A few days ago I was thinking about how the first settlers came to the northeastern United States. I remembered the ship, the Mayflower, which carried an early group of pilgrims seeking religious liberty into the new world. I began to wonder what had happened to that ship. As I researched it I discovered some interesting details. The Mayflower, anchored at Cape Cod in early November 1620 after a two month journey across the Atlantic. Those who had survived the journey explored the snow-covered area and decided to remain on the ship through the winter. When spring emerged there were only 53 survivors, half of the original passengers and crew. Those who had endured the trans-Atlantic journey and the long winter left the Mayflower in March to establish Plymouth Colony. Less than a month later the vessel left port to return to England where it arrived in May, 1621. While the exact path the Mayflower took from that point cannot be proven it seems that the ship was dismantled and the lumber then used to build a barn in England now known as the Mayflower barn.
The account of the Mayflower provides us with a unique picture of one of the ways that God will use people, places and other instruments as vehicles to carry people to their destiny. For one fall and winter the Mayflower was one such vessel. It helped to carry a group of visionaries toward their dream and in doing so helped to change the history of the world. While it played a vital role in the development of the northeastern United States, when the passengers left the boat early in the spring of 1621, its role changed. Within a few years the same timbers that had sliced across the Atlantic and provided refuge for the Pilgrims were dismantled and used to build a different structure.
Similarly our role at Harbinger has been to embark on a journey into something new and different. We have done that. Lancaster City has been the birthplace for us. While we have faced some difficulties and known the frustration of trying to birth something new, it is also clear that we are a success in the eyes of God. He has worked carefully among us to raise up a group that would honor those who have come before us without sacrificing our own calling to see change come to the Body of Christ. Like those on the Mayflower that first winter we have discovered a precious reality - at times simply surviving is victorious!
After enduring that winter the passengers left that ship behind and while it likely always carried a special place in their hearts they would never again return to it. Their destiny was no longer dependent upon the ship which had carried them there - instead their destiny lie directly ahead of them in the choices they would now make with the liberty they had been given. Likewise it is now time for us to move from the ship which has carried us to this place. It is time to step into the destiny which is before us. For many of us that will mean moving geographically into new regions of this nation and the world as we step out and embrace the liberty we have fought hard to obtain during the last two years. Some will choose to remain in Lancaster and search out their role in the ongoing development of this city. Regardless of whether you know that you are moving or you know that you are staying or even if you don't know what you are going to do many questions emerge...what about the community? Is house of prayer going to continue? What about the fourth floor of the Prince Street building? What did the last three years mean? These are valid questions to grapple with but they are not too overwhelming to deal with. I want to charge you not to panic or submit yourself to fear. Instead I will remind you of a word given to me during the fall of 2005, when I was personally facing what felt like overwhelming circumstances, far beyond my own ability to solve. I was waiting at the altar at Life Center for ministry. I wanted to know what to do. I wanted a word telling me I was right where I was supposed to be. As the pastor approached me he laid hands on me and began to laugh as he moved to the next person. The only phrase he spoke over me that morning was, "There is a lot more in there then you think..." I knew it was God and moved quickly beyond my offense. God knows what He is doing with us just like He knew what He was doing with me that morning. He is trying to bring more out of you. He is inviting you to move beyond the comfortable shadows where you find your identity in things other then what He has ultimately intended. Community, I speak over you during this time of much shaking, transition and fear, THERE IS A LOT MORE IN THERE THEN WHAT YOU THINK - LET IT OUT!!!
As I have personally wrestled with some of the questions I have been confronted with I have struggled. Particularly regarding the fourth floor and the house of prayer. At the same time I believe that the LORD has shown me that what emerges in Lancaster after this time of transition, after Jonathan, Mark and I move away, must be driven by those who remain not those who depart. It is difficult in some ways for me to accept that because the community and the house of prayer have been places where I have invested much of my life and resources during the last three years. However I have learned that I must continue to trust God to show me my role and then pursue excellence in that role avoiding the temptation to cling to something He used me in yesterday.
Right now I have two primary concerns - preparing my family for the coming move to North Carolina and finishing well with the community here. My responsibility for my family is pretty clear - packing boxes, helping with a yard sale and investing time in parent-child and husband-wife relationships which face added pressure from the pending geographic transition. With the community finishing well has been more difficult for me to define. However after spending time in the house of prayer yesterday I am finding peace with my role. I know that I am to continue to "pastor and equip" the community during this time. At the beginning of 2006 this meant being at meetings twice a week. Right now however I believe it means primarily two things - one - availing myself to help you frame and understand what God is saying to you in the midst of massive community transition and secondarily to provide fresh perspective through teaching, exhortation and equipping here on the blog. Finding new ways to communicate truth during this time of transition is important for me and so I seek to do so with excellence.
Finally I have planned a special commencement service for Monday, May 28, 2007. It is Memorial Day and it will provide an appropriate backdrop for us to celebrate and remember the spiritual heritage we have connected with in this region and our own memories of the last few years. At the same time the meeting will call us be forward-looking as we consider the paths immediately ahead of us which we have been perfectly qualified to pursue! So please consider joining us for the Harbinger Commencement @ 7pm on Memorial Day, Monday, May 28, 2007. The meeting will be held at Boehm's Chapel just south of Lancaster on Boehm's Chapel Road. I chose to have the meeting at this chapel because of the spiritual significance and relevance of Martin Boehm's own journey, legacy and connection to those of us who are Harbinger.
A promotional video can be seen immediately following this entry on this blog. Check it out and consider joining us for a Memorial Day celebration and commencement!
Directions: Boehm's Chapel is located in the community of Willow Street, Pennsylvania which is just southeast of Lancaster. The chapel is approximately one mile south of Willow Street and is situated behind the Boehm's United Methodist Church.
From PA Route 272 South, turn right onto Baumgardner Road (first right turn after traffic light at Penn Grant Road). Go one block and turn left onto Boehm's Road. Boehm's United Methodist Church is approximately one-quarter mile on the right.
The Revolution is On!
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