Voices Past and Present
Thursday, June 29, 2006
From three and a half years ago ...
I just stumbled across this on my own blog and I thought it might be worth sharing with the rest of Testimony. I've kept the blognames as they appear on my own post, but everybody referred to are former Testimony members. This is from February 2002, about prayer buddies:
I had yet another excellent talk today, this time with the-person-to-whom-I-will-refer-as-Taboo-until-I-come-up-with-a-better-name (naming guys is hard; I guess I just don't have as much practice). I know I've already said it, but I give mad props to Blue Rose for this whole prayer buddy thing. And yes, I just said mad props. To miquote Principal Skinner, "that's right, I type words I would never speak." Why are prayer buddies a good thing? Many many reasons:
1). I know Rose felt at the beginning of this year that God was going to use her to improve Testimony's character as a fellowship, and I definitely think this is a way in which He's doing that. It's always good to see the Father at work, and always good to see brethren walking in obedience when He wants to use them as His tools.
2). I don't know about the rest of Testimony, but I admit to not always being consistent with my prayer requests calendar. I haven't missed a prayer buddy meeting yet (that's why I met with Eliani yesterday; we missed our appointment last week), and I certainly don't intend to! The meetings are too good!
3). The meetings really are too good! After programs like Crossing the Line it's common to hear the sentiment expressed, "I wish we didn't have to institutionalize heart-to-heart sharing in order to talk on a deep level." But I think the truth of the matter is that you do have to institutionalize it if you want people to share with anybody but their absolute closest friends. And it can help even then, in providing a sense of safety in which people talk. The early church had a [quickly abandoned] experiment with communism, but Christians today still look back on those early days of total community with serious nostalgia. That may or may not be justified, but if we're going to want to be like the church we see in Acts, sharing everything, we've got to institutionalize it or it won't happen. And after all, who says institutionalization is an inherently bad thing? Certainly not yours truly.
4). Related to the last point, Testimony has somehow gotten it into its collective head that we should all be very close friends. Now, maybe we should and maybe we shouldn't - but it's certainly nice to be close to people, and this prayer buddy thing is the first practical way of effecting that goal that I've seen proposed. And I think it's working: who would've thought that I could have had the conversation I had with Ransom two weeks ago? But I did. And who would have expected when Eliani and I met on the Oval that she'd not only want to hear all about Phoenix Earth but give me feedback on it, until lo and behold I stumbled on a dramatic and satisfying explanation of the First Mage War upon which the entire history is based?
One of the many sobering truths attendant upon the office of the performer is that everything you do will affect the legacy of your company, group, ensemble, or whatever noun you use to describe that part of your organization which transcends the individuals who compose it at any given time. Performances exist to bless the audience, but a group's legacy exists to bless the group itself. Whatever Rose decides about coming back next year, I pray that prayer buddies become a permament part of the Testimony legacy.
