Mission And Vision

For Friends of the Carpenter  

Just over a decade ago, Friends of the Carpenter was founded – October 1998. As we enter this new decade beginning in 2010, continuing to find “our way” and determine “our purpose” is a critical task of leadership – largely driven by the vision of where God wants this ministry to go. “In the beginning” … the vision and “seeds of the Spirit” for Friends of the Carpenter was quite small. However, like the lesson Jesus gave in the parable of the mustard seed, this ministry has expanded well beyond most everyone’s initial imagination. But God is not done; what we see now is merely “more seeds of the Spirit” for what God will do as we move toward the new vision.

Two thousand and nine has been a year of evaluating our program and clarifying the mission. The origin and impetus of Friends of the Carpenter was an outreach to those who are homeless. It was designed to provide a program and a place where those who are often literally “left out” (the homeless) to come together with volunteers from local faith communities for an interactive fellowship activity – simple woodwork. The intention was that the interactions would lead to friendships which would form natural supportive networks. Those who were poor and perhaps entrapped in dysfunctions would receive help. And it worked well and continues to be an outcome of the ministry. However, over the years a significant surprise has surfaced. It probably shouldn’t have been a surprise, but like undeserved grace itself, no one was looking for it to happen. Those who come to serve, find that they themselves have also been very well served!

St. Francis of Assisi said it long ago, “It is in giving that we receive.” The original mission was aimed at the poor, but it has been the poor in spirit who have been equally blessed. The friendships formed with “the least of these” have revealed the very presence of Christ in our midst, as if our service has been to Christ Himself. Volunteers becoming friends with those whose life struggles have been so difficult – seeing their strength, their courage, their genuine gratitude for simple gifts, and yes, their strong faith – has humbled and helped volunteers to gain new perspectives and a greater appreciation for their own blessings. Volunteers still come to serve, but their service is to the gathered community and not just to a segregated, even discriminated, part of the Body of Christ.

Thus, our current Mission Statement is being re-built. Rather than focusing upon “the homeless,” and feeling they alone are the needy ones; the mission statement in deliberation and development (even as this article is being written) is to invite and clearly commission those who participate and support this ministry to create “a safe haven,” where all people are equally welcomed as partners and participants in helping each other, holding hands and each other up in prayer, the healing of human hurts and heavy hearts, the renewing of broken and blurred spirits and restoring everyone’s hope! The vision is to create a gathering community whose belief and behavior is to “be fair, care and share.”

So, what will this vision look like? We will build upon the apparent presence of the Spirit of God that dwells in the Friendship Center . Today, everyone – bar none – who enters the Friendship Center gives testimony to the preciousness and presence of God’s love in this place. It’s as if entering a sacred space – a sanctuary, a monastery, a cathedral – but nothing so pious. This place is filled with levity, good laughter and genuine loving of one another. The people are ordinary but each knows and recognizes in others, the extra-ordinary that lives within them. Prayer permeates the air, but more than just obvious prayer circles, it’s the enactment of the Apostle Paul’s urging that we pray without ceasing, that we each at all times carry and convey the “sweet smelling fragrance” of the love of God, that all are leaders in the love of the Lord with each one looking for ways to welcome others into this family-like fellowship.

What will be the results? Though it continues to be difficult to measure, there will be an undeniable difference in people’s lives. Though the personal situations of difficulty and struggle may change slowly, persons themselves will be changed almost instantly, as if touched by the “hand of Jesus.” The results will not be so much contained on data sheets of commodities distributed and direct services delivered, but rather a fluid and functioning community where people enjoy and empower each other with the Holy Spirit and God’s grace and gifts shared. The statistics will undergird and give account of a continuing story, almost biblical in narrative, of people mixed together, encounters with the living Christ, coming together mainly by chance meetings but predictably motivated by a plan God already put in place. But more than merely stories of good feelings and even renewed faith, there will be reliable reports of accounts and accountability. There will be lists and ledgers of persons and provisions that provided new hope. There will be accounts where seekers attained suitable housing for themselves and for their reconciled family. People will secure employment to rise out of poverty and pass beyond dependency upon welfare, social assistance and charity. Volunteers will still continue to come to serve, but their efforts will essentially be enveloped in the setting where servants are served, segregation ceases and sainthood is seen and shared in each person. The Body of Christ will have an accounting of new life and renewed believers.

Like the lesson of “The Knot Hole Cross,” (an FOC-produced cross which features the flaws in the wood but presents them as a testimony of scrap wood reclaimed and saved) there will be living testimonies and long lasting legacies of lives saved that will change the world.

It is with confidence and commitment that we urge your investment and involvement in the future of Friends of the Carpenter. God has given us a glimpse of the good blessings for all and the power of love when shared in intentional community. But clearly, God is not done revealing the vision, nor finished calling disciples to develop the ministry. Come join in and join with this part of the Body of Christ.