Exit Strategy

I have had a hard time putting into words what the experience of last week, teaching the first half of the Gospel of Mark by myself, was like. I can be honest in saying that it was yet again another transformative experience with good news Mark had to share, and that things came to life that had never come to life before. I believe* to have perceived some new revelations and understandings of what the text calls people into. One day, when I write that oft-thought of book on Mark, the things running through my mind this past week will most definitely be included. My mind's eye holds the cover artwork, and inner artwork (that whole legion thing will be true to its scene - images and actions of pure chaos). These are a few of the minor things I have left thinking about; the more major being about what it means to follow Jesus, and to see unclean things made whole in this life.

At the end of the study I taught, I encouraged the students to develop an exit strategy involving how they were going to spend their time

post-city/script. It's easy to look for rest after pouring yourself out for days of intense study, but so often the idleness and vacancy that fills the void of structured days and intense relationship can lead to destructive tendencies and, in all honesty, unbelief in what just occurred. The

playing out of my exit strategy has not gone as well as I would have hoped, but I have tried. Here are the things I've been throwing myself into to find rest, relaxation, and aid reintegration into the busyness of life:

-Lost: This was the first thing I did when I got home.

-Cinema: I had a hankering for French cinema, so I watched "Entre les murs" aka. The Class (see above), which was fantastic. Tonight I watched "The Box". Weird, but it was good way to also hang out with a good friend from back home. Would love to get in "Wings of Desire" before things get too busy again.

-Home: I'm in Brantford, for better or for worse. It's hard getting around this town without a vehicle.

-Hockey: These playoffs are bittersweet. See earlier post.

-Books: I'm slowly easing my way into "I Once Was Lost", and "True Story".

-Coffee: I have made sure to be intentional about getting out of the house, especially to read. There's a fair trade coffee shop in town that I make sure to frequent.

-Wine: The parables about new wine and wineskins really gave me a hankering for some red wine. I enjoyed some Chilean and Spanish wines with the family on Mother's Day. Ah, perfect for a Sunday afternoon.

-Music: writing songs about Sasquatch in Saskatchewan, bridegrooms, and love's labourers.

Tomorrow I will more than likely head back into the realm of work, but I am ever so grateful to indulge the things that I delight in, knowing they are a part of who I have been created to be, a part of the whole truth I extrovert to Jesus, and woven into things being made new in my life. This has been life giving - all of these past few weeks.