The movie ET made its debut, Michael Jackson’s Thriller album was released, and the Broncos only won two games—all the while in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Denver, a humble little hospitality ministry among the chronically unhoused and mentally ill was set in motion.
The year? 1982.
That’s right friends, Network is officially “over the hill” this year. How many pots of coffee have been brewed over forty years? How many bad jokes, unlikely friendships, fist bumps, and simple prayers have been shared? Only. God. Knows.
I’m typing this newsletter on a Tuesday while sitting at the corner table in the coffee house. It’s two degrees below zero, and thirteen people, a variety of ages and races who survived last night outdoors, are enjoying themselves and laughing freely with no filter. Filters are only used for the coffee here.
As I got to know our founding pastor and mentor, John Hicks, I learned that one of the Bible stories he found most hilarious and meaningful was from the Old Testament when God twice asked, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” John just loved the goofy humanness of our biblical heroes, but he also took note of God’s serious question: “What are you doing here?”
The question provides an invitation. It’s an invitation to hit the pause button and genuinely reflect on how our heart aligns with the love of Christ. Are we giving our sincere, loving attention to the disadvantaged and poor, our partners and friends? Am I giving myself too much credit when things are going right? Am I taking too much of the blame when everything is going wrong? Am I taking time out to simply enjoy time alone with the Big Mystery?
What are we doing here? We take time to let that question sink all the way down until it disturbs and awakens us.
Over these decades we’ve built long-term redemptive relationships among the lonely and longing at the corner of 14th & Pearl Streets. What a privilege it is to cultivate, celebrate, and continue this mission as it moves from one side of the “hill” to the other.
As you can imagine, it also comes with severe exhaustion. Beginning in April, as I enter my fourteenth year here, I’ll be taking a sabbatical—a three-month time out—to sit with God’s good questions. Thankfully, due to your prayers and pennies, we have wonderful staff and volunteers who will take on additional duties while I’m away.
Throughout this year, we invite you to hit the pause button and allow yourself to feel the celebratory gratitude of four decades of Jesus transforming this little corner of the city.
