From “what the heck is that Ventus god thing?” to “what the heck do you do?”  I’ve been fielding lot’s of questions lately about Ventus. And recently Alaina asked:

“I’d love to hear more about your concept, what you do to create the space, etc. I know that is a lot of technical stuff, but it would be interesting/easier to wrap my brain around Ventus as a concept.”

Hopefully this may shed some light…

So what is Ventus?

It’s a gathering; a community of people seeking to know the Lord more.

It’s a weekly place to meet and contemplate our lives and where the Christ fits into them.

It’s a sacred space for quite contemplation.

It’s a time to talk, hang out, to ask questions and to listen (to God and others).

We’re just broken, undeserving, messed up folks journeying towards an amazing, loving God.

What does Ventus look like?

Our goal was to do something simple and easy to replicate on a weekly basis. We wanted to create a space that felt sacred and different from our every day lives. We meet in an old church sanctuary in town. They have pews and do a regular church service the next morning (Sundays). So we’ve had to learn to work around what’s currently there.  What we’ve done to create a conducive space has been minimal and mainly based on lighting and music. People sit in pews, the lights are low, incense burns, and there’s 50-60 candles going for mood. Background music plays and is usually something ambient/chill/reverent (ie. Moby). We convert available clear spots into worship stations by tossing a sheet on the ground and decorating to suit the activity.

Simplicity is the key, getting the most out of minimal effort.  Our goal is for us to purse the Lord and we could do that in a cardboard box - so keep in mind that the mood is an important part, but not essential. It should never overtake or overshadow the true focus of the service.

What happens during Ventus?

It’s a simple service that opens with a prayer and greeting. We have a scripture reading and then unpack what it means in our lives. That usually lends itself to conversation and discussion about the scripture or whatever tangent we find ourselves on. Some week we sing hymns or praises to the Lord, but most weeks we have worship stations. Those stations will usually include elements of prayer, reflection, contemplation and expression (lectio divina, etc.). After the stations, we gather once again for a response; a time to share anything that is being impressed on our hearts from our times of reflection and communion. The service is ended with a prayer and blessing over the group. Then we hang out eating snack food (or whatever else someone brings) and drink coffee.

The service typically spans an hour.

Any other questions? Or points of clarification?

We are by no means experts in this. Long before Ventus started we were doing many of these practices on retreats and trips. Most of our wisdom has come from other more intelligent individuals from books and also plenty of trial and error.

As it turns out, this is the home imporvement weekend. I’m painting two rooms and staining the deck. One thing I absolutely hate is painting. It’s messy, it’s time consuming. Give me yard work, cleaning - you name it.But just don’t make me paint.  I can’t stand it - but I like the results.

So are there any tasks that you can’t stand?

Too many people are thinking of security instead of opportunity. They seem more afraid of life than death.
- James F. Byrnes

How many of us live that way?  Come on be honest. I know I fight it. That need to feel secure juxtaposed with the call of the Lord to let go…

I’m back from our Burger Odyssey and it was amazing. I’ll blog about it tomorrow.  As I was catching up on blogs I’ve missed out on for the past few days, I stumbled upon this by My Derbe…

The “hedge of protection” is an Old Testament thought. Our protection isn’t a hedge. Our protection is Christ, Who is far greater than a hedge. We are hidden in Christ.

I’ve always found the “hedge” statement odd when I heard someone praying. Mainly because it reminds me of landscaping, but also it evokes this idea that God is ADD and forgets us. You know… “God I need you now! And now. And now. And in a few seconds. And also now.” If we are covered and walking in Christ AND if Christ is in us… do we need to keep asking for him to do what he already said he would do? Just a thought.

What are your thoughts on the hedge?

I’m around teens all the time and I have to tell you… I wish I had their schedules. Take the idea of Spring Break for instance. They get a random week off school to do whatever.

So say, just for a moment, that this practice where to permeate the adult world. April rolls around and you hit Adult Spring Break. Everyone exits work for a freebie week (or if you’re a homemaker, someone takes the kids).

So if such an occurrence happened… how would you spend it?