What's your dream?

Yesterday, I continued our church's summer survey of Genesis with a message on Joseph--the coat, (two of) the dreams, the slavery.  (The video archive will be here tomorrow: PCC Video Archive/.)

I presented that God's dreams are dreams of justice and dreams that require suffering.

God’s dreams are dreams of justice--

dreams about the last being first,

about a little brother becoming ruler.

Dreams announcing a baby becoming King,

about a carpenter becoming Lord.

Dreams of a church where addicts and adulterers,

innocent kids and incarcerated felons,

students and seniors,

connect with God and each other.

To conclude the message, I wrote some of my church's dreams (at least, my interpretation of my church's dreams--speaking on behalf of the entirety of PCC is a bit precarious):

We dream…

of a church that kids drag their parents to,

of a church where teenagers won’t be tolerated or entertained, but where they’ll serve and lead, not the church of the future, but the church HERE and NOW.

We dream…

of a church where victims can find healing, hope, and community,

of a church that reaches lots of people on Sunday morning, and still shows up with meals and care for your family when you’re hurting.

Twelve years later, we’re still dreaming…

of a church where people are welcome…no matter what they’ve done, or who they’ve been, or where they are,

of a church where people rally to do whatever it takes to show one more person that God loves them.

Now we partner with other dreamers…

like a church in Belize, Central America that dreams, among gang violence and gunfire, of a youth center, a safe haven, where kids can run basketball drills instead of drug deals

like people in our communities who dare to dream that kids and the homeless can have food, that people can have clothes.  

What is YOUR dream for the local church (not just PCC, whatever local church YOU'RE part of)?