xag.org Redeeming the Time

www.flickr.com xagronaut's Faith, Hope & Love 2008 photoset

Faith, Hope & Love 2008 was great! To see some photos from the trip, check out the Flickr badge in this post.

Meeting Great People

I finally met Neil Cox after all this time! He's a very humble, likable guy that cares a lot about his passion, city reaching. He introduced my father Samuel, my brother Rich, and me to the local cuisine at the Unleavened Bread Café in Indianapolis. Let me tell you in no uncertain terms that these were the best pancakes that I can remember. If I've had better, I don't know when.

My father and brother standing in front of the Unleavened Bread Café

The deeper story of the Unleavened Bread Café is not the food. The breakfast they serve is only the beginning. The owner, Elease Womack, introduced us to the real bread they offer--the real-life, down-to-earth love of Christ. Elease told us all about the "Jesus Hugs" she gives out. We even received a few Jesus Hugs ourselves.

The Unleavened Bread Café, or UBCafé, is part café, part Internet WiFi hotspot, and part church building. The café, located at the corner of 30th and Central, deep in the heart of urban Indianapolis, offers its facilities to several churches and support groups, including an HIV/AIDS support group and a support group for recovering drug addicts.

This is where we first began our short two-day excursion to the city of Indianapolis. It's also where we ended our trip with an all-too-soon farewell.

Samuel Miller (my dad), Jeff Miller (me), Elease Womack, and my brother Rich Miller

Fighting the "Anticlimax"

Don't get me wrong--I had a great time at Faith, Hope & Love 2008! Did I mention, I had a great time? Definitely great--definitely.

The tough part after such an experience is deciding what to do next. That's the hard part--the aftermath of a powerful spiritual experience.

Screwtape, the diabolical character in C.S. Lewis' book, The Screwtape Letters, advises Wormwood, a devil/tempter-in-training, to "work hard, then on the disappointment or anticlimax which is certainly coming..." This instruction is given specifically in reference to the subject of Wormwood's temptation efforts--the "patient"--but it has a broader application to us, as Screwtape hints in his follow-up statement, "It occurs when lovers have got married and begin the real task of learning to live together. In every department of life it marks the transition from dreaming aspiration to laborious doing." (emphasis mine)

My point is, now that I have experienced FHL, I must decide what follow-through is required, and begin the task of the "laborious doing" of whatever God requires of me in response to what I have seen and learned from FHL.

Again, don't get me wrong--Faith, Hope & Love was not a disappointment! The disappointment comes when you try to communicate how great a concept FHL is to people that have never been a part of anything like it. Or perhaps when you realize that it is impossible to capture the entirety of a mere two-day trip like ours in any format sufficiently, whether it be a blog, Flickr photos, or even video. Or perhaps when you realize that your own laziness, busy-ness, and procrastination can sabotage your efforts to do anything substantial in response to an experience like FHL.

This isn't the first time I have experienced such a phenomenon. While growing up, this was a common effect, especially after attending events like Christian youth camps, concerts, or other impactful services. You can't ride on the emotions forever, but with some effort, you can make the impact from these experiences have lasting meaning.