Mark Scandrette

In ancient times the tabernacle was a temporary and portable place of assembly and worship for people on the move. The tribes of Israel gathered under the belief that in the midst of their mixing, meeting, greeting, camping, feasting and rituals they would encounter the voice and presence of the Creator.

When I reflect back on my life so far, many of the most pivotal moments have occurred around tabernacle-like events: a surprising conversation that changed the course of my life, a chance encounter with a person who would became a lifelong friend, or a memorable moment when my imagination was stirred by a divine whisper that would sustain me through dark times ahead.

Its no accident that these liminal experiences so often occur when we are far from home and in the company of strangers. We are generally more open to the movement of the Spirit when we are uncertain of our place. I approach events like the Wild Goose Festival as an act of pilgrimage– an occasional spiritual practice in which I venture away from home to mix it up with folks from many different tribes who seek a life together in the kingdom of love. Why else would it make any sense to go through the trouble and expense of traveling across country to camp in a field in the humidity of a North Carolina June? Seeking to practice the way of Jesus, I want to live at the intersection of justice, arts and spirituality and conspire with others who wish to do the same.

An event like Wild Goose gives us a chance to get a glimpse of how the church is collecting yearning and groaning and to feel the pulse of what God might be up to in our time At Wild Goose festival I expect to be inspired and challenged by people I have admired from afar. I expect to feast with people I love and make new friends. I expect to be uncomfortable and uncertain. I know that I will be stretched by the gifts and perspectives of others. I need to listen and learn to appreciate the breadth of what God is up to in our world. I’ve booked my ticket and made my plans not knowing exactly what it will be like or who will be there. I’m trusting that what happens at Wild Goose is what was meant to be– and that by simply showing up and engaging, I can be a part of that dream– to hear the voice of the Spirit quacking nosily among us like wild goose.

I’ll be there with folks from my tribe, celebrating the release of my latest book, Practicing the Way of Jesus, and sharing it as a tool for the revolution. I believe something magical happens when we take risks. And I hope you will be part of this experiment– to risk leaving places that are known to join a great throng of prophets, saints, tricksters and holy fools at Wild Goose.

Seeking the Kingdom Within: An orientation to Stillness Prayer Practice

In an age dominated by hurry, distraction and busyness, we long for practices that can help us become more centered, mindful, and open to the presence and voice of the Spirit. Jesus modeled a practice of daily silence and solitude that empowered his life of revolutionary love. This one night forum will provide a brief orientation to the historic role of contemplative prayer in Judeo-christian tradition and an opportunity to practice 40 minutes of group stillness prayer.

Facilitated by Mark Scandrette. Mark is the founding director of ReIMAGINE, author of SOUL GRAFFITI and the forthcoming book, Practicing the Way of Jesus.

R.S.V.P. Here

Spring comes to the California coast, it seems,  in January, as the winter rains turn parched hillsides to verdant green. The new year often awakens a desire for newness to come to our lives. Experiments in Truth is a Learning Lab we offer starting next week that is about seeking healing change and a new rhythm of life. Belowyou will find a short description, along with a longer narrative excerpt from my new book, Practicing the Way of Jesus, to be released by IVP in June.

You can sign up to participate in Experiments in Truth here.

David sat at the table with his head down, telling his small group that he had gone on yet another drunken weekend bender. “I feel like I’ve been struggling with the same issues for so long– I can’t tell if I’m making any progress.” The “accountability” David got from his group focused primarily on his mistakes and failures. But being aware of our problems and confessing our missteps can only take us so far. To really get momentum we need support and a plan for what we can do to pursue life in the kingdom of love. Transformation requires intentional new choices that translate our vision and ambitions into bodily actions. This is a spiritual secret that has largely been lost in recent times.

We all have things in our lives we wish to change. The solidarity of a group experiment can provide the resolve to make the changes we haven’t been able to make on our own. Several years ago we began a series of shared practices to address the disparity we often feel between how we want to live and how we actually live. Through a learning lab we call Experiments in Truth we invite one other to make simple but dramatic changes to our normal habits over thirty or forty days. Out of all the experiments we’ve done, participants say this is the one that has brought about the most transformation in their lives.

