It was a simple black leather sofa; or maybe it was brown and fake - the details evade me, but the impact never has.
Our friends, David and Anita, had left Kelowna to follow Jesus and their
journey led them to 'settle' for a while in Winnipeg. And rumour had it that they had purchased a new black leather sofa - it was assumed that things were going well financially for them to afford such a luxury!
However, we soon discovered that, to the contrary, things were tough and the purchase was made so that it could easily be wiped clean. You see, their home was always open to the poor, and sometimes the poor made
the kind of 'mess' that needed a really thorough cleansing!
I could go on and on bragging about the 'accomplishments' of David and Anita, but they wouldn't like that. (You can always google Basileia Community, Hollywood or davidruis.com if you must!)
What I want you to know though, is what we have come to love about them most - their character and values. This is a couple for whom Gord and I have great admiration - a couple who have huge hearts, who give liberally of themselves to the poor and/or disenfranchised. A couple who love God with all their heart, soul and mind and their neighbour as themselves. In other words, the real thing!
And they will be joining us this Friday evening for our gathering. We are so excited to hear their perspectives on building relationships and friendship in the context of real community or whatever is on their hearts. (Remembering that no matter how hard we plan, the outcome is always up to Holy Spirit!) Hope you can make it!
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