I’ve been reading The Suburban Christian by Albert Y Hsu, so my mind is on the unique needs of communities located in the suburbs. One of the well-documented issues with suburban living is our insularity. We are isolated by our own comfort levels: garages, air conditioning, fenced yards, single-family homes.
This week I’m getting to break out of my suburban comfort zone, because the air conditioning in the main part of our house broke down. In South Florida (at the height of hurricane season) this is not something to be taken lightly! I had a chance this morning to see first hand how the lack of a convenience — such as air conditioning — can drive us out to the community. As good as my coffee is here at home, it can’t compare to the climate controlled comfort of Starbucks at the moment! I shared my breakfast with my husband (for a brief moment in time) and then with a sweet older man reading up on nutrition now that his wife has passed away. I scared him off when I sneezed 20 times in a row (!!!) but before that we had a nice conversation, a conversation that never would have taken place if my AC had been working.
And now for my afternoon. I think it is time to walk across the fence and visit one of my two neighbors, both of whom have air conditioning and my coffee maker.
September 5th, 2008 at 2:32 pm
Hey Marla!
Thanks for all the love and prayers.
You’re ever so encouraging!
We recently had a seminar with Al Hsu based on being missional in Suburbia and I covered it on my blog. You can download some of the material from it here and here
I think you’ll find it helpful. I wish we can go deeper. We’re only just scratching the surface when it comes to thinking about missional living in Suburbia.