On Schooling
“So in Christ, we who are many, are one body.” Romans 12:5
The morning before our first ONE Journey Experience was to begin, I kept getting a picture of a school of fish. This was partially because I was in a condo on the beach that had several pictures of schooling fish. God kept highlighting those to me, and I remembered the way those types of fish swim together. They often look like an object undulating and morphing from one thing into another.
It was interesting to get this picture right before a time designed for a group of disciples—students—planning to go deeper into the things of God together, a time when we would be discipling—“schooling”—together. As Cayce and I talked about a name for this experience, the word “immersion” kept coming to mind.
The thing that strikes me about those pictures of schooling fish is how beautiful they are. And the beauty is primarily in how they move as one. I wondered what makes that particularly beautiful. It seems to me that part of that beauty is because the movement becomes more able to be seen. If one fish is swimming, we can follow it with our eye, and the movement is perhaps less remarkable and seems random, but a group of fish swimming together highlights the movement itself, not just the fish, and it seems more purposeful. It highlights the connection of the fish to one another. It also highlights the patterns they create, which seem like a dance.
It made me think of Jesus talking with Nicodemus about movement, comparing those born of the Spirit to the wind. He said, “The wind blows where it wishes and you hear its sound, but you don’t know where it comes from or where it goes.” Watching it is not observing the wind but the effect it is having. The movement itself is invisible. But in the schooling of fish, the movement is brought into view.
If you are part of a group of disciples “schooling” in the ways of God’s Kingdom, take a minute to ask Him what movement He is putting on display in and through your group. I’ll bet you see some things that may have eluded your sight. And if you are not part of such a group, perhaps you might like to try out our weekly Hearing God Zoom calls. All of us, both those who observe and those who participate in these kinds of groups, benefit from this beauty. I am hoping that we followers, we students of Jesus, as we “school” together will bring more of this movement of God into view, that His beauty, His patterns, and His purposes will flourish more in our world.