Spirit On The Margins

city-house-mentor-on-the-margins-description-6-08

A few weeks ago, my friend Janet Hagberg invited me to a gathering called Real Power Network. It is a group of people that commit to living and working out of higher stages of power as described in her book Real Power.  I could feel God nudging me to go.  It gave me an opportunity to talk through our new program The Inner Leadership Journey: Mentors On The Margins, which is based on the concepts of power described in Janet’s book.

I could tell before I even went the first day of this session, that my spirit was agitated, about what I didn’t know.  After presenting the concept behind this program, I asked the group for input on how to price it.  I mentioned that Janet Hagberg had been suggesting that we not have a listed price, and simply ask people to pay what they thought it was worth at the end. I was intrigued with the idea and yet frightened by it at the same time. Talk about giving up total control and trusting!!

As I explained her suggestion, I found myself saying, “I know this is craziness. I know where this leads” and I dramatically gestured with a downward movement. One of the attendees that day challenged me on that point of view. She said that she felt drawn to invest in what we were doing, but not if I went into it with an attitude of scarcity. I could feel my internal resistance to this line of thinking. I have heard this from others before. It is my nature to hear things like that as critcism and that I have “done things wrong.” I always want to say, “But, you haven’t lived my life experience - all the financial struggles that have ensued when I have followed my heart.” It feels like a discounting of my life experience.

As I reflected back on the conversation later that day, I realized that I was more upset than I had realized about someting that had happened before this gathering. A foundation that had funded City House at a significant level for 2 years had decided to stop funding us because of our new direction, which includes the offering of this new Mentor On The Margins program. No wonder this interaction at the network bothered me so much.

I had assumed that I would not be going back for the second day of the gathering. But that night, I slept restlessly.  I faded in and out of consciousness.  I was aware all night long of coming to the realization that I was no longer doing fund raising for City House in a way that had integrity for me - nothing unethical, but just a realization that I could no longer bring myself to ask people for money in the way that I had. I knew when I woke up that morning, that I needed and wanted to go back to the gathering. And, I knew that I wanted to ask the group to help me think through a different way to raise money for City House - one that operated at higher levels of power as described in Janet’s book and had more authenticity for me.

The group was very helpful that day.  Some of the comments that I heard:

• Receive the things you need and out of your sufficiency you can be generous with others
• Could I be so bold as to actually stop asking people for money?
• Could I be so bold as to publicly put out my monologues - “I don’t want to ask you for money anymore, and you’re tired of having me ask.”
• “What if I let this be as easy as it wants to be?”
• “I’m no longer comfortable promoting. But, I am comfortable letting the world see the real me.”
• “Attraction, not promotion. Just invite people to participate.”
• Sacrificial living and giving from the heart - “Pay It Forward” - give beyond what you can afford, so faith and trust are connected. This concept is based on the movie “Pay It Forward”

Pay It Forward Movie 

Fast forward to this week. We had a design team planning session for Mentor On The Margins. Janet Hagberg is part of that design team. And she said, “In my prayer time this morning, God gave me the idea that we ought to provide this program with a ‘Pay It Forward’ concept. That is, instead of mass marketing, let’s invite select individuals to invite a mainstream leader they care about to take this program, and offer to sponsor and pay for that individual.  In other words, “Pay It Forward.” 

Within minutes, two people in the design team jumped in and said, “I will be one of those ‘Pay It Forward’ people.” One of them said she was going to forgo half of her season tickets to the Minnesota Twin’s games in order to sponsor someone.  I sat in awe and wonder at what was unfolding in front of me.  God was truly at work here and showing me what it means to give sacrificially.

What came to me in prayer yesterday was that God has already been showing me this principle for quite some time. I just hadn’t noticed. Jim Dodge followed a “Pay It Forward” concept when he founded City House. He accumulated assets for a ministry that he thought was going to be one thing, and has turned out to be something totally different.  He invited me to lead City House and generously released those assets to pay my salary, not knowing where all this was going.  He released it to my leadership, forgoing his power to control it and have it unfold the way he might have preferred.  I and City House were the beneficiaries of his sacrificial giving. Pretty amazing stuff.

And finally, God helped me to see that I have been personally drawn into ”Paying It Forward”.  On February 1, I went to half time because of funding challenges. Although I have been looking for other half time work, I find I have little interest in anything other than City House.  It is clear that God continues to ignite my passion for this mission - to the point that I have been working full time for half time pay these past 3 months - and not feeling cheated.