The first session begins with a provocative question, “Name one thing you could do over the next 30 or 40  days that could change your life forever?”  Each person, through a careful process of discernment, identifies an area where change is needed and then commits to a dramatic shift– something they will stop and something they will start to address this area of concern. After we’ve committed to our experiments, we meet once a week to check-in on our progress. Here are a couple of examples of personal experiments in truth:

As a young professional, Kyle was used to working hard and playing hard. Part of his office culture was going out after work for a late dinner and drinks nearly every night of the week.  Over time this habit made Kyle feel unfocused, distracted from God and guilty about how much he regularly overspent on entertainment. For his forty-day experiment he decided to abstain from drinking alcohol or dining out and vowed to go to bed every night at a specific time. Over time, Kyle realized that the absence of alcohol made it easier for him to pray and the money he saved by not eating out allowed him to give a full 10% of his income away– and he generally felt more freedom and at peace.

Over the years that Brandon and Rebecca had been married they struggled to make physical intimacy and time together a priority. Their needs for emotional support and sexual closeness often went unsatisfied. They decided that for their forty day experiment they would commit to having sex at least three times a week. What they discovered was that pursuing more regular sexual intimacy required them to communicate better, which had positive effects in many other areas of their relationship. By the end of the forty days they were experiencing more unity, romance, trust and fun than at any other time in during the seven years they had been together.

Kristin recognized that she masked a deep sense of insecurity through an obsession with fashion, shopping and meticulous grooming. For her experiment she made a vow not to shop or wear jewelry or make-up for two months.  Shifting her attention away from her appearance and clothes helped her focus on developing peace and inner beauty. People immediately began to notice a dramatic change in her disposition and affirmed her natural radiance. (Note: Other participants have struggled with the opposite issue, a lack of self-care, and have experimented with giving more attention to their physical appearance).

The first step to designing an Experiment in Truth is to examine your life.  Spend some time in solitude asking God to reveal where transformation is most needed. A second step is to explore the pattern and root causes for the issues you’ve identified. A third step is to decide what new practices to adopt to address the issues you’ve identified. Once you’ve identified what to start and what to stop, a fourth step is to commit to your plan.   This is where the ancient wisdom of vows is instructive. I might want to love God and people and feel a strong desire to do so, but without a commitment to specific practices these are just sentiments.   We show what we really believe and value by what we are committed to actually do.

One of the reasons we call these “experiments” is that we are testing what changes actually make a positive difference. The goal is never to create an extra layer of rules that we use to judge ourselves or others by. We need practices of abstinence and engagement that are specific to the places where reinvention is most needed in our lives.

Spirit of the Creator,

we surrender

To the reign of love

In every currency of being

Body, mind, feelings, time,

in purpose, possessions and belonging

Make us alive to the power

that is making all things new.

Thanksgiving, by far, is my favorite holiday of the year– a celebration without a lot of expectations other than being grateful and feasting with family and friends over a long weekend.

Reflecting on 2010 we are so thankful for the blessings of our community, work in our neighborhood and connections around the world. This fall we explored child-like faith with PLAY, hosted an amazing fall festival at Bernal Dwellings and a community art night. Our local tribes are flourishing. Seventeen of us took year-long vows to practice the way of Jesus together, with a festive vow ceremony.  I’m finishing revisions on my upcoming book, Practicing the Way of Jesus, (ready to drop June 2011 through Intervarsity Press), and have had a productive season teaching and leading retreats and connecting with leaders. Lisa and I are also having the time of our lives parenting three amazing teenagers!

We are also grateful for how the Creator has provided the resources needed for our work over the past 10 years.  In the season when many people are deciding where to give, we’d love for you to consider directing your year-end giving towards our work. Checks can be written to ReIMAGINE P.O. Box 411601 SF, CA 94141 or you can give online by credit card here: https://www.justgive.org/nonprofits/donate.jsp?ein=31-1783556

We hope you have a wonderful holiday season!

Check out upcoming ReIMAGINE public events below.

SIMPLIFY: Leveraging your life towards what matters most

http://simplify2010.eventbrite.com/

Two cohorts meeting on Tuesday and Thursday evenings beginning Nov. 30th.

Time, money and desire are the currencies that largely shape how we live our lives. In a society plagued by hurry, worry and greed, the Master invites us into a life of rest, contentment, trust and generosity.  True simplicity, the channeling of one’s resources towards what matters most, begins with the heart and flows into loving action.

