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by: Michael Boyink The floor is a special kind of ugly… --------------------------------- My family and I attend a small church here in Holland, Michigan.  It’s called “Manna?” because it was started by people feeling called to meet together but with an unclear vision or purpose - so we’re always seeking direction from God on “What is it?” ("Manna" is the Hebrew word for “what is it?"). The group began meeting in a coffee shop, then grew too big to all fit in a booth.  From there it moved to different houses or (on nice days) public parks.  A couple of years ago it was big enough to move into an old movie theatre here in town.  While we’ve made the space work, lack of light, a building in poor repair, an odd floorplan, and the typical hassles involved in sharing a space started to take their toll on Manna?.  So the search was on to find another place - something we could buy and own. A spot a few blocks away had been for sale for quite some time.  As retail locations go, it isn’t great.  Between the lack of parking and an odd architectural style the location has been described as “the kiss of death” for any business daring enough to try it. So far a deli, two different coffee shops, and a restaurant have all met their demise within its walls.  The building is in poor shape, with a leaky roof and an A/C unit that needed to be replaced.  A close look reveals the building’s history - part of it is a former service station, and the rest of it used to be the parking lot.  It needed work.  Alot of work.  We’re talking way past “sweat equity” here. In other words, it was the only thing we could afford. After some negotiations the deal was struck, and interior demolitions started that day.  That was several weeks ago, and between then and now countless people have spent countless hours thinking, talking, building, painting and repairing—all on a “next to nothing” budget and all with a goal of having it ready for the first service today. We didn’t make it. There are big sections of walls without paint.  There are new walls that are studs only.  Card tables support most everything.  The only working sinks are in the bathroom.  The floor is a special kind of ugly - worn and now abused carpet, glued down over exposed-aggregate cement sections seperated by raised wood dividers - it’s not only hard on the eyes, it’s uneven and bumpy.  Words painted in the carpet with the expectation of it being gone by now remain - still visible through additional paint applied in an effort to hide the words. But we had terminated our rental of the movie theatre, so had no choice but to meet there today. And it was perfect. I’ve never been in a church service, in fact, where the building felt so “right”.  It’s perfect because it’s such visual metaphor for me as a Christian, and us as a church—you can see lots of issues, you can see there’s plenty of work to do, but you can also see the progress and you can see that there is a plan. There’s a part of me that wants to keep it just like it is - just so we can always look around and be reminded that yes - this is me.  This is us.  Faulty, yes.  Unfinished, yes.  But making progress. And there is Someone with a plan. Some say “the devil is in the details”.  Today I saw God in the mess. Michael Boyink lives in Holland, MI with his wife and two children.  Michael has long been frustrated with the Church’s use of the internet for storytelling and evangelism, and StoriesAboutGod.org is the result of God’s telling him it was time to quit complaining and do something about it. View the story online at: http://www.storiesaboutgod.org/index.php/stories/story_page/seeing-god-in-the-mess/

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