On a back-country canoe trip several years ago, we stumbled on a small weather-beaten cabin near the shoreline. We discovered that the cabin had at one time, been used to accommodate park rangers who manned a near-by fire tower, but it was now being used as something of a remote outpost to provide modest shelter for weary travelers. Hanging beside the door of this little outpost was a sign that read, “From here, many have left for adventure. To here, many have come for refuge.” In a lot of ways, this rustic, little outpost captures the substance of what Station 4 Church aspires to embody.
If any old picture is worth a thousand words, then finding just the right picture can be priceless - particularly when trying to explain the unfamiliar. And when it comes to a concept that helps describe Station 4, it’s the distinct image of an Outpost that seems to provide one of the more clarifying and compelling illustrations. In contrast to all the amenities offered at a large resort, the concept of an Outpost is one of intentional smallness, simplicity and remoteness. Homesteading settlements on the frontier, explorers in uncharted territory, a single platoon embedded in a conflict zone. Established conveniences and services are deliberately relinquished in order to pursue a specific objective or mission in ways that would otherwise be difficult for larger, more complex institutions. The small size and minimal resources of Outposts facilitate an incredibly tight-knit community. Members share all of the day-in and day-out challenges of life together and foster a genuine reliance and indispensability in one another. Cooperation in an Outpost is vital. Everyone has a role and task, a responsibility to do their part, to exercise their strengths and continue improving their weaknesses. Outposts breed unity and teamwork as members are compelled to work and move in unison toward a common goal; they become fiercely relational and interdependent... they become family. Against the inevitable storms of life, the Outpost provides a basic, essential refuge - the modest necessities of a safe shelter and a caring community in which one’s strength and resolve is nurtured. But as tempting as it can be, the Outpost is not intended to be used as a permanent cocoon in which one can avoid all adversity, it is specifically designed to re-equip, re-inspire, re-galvanize... and continually re-deploy its members into the wild tempest around it. In short, Station 4 Church seeks to act as a spiritual Outpost, offering all the basic essentials to find shelter in the grace of God, ministered through a caring community of faith that re-enters the world each week with the objective of reaching others with the refuge of the gospel.
0 Comments
|