In this four week Learning Lab we will experiment with practices that can help us live with greater freedom, including:

• More restful sabbath-keeping
• Establishing time priorities that reflect deeper values
• Creating margin in your calendar
• Daily gratitude exercises
• Declutter of your apartment by selling or giving away possessions
• Create a group coop for sharing skills and resources
• Clarify your life purpose and develop financial goals
• Develop a realistic budget for 2011 and implement money management tools

Session 1: Time and rest

Session 2: Desire and contentment

Session 3: Money and trust

Session 4: Budget presentations, wrap up and reflection

Facilitated by Chris King, Lisa Scandrette and Mark Scandrette. $40-$75 sliding scale.  (Free for current ReIMAGINE Tribe members) Scholarships available by request.

This is a process and practice oriented offering. Consistent participation and exercise completion required. There are two cohorts for this Learning Lab, one meeting on Tuesdays and the other on Thursdays the following dates:

Tuesdays: Nov. 30th, Dec. 7, 14 and Jan. 4 North Central, San Francisco

Thursdays: Dec. 2, 9, 16 and Jan. 6 Mission District, San Francisco

The Spirituality of Place: Living Locally in a globally connected world

http://spiritualityofplace.eventbrite.com

Wednesday December 8. 7-9 P.M.

The Hub SOMA 901 Mission St, Suite 105 (one block south of the Powell Street BART Station).

We are becoming increasingly aware of the connections we share and our interdependence with the planet we call home.  Simultaneously, we experience the tension and disorientation of living in a hyper-connected, highly mobile and socially fragmented world. As people who understand the kingdom of God to be a future AND present reality, we long to see the Creator’s dreams be “on earth” as in eternity. Our impulse is to work out our discipleship to Jesus as people of a particular place.

“What does it mean to be followers of the Way who are rooted in a place? In this salon, featuring presentations by Tim Soreness and Paul Sparks of The Parish Collective, we will explore the opportunity and challenges to working out “A Theology of Place,”  (with discussion facilitated by Jarrod Shappell and Mark Scandrette).

Kingdom Ecology: Creating Sustainable local communities of faith.

http://kingdomecology.eventbrite.com

Thursday December 9th 9:30-11:30 a.m.

Dolores Park Church 455 Dolores Street. San Francisco

Here in San Francisco, and across the Bay Area, we navigate the challenges and opportunities of making disciples to Jesus in highly creative and mobile environment, where churches often (though unintentionally) “compete” for members or participants.  How can we support sustainable communities of faith that are committed to caring for our neighborhoods? As faith leaders, how can we work together to plant the seeds of the kingdom in the gardens we share? What might it mean for us, practically, to see ourselves as part of the ecology of what God is doing in the San Francisco? Paul Sparks and Tim Soerens, of The Parish Collective, will help facilitate a discussion about how we can be rooted and linked. Hosted by Mark Scandrette and Jarrod Shappell.

Coming in January… (more details to follow)

RESONATE City-based Prayer exercise  January 15

ENTER: SPACE –Silent Retreat January 28-30

Time, money and desire are the currencies that largely shape how we live our lives. In a society plagued by hurry, worry and greed, the Master invites us into a life of rest, contentment, trust and generosity.  True simplicity, the channeling of one’s resources towards what matters most, begins with the heart and flows into loving action.

In this four week Learning Lab we will experiment with practices that can help us live with greater freedom, including:

• More restful sabbath-keeping
• Establishing time priorities that reflect deeper values
• Creating margin in your calendar
• Daily gratitude exercises
• Declutter of your apartment by selling or giving away possessions
• Create a group coop for sharing skills and resources
• Clarify your life purpose and develop financial goals
• Develop a realistic budget for 2011 and implement money management tools

Session 1: Time and rest

Session 2: Desire and contentment

Session 3: Money and trust

Session 4: Budget presentations, wrap up and reflection

Facilitated by Chris King, Lisa Scandrette and Mark Scandrette. $40-$75 sliding scale.  (Free for current ReIMAGINE Tribe members) Scholarships available by request. This is a process and practice oriented offering. Consistent participation and exercise completion required.

There are two cohorts for this Learning Lab, one meeting on Tuesdays and the other on Thursdays the following dates:

Tuesdays: Nov. 30th, Dec. 7, 14 and Jan. 4 North Central, San Francisco

Thursdays: Dec. 2, 9, 16 and Jan. 6 Mission District, San Francisco

Register for this Learning Lab here