As Janet Hagberg likes to say, “Don’t you just love God’s sense of humor?”

I really yearn for the kind of leader that David Brooks defines in his most recent column in the New York Times.  Of Abraham Lincoln, he said “He came to terms with his weaknesses, control his passions and achieve what we now call maturity…In Lincoln’s day, to achieve maturity was to succeed in the conquest of the self…The young Lincoln had been encouraged by the culture around him to identify his own flaws…He knew he was ferociously ambitious and blessed with superior talents — the sort of person who could easily turn into a dictator or monster.”

New York Times David Brooks

“This concept of maturity as self-conquest didn’t survive long into the 20th century…Self-discovery replaced self-mastery as the primary path to maturity, and we got a thousand novels and memoirs about young peoples’ search for identity…In the last few years, we may be shifting toward another vision of maturity, one that is impatient with boomer narcissism. Young people today put service at the center of young adulthood. A child is served, but maturity means serving others.”

“And yet, though we’re never going back to the 19th-century, sin-centric character-building model, for breeding leaders, it has its uses. Over the past decades, we’ve seen president after president confident of his own talents but then undone by underappreciated flaws. It’s as if they get elected for their virtues and then get defined in office by the vices — Clinton’s narcissism, Bush’s intellectual insecurity — they’ve never really faced.”

“It would be nice to have a president who had gone to school on his own failings. It would be comforting to see a president who’d looked into the abyss, or suffered some sort of ordeal that put him on a first-name basis with his own gravest weaknesses, and who had found ways to combat them.”

I couldn’t agree more with this point of view. Janet Hagberg, in her book Real Power talks about going “through the wall”, as a stage in leadership development - when a leader confronts his or her own shadows. (Read “George Bush” who seems incapable of introspection)

Parker Palmer, in his book, Let Your Life Speak, describes 5 shadows often encountered in leadership:

1. Insecurity about identity or worth.

2. The belief that the universe is a battleground, hostile to human interests.

3. The belief that ultimate responsibility for everything rests with me.

4. Fear of the natural chaos of life.

5. The denial of death itself (seen most often in the fact that all things must die in due course). This underlies so much of our fear of failure.  (Read, “Hillary Clinton” in her refusal to concede the race to Barak Obama when he had won the majority of the delegates)

Again in Real Power, Janet Hagberg defines 13 practices that develops one’s capacity for leadership from one’s spirit - beyond ego. One of the ways is to find a mentor on the margins of society. “Then you can look at your own homelessness, your own inner prisons, and your own addictions in a new and more compassionate way.”  Then one can lead from a place of wholeness that has integrated both shadow and light. This has certainly been my experience.

This is the premise of a new leadership program City House is developing - to connect mainstream leaders with a mentor on the margins of society - to deepen her / his capacity to lead from a spiritual center.

 We held our annual City House celebration for all of our constituents on Thursday night.  It was an opportunity to celebrate what our City House community has done together this past year and what God is doing through us - with our volunteers, program participants, social service agency partners, “Will You Drink From This Cup?” program learners and participants, board members, donors, and friends.

We started out by remembering that our theme for last year’s celebration was “The Most Dangerous Prayer Of All? Yes” based on a poem, “Dangerous Prayers”, by Regina Sara Ryan. The essence of the poem invites us to live dangerously by inviting God to do whatever it is that God wants to do in our lives. It was a year ago, that we acknowledged at City House our need for a year of discernment - a year in which we prayed and listened openly and honestly about where God would have us go.

As a consequence, we ended up saying “yes” to some significant commitments that have taken us in new directions. City House test piloted an outcomes measurement system with the support of the Otto Bremer Foundation, that will now allow us to observe what God is up to in our core volunteer program of providing spiritual companionship for and with the poor.

We conducted our first inner city pilgrimmage in partnership with Christos Center for Spiritual Formation. That retreat opened our eyes to the possiblity of a mission expansion - that we had as much to offer the mainstream world as we did the persons who find themselves on the margins of society. It led us to moving from a mission of “tending to the spiritual lives of the poor, inspring hope” to a mission of  ”connecting the mainstream and margins for mutual spiritual growth and transformation.”

That shift in mission in turn led us to the development of the “Will You Drink From This Cup?” pilot program, just completed - where mainstream learners entered into relationships with “friends” on the margins of society so that both parties might grow spiritually.

