Men – Sons After God’s Heart
 

Men feeding the poor on Duncan Street during the
Way of the Cross procession

“And for anyone who is in Christ, there is a new creation; the old creation has gone, and now the new one is here.”  (2 Cor 5:17)

This verse aptly describes so many of the men who have come into a relationship with Christ in Community.  Some have experienced overnight changes as part of a dramatic “conversion experience”.  Others were encouraged by the positive things they saw happening in the lives of their wives or friends. Still others just came one day to lend a helping hand, liked what they saw and stuck around to become a positive witness of the power of God’s love to bring new life.

In John 15, Jesus told the disciples that His choice of them withdrew them from the world.  This is the experience for many of the men in community.  They understand that it is God who has chosen them to be sons after God’s own heart.  They do not see the world as a bad place but they have begun to understand their role in redeeming it.  As a result, the men are involved in the various ministries of the Community on a full-time or part-time basis, visiting the Prisons and Hospital, Catering, Food Bank, Duncan Street, and Evangelization, just to name a few.

The men are coming to a realization of the sacredness of their vocations as husbands, fathers, single men and consecrated men.  The support offered within community is essential and so the men gather during different times of the year for prayer, teaching and to lime.  The annual retreat ‘down the islands’ is always enjoyed, whether in or out of the water.

May our Community men, born of water and the Spirit, continue to experience the power of God to live out their call and to live it to the full.