homelessness : 360 is a ministry project that brings together what belongs together.
Too often we treat ministry like a pizza: a slice of worship, a slice of education, a slice of service in the community… But ministry is more like a circle where all points are defined by the common center.
Our worship, our study, our work, our fellowship, all share a common center in the God who meets us in Jesus Christ.
homelessness : 360 brings together all dimensions of our ministry around just one issue, homelessness.
At Vine Street, over the course of approximately four weeks
- we pray every day, guided by a simple question like, “What do I look forward to when I go home at night?”
- we visit places like the Oasis Center and Campus for Human Development;
- we listen to speakers who have left behind easy answers a long time ago, but won’t stop pushing for better responses;
- we learn together how and why women, men, and children lose their homes;
- we build little houses for our hopes and our sorrows;
- we watch movies that help us imagine and understand the reality of not having a home;
- we bring the little houses we have built and filled with our prayers to worship and we build a city with them;
- we make beds, prepare meals, open the doors, and invite homeless men to spend the night and tell their stories.
No, we won’t look at the complexities of homelessness from every angle, but we will go full circle in engaging with them: with all our heart, mind, and strength. This is how we love and serve our God. This is how we love and serve our neighbor.