Thursday, April 23, 2009

Lighthouse Church, Prayer Room and Music Ministry in Miami

This week we are sharing the story of The Lighthouse, a ministry that we partner with in Miami. Our friend Laura is on the DOOR board in Miami and is active at the Lighthouse.

THE LIGHTHOUSE: ministry, community, something altogether

“Being in community forces us to understand and confront complex issues of compassion, justice, morality, behavior, faith, love and on and on.”
–Bruce Reyes-Chow and Mission Bay Community Church

I think the hardest part about talking about the Lighthouse, is talking about the Lighthouse. I think it is a special and rare thing to have a community that is like a family, ministry, church, home, physical place, spiritual retreat, rock band, school, mission camp, place of safety and shelter, and more! I typically see “church” as an institution. It displays a sense of organization. It has rules. It attempts to be living in that it gathers members, deters members, lives, breathes and sometimes dies. I love the living institutional “church.” Mostly, because I love organization, in every sense of the word. I attend regularly and have many responsibilities in a Sunday morning “church.”

The Lighthouse is hardly an institution, but it is a church, or maybe a ministry, or maybe any of those words above. A better description for the Lighthouse is that it is a community and within that community its being attempts to shines God’s love in the city of Miami. It does this through relationships, learning about Jesus Christ, worship, music school, volunteer service, developing church leadership, home cooked meals, the worship arts and greatest of all, prayer.

I have been a part of the Lighthouse community for six years. In that six years it has been all of those words and more for me. I have watched people and programs come and go. I have celebrated with and for the Lighthouse. I have cried and anguished over personal matters, decisions and loss within it. It is not always an easy or comfortable place to be. It is not always welcoming. It is always safe and it is always where God is. It helps me to understand and confront issues that I never would have otherwise. I think like the quote above discusses, the Lighthouse is a part of my commitment as a Christian because every time I enter its doors or think upon its complexity I am entering and confronting the world in which I live and the ways in which God wants me to shine His love to others.

By Laura Fothergill
DOOR-Miami Board member

1 comment:

  1. Thanks for the quote props. Just curious how you connected to me. Sounds like some great conversations you are having.

    ReplyDelete