This weekend was the 2nd year house party. We went to a place called Attunga which was a great site for a weekend away.

Thanks everyone for a great weekend!

I wanted to share some further thoughts that I had flowing from the last session today. For those who weren’t able to be there, Nick M lead us through some group discussions on Organisational Culture – AKA ‘how we do things around here’. Basically we chatted about what kind of year we would like to be, and be known as.

I had a 2 hour drive home to think further about the conversations we had in our group. It was a great discussion but as I was driving the pessimist in me started wondering if anything would actually change.

I was trying to summarise what I would like our year to be like, in a few sentences and was really struggling but I found it helped to think about what I don’t want us to be like.

I DON’T want us to be a year who finds a problem and discusses it and either ends with that, or keeps discussing the issue for the next few years with little resolve to make a difference. I DO want us to be a year that finds a problem, discusses it, prays about it, and CHANGES it.
I assume we have all come to college because we love Jesus and want to change the world for the gospel. There’s no need for us to wait until we finish college to start doing that, because it starts with us. Lets us be seen as group who strives for godliness and together talks, prays and changes things. Let that be not our legacy, but the legacy of the great gospel we believe!

As I type this I’m thinking – how easy it is to say this stuff but how do we do it?? Its always hard to get beyond the ideal and into the practical, but it just takes one person to start – please don’t be afraid to be that person. I think it will take lots of trial and error, perseverance, grace and love. And it will take us encouraging one another.

I hope you were encouraged this weekend that even though we are jars of clay, we are filled with the Holy Spirit and empowered to change the world. I want to spend the next 2 or 3 years talking about things with you, praying about things with you and changing things with you.

As Dave said, it will be great in 30 years if we look at Societas 2009 and see people who still love the gospel, and proclaim Christ! I think it will also be great if we see people who are out in the world talking, praying and changing our churches, work places, families & communities for Jesus sake. So lets start now.