The Mission of God in Mundane Spaces
Issue 002
FEBRUARY 21, 2018
WRITTEN BY JEREMY PENN
Jeremy Penn is the pastor and founder of The Crowded House Network; a missional network of house churches in central Florida. Jeremy and his wife Crystal have a daughter Riley and a son Phoenix. They have served churches in California, Iowa, Arizona, and now Florida. Jeremy holds degrees from Vennard College and Talbot School of Theology. He has also completed some doctoral studies at Fuller Theological Seminary. Outside of his family, his greatest joy is found in being present with people around a shared table.
To the unobservant, there’s nothing particularly impressive about The Stranded Sailor. It’s a small, simple bar in my city. In the mornings it serves as a makeshift coffee shop. In the evening it transforms into an English pub that serves beer, wine, and English pub food.
The dartboards, worn out black and white photos of pin-up girls, and a large mermaid mural give it the feel of being in a British fishing port. The Florida heat blowing in the front door is a constant reminder you are nowhere near the cold waters of the Atlantic.
The same people come and go each morning. Some grab coffee before work, others sit and the bar and sip their coffee as the morning passes. The retired gentlemen knows everyone by name and the sound engineer lets all of us know the name of the bands that will be playing later in the day. The owners call me by name and the baristas know my order before I utter a word.
The coffee is good but the people are better.
It is in this space that I see God working in the world. The place where I see God on the move, transforming spaces and the people who inhabit these spaces.
“God is the missionary God whose presence is invading all places and spaces at all times. God is on a mission reconciling all things unto himself.”
God has always been the God who inhabits the spaces where people naturally gather. He inhabits the garden where he first places Adam and Eve. It is in this space where he calls them to partner with him in his mission in the created world. He is present in the nation of Israel and calls them to be a light, his light, to all the places and people they share space with. God ultimately enters the space of the world through Jesus the Son and calls people to join his mission of redemption and reconciliation. And then God sends the Spirit to fill the church so the church can be the body of Christ filling up spaces and revealing Jesus the Lord wherever the church may find itself.
God is a missionary God who sends himself in to real spaces in real time. He is the God who is present in the activities of the world and the spaces people inhabit.
I think the church sometimes believes we bring God into places. As if there are spaces and places in the world waiting for God to show up.
How arrogant.
God is already present in the dark corners of the world. He is present in the mundane places. He is present in English pubs on Sanford Ave in my city.
God is the missionary God whose presence is invading all places and spaces at all times. God is on a mission reconciling all things unto himself.
As the church, we simply enter into these spaces and through tangible practices reveal how God is already at work. Just as God called Adam and Eve, Israel, and the disciples, he is calling his church to partner with him on his mission in the world. We do not go before God to usher in his presence. We go knowing God is already at work wherever we go. We enter these spaces and remain present as co-laborers with the missionary God who is already reconciling all things unto himself.
The Stranded Sailor is mundane to the unobservant. But to the church, the gathered people of God, it is full of the activity of God. It is the place where reconciliation is taking place. It is a space where peace is being made as the Prince of Peace is working and moving. It is bursting forth with the proclamation that Jesus is Lord even in this space on Sanford Ave.
As we begin to take notice of our neighborhoods and cities, we should begin to find places where we can be present. We should ask ourselves these questions:
Where are the spaces people are naturally gathering?
How can we enter into these spaces so we can discern what God is doing?
How can we join in God’s reconciling work in this space?
May we be a people who are committed to joining God’s ongoing mission in the world. May we enter into spaces and reveal the activity of God who is already at work in our presence.