walks. Don’t get me wrong, sharing our own thoughts, worries, and concerns is indeed an important and cherished part of community group life. But, on the other hand, it can be so invigorating to get out and actually do something with our faith. After all, as Christ so perfectly demonstrated, love is an action.

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