thoughts on redemption

i began ESL tutoring this past monday. i use the word "tutoring" loosely, as i am pretty much teaching the refugee i am working with english from scratch. as of now we are learning our ABC's. i am pretty much trying to recall how i learned to read and write and teach him the same way. i, however, had one advantage: i could understand what my teacher was telling me! the most frustrating part of the night came at the end when i wanted to leave, but i also wanted him to understand that i was assigning homework for next time. what was so frustrating wasn't so much that he couldn't understand me, but that the woman who was also there tutoring his wife, who actually somewhat understands english, kept blowing me off when i asked for their assistance in communicating with him. she and his wife finally helped me tell him his homework, and it was an overall good experience. i have some ideas for next time and i'm looking forward to trying them out.

last wednesday i got to go to A.A. i had to write a paper for class on a treatment group. i was told that an A.A. meeting is more going to church than going to church is. i found this to be true. i noticed that the 12 steps mirror a conversion experience. it is essentially a bunch of people admitting how screwed up they are, openly sharing their stories, and helping one another quit drinking. there was complete openness and absolutely no judging. i couldn't help but to think that this was an example of people living how they were intended to live. at the end of the meeting everyone stood, joined hands, and said the lord's prayer together.

these two experiences are examples of God's redemptive work in the world. when we hear phrases like "God's redemptive work" we often get these super-natural images in our heads. we think the reconciliation of all things will come from God's super powers, or him bursting forth out of the sky or something. but instead it comes when we do things like teach a refugee english, or when a bunch of screwed up people come together and openly talk about how screwed up they are. that's what it looks like when christ makes all things new. i think some christians would read that and be disappointed, "but what about streets of gold and all the cool miracles?" they might say. i would say that it's time to get a new jesus.