We followed this celebration of the year in review in which we said “yes”, by reflecting on our shared poverty of spirit, whether mainstream or societally marginalized. We read and reflected on the Macrina Wiederkehr poem, “Blessed are the Poor in Spirit”, as a way to best express that sentiment. Marcina Wiederkehr web site

Small groups then reflected on and shared personal stories around the following questions:

Question:  Describe a time in your life when you were full of a false idea(s), and then came to discover the truth. What happened?

Question:  Describe a time in your life when you felt small, powerless, and needy. How, if at all, did that time open your heart?  How, if at all, did it become a time of blessing?

Question:  Describe a time in your life when you were forced to let go of your plans and your timing and had to wait on God.  What happened?

Question:  Describe a time in your life when you finally realized that you needed to rely on God and you felt good about it.  What happened?

“Will You Drink This Cup?” program learner, Angelie Ryah- Dahn then shared her story about her friendship with a woman from Central Avenue Apartments.  Then, one of the participants from Reentry Metro, VJ, shared her story about being a friend to one of the program learners. She was unable to be present for the celebration, and so, her thoughts were read to us from something she had written up.

“I was very grateful to be accepted as I am.  The caring spirit and kindful heart of her friendship to understand me was a blessing. What was a touching experience was when we both connected and were able to grow with each other.  During our meetings in small steps we supported each other in healing through our brokenness.”

“Everytime you shed a tear, you are healing your own soul.  In every tear drop, there is a rainbow, whch is a promise from God.  I am committed to share my life with anyone who wants to talk about it.  The bad and good.  I do this in honor and memory of my brother Jr. Thank you City House!! (Thank you VJ!!!)”

Finally, we asked program participants to come forward and personally bless each of our volunteer spiritual companions for their gift of listening on the margins of society. Jim Dodge, our founder, closed with prayer. Once again, the sense of community among this diverse group of people was palpable. I am grateful to be a part of it. 

From left to right: John Edwards, Hillary Clinton, Jim Wallis, and Barak Obama.

Krista Tippett hosted Rev Jim Wallis on her Speaking of Faith program today.  Jim is known as a progressive evangelical and author of God’s Politics: Why the Right Got It Wrong and the Left Doesn’t Get It.

God’s Politics a blog by Jim Wallis and friends

I loved this book when I read it.  He wrote it after the 2004 election.  Jim Wallis articulates what I have always believed - that God is not a Republican or a Democrat. 

He contends on Krista’s show that as a nation we are on the edge of a new great awakening about the poor, the likes of which we haven’t seen since Martin Luther King in the struggle over civil rights.  Jim contends that revivals of social justice are not possible without a revival of faith.  He quotes Britian’s Prime Minister Gordon Brown as telling him that we have everything we need today to end poverty.  We just lack the moral and political will to do it. And, he then looked at Wallis and said, “that’s your job.”

He goes on to say that Martin Luther King and others like him never endorsed candidates. Instead they started movements by building a base outside of parties and challenging them for their endorsement.  They held each party accountable.

“If our Gospel is not Good News to the poor, it is not the Gospel”, says Wallis.  “We don’t know poor people. They are segregated. Until poor people are our friends, there can be no revival.” 

I really resonate with these last statements. City House is apolitical and it is not part of our mission to create or support some kind of revival. But, we are about creating relationships with the poor, in ways that nurture mutual spiritual growth and transformation.  I truly believe we are part of some kind of movement of God’s work in the world. I just don’t always know what it is.

Other opinions out there about Jim Wallis?

We are humbled and pleased to present a new City House program. It is an expression of our newly expanded mission. We will continue to “tend to the spiritual life of the poor,”but in addition, we are now turning to the world and saying, “We have something for you too.” We are prayerfully expectant that some who read this will feel drawn to this unique experience.

“Will You Drink From This Cup?” Brochure Outside

“Will You Drink From This Cup?” Brochure Inside

To apply, please send us some background information in the mail.

Background Information Apply For “Will you Drink From This Cup?”

I like the way David Brooks, New York Times, Op-Ed columnist thinks and writes. He looks much deeper for underlying causes than most. I don’t know if he knows what he is talking about, but his explanations often seem plausible to me.

In his November 20 Op-Ed piece, “The Segmented Society”, he makes the point that “the 1970s were a great moment for musical integration…But cultural history has pivot moments, and at some point toward the end of the 1970s or the early 1980s, the era of integration gave way to the era of fragmentation.”

