I’ve heard from several of you that I’m causing guilt in your life. “Your posts keep building up in my inbox and I want to read them, but I keep putting them off and then I feel guilty” is one comment I’ve received. Not that I’m totally above using guilt, but hopefully I have relieved some of this by taking a break from posting last week.

Everyone caught up? Good. Let’s get to this week’s idea; which I think you will find very helpful.

When you hear the word “gap,” what comes to mind? A clothing store? The space between the tube and the platform in London’s Underground subway system?

A gap can be a break, opening, empty space, interval, wide divergence, difference, disparity, among many other definitions; however, I was recently introduced to another concept of the gap—the gap between what is now and what can be. Taste is the cause of this gap. Vision is another concept that works alongside taste; the two of which go hand in hand.

This idea came to me through a video I received from one of our children’s worship directors here at Matthews UMC. She mentioned it in a hallway conversation and I was very interested so I asked her to send me the link. When I sat down to view the short clip and read the attached article, immediately I became incredibly grateful to hear someone explain this phenomenon in these terms. The video and a link to the article are below.

Honestly, I wish I could produce a high-quality photograph (with appropriate hipster filter applied, of course) of what I picture in my mind when it comes to the environments of 801South—worship experiences, small groups, serving opportunities. There are similar ministries out there to which we have directed people through websites, publications, and even site visits as we continue to develop this new ministry. Ultimately, it will continue to change shape and form as we move forward with more people coming onboard who add their own taste.

As opposed to the artistic mediums of paint or music, which are sometimes derived from an individual, the art of fashioning new environments for the church often include a team. Fortunately, I continue to be impressed by our 801South team. These servants are working hard to give us the best start possible; however, no matter how much time and effort our team applies to the launch, ultimately there will be a gap between my vision for these 801South environments and what actually materializes. I’m ok with this. I have to be. Knowing the gap is inevitable helps me understand that we have not failed just because the initial experience does not perfectly match the original picture. The full potential of 801South will not be realized at its inception.

I found this concept of the gap between taste/vision and the tangible work very encouraging as we near the launch. No matter what 801South looks like at launch, I still know my tastes are “killer” and our greatest impact is yet to be realized.

via PetaPixel