“It seems that whatever story I cover, people are anxious about fragmentation and longing for cohesion. This is the driving fear behind the inequality and immigration debates, behind worries of polarization and behind the entire Obama candidacy.”

“If you go to marketing conferences, you realize we really are in the era of the long tail. In any given industry, companies are dividing the marketplace into narrower and more segmented lifestyle niches.”

“We live in an age in which the technological and commercial momentum drives fragmentation. It’s going to be necessary to set up countervailing forces — institutions that span social, class and ethnic lines.”

Enter City House. We are too small to be called an institution. I am hopeful thinking about us as a movement - a small part of something much bigger than ourselves - a piece of flotsam on God’s ocean of possibility.

With humility, I am hopeful that our contribution to the countervailing forces of fragmentation is to invite middle and upper class folks into a relationship with the poor - for the sake of the poor - for our own sakes - for the sake of the world.  By inviting people to do this through the unusual lense of spirituality, we believe we are doing something uniquely unfamiliar.

Icon by S.T. Georgiou

“The fact remains that every street is Mystic Street.  Every lane we walk and every turn around every bend is an invitation to spiritual discovery. We have only to remain open to the understanding that the divine blessings of love and grace are unlimited, are unconditional, and are everywhere.”

Mystic Street: Meditations on a Spiritual Path by S.T. Georgiou

Who would have ever thought that the divine blessings of love and grace could be unlimited, unconditional, and palpable among the poor?  I think Jesus and many others got it.  Won’t you consider joining this movement toward integration and spiritual discovery?

Board Members Present: Bert Amdahl, Dennis Anderson, Beth Andrews, Rev. Cathy McDonald, Vivian Mims, and Greg Peterson

Not Pictured: Dan Cain, Paul Radunz, and Rev Paul Robinson

The City House board (a great asset, always faithful, and working behind the scenes)  met on Tuesday and approved a new direction. The proposed plan was formulated through a prayerful discernment process, with significant input from a broad spectrum of stakeholders (program participants, volunteers, donors, etc). To recap, City House is expanding its mission from “Tending to the spiritual lives of the poor, inspiring hope”, to “Inviting people into a relationship with the poor, for mutual spiritual growth and transformation.”

Mission Expansion

Some of the comments made by board members during the discussion:

• This shift in mission highlights the practical aspect of our work.
• It keeps us open to what the spirit might be doing in the broader world.
• Some people may be scared off with the intimacy of the language of “inviting people”.  Some may just want to donate money. If so, will our use of this language be off putting to them?

The energy level among board members was high. The board approved the general direction, with the plan and its use of language as a “working document”.

I continue to be so grateful for this wonderful group of people shepherding City House’s resources and future. Hats off to them!!!

City House hosted a discernment session on Thursday night at Richfield United Methodist Church http://www.richfieldumc.org/ about a potential expansion of mission.  21 people came together, representing a diverse mix of participants, volunteers, donors, board members, and partners. City House’s current mission states that “We tend to the spiritual lives of the poor.”  The proposed mission expansion would read “Inviting people into a relationship with the poor for mutual spiritual growth and transformation.” The group was asked to feedback on the proposal and to respond to the questions:

• What seems life giving - like it might be “Of God?”
• What seems like it might not be “Of God?”

It was also proposed that we leave spirituality undefined - that it be left up to every individual to define it for themselves - that we honor that diversity - and that we focus instead on the outcomes of spiritual growth and transformation, rather than a specific path to get there.

The energy and enthusiasm in the room were high.  The general consensus affirmed the new direction.  Much of our discussion centered on the use of language. Some of the issues raised in this session and in other one on one conversations:

• Talk about a cultural encounter more than bringing “Help to someone in need.”
• Referring to “the poor” sounds a little “off” to some. It can sound degrading.
• Encouraging people into a relationship with “diverse people”
• “Poor in Spirit” has energy for some
• “Promote spirituality as a resource to a broken world”, was alternative wording proposed by some.
• Concern that we will end up “using” the poor.
• A spiritual companion relationship is never “mutual”. There is always a differential of power that must be recognized.
• Fear that we will try to go too fast in this new direction
• Recommendation that we have some kind of language that we use to describe our understanding of spirituality as we go into congregations.
• A preference by some that the mission be broader.

A generous thanks to all of those that have given feedback about this proposed direction.

 Any other new thoughts?

The next step: commitment, modification, or rejection of the proposed direction by the City House board.