GOHOP as a Womb (With a View!)

"Here's the space we would like you to use for the prayer room," our friend Val opened the door, and then stepped aside so we could enter. Crossroads ministries is going to give you use of it for free! Fantastic, eh?"We looked around at the cavernous space. It was black. Black walls. Black Stage. Heavy black theatrical curtain separating us from the mail room. (Poor mail room, they had to listen to all our singing for seven years!). The space had previously been used for theatre, but now it was ours to try and build towards night and day prayer."Looks kinda like a womb," someone remarked."Yeah, but it's a womb with a view!" I quipped.Interestingly enough, over the years GOHOP has functioned as a womb of sorts. Many seeds of vision being inseminated by the Holy Spirit. Many people being enlarged in the waiting. Labour and groaning as we brought things to birth.One of our early staff launched from GOHOP into a career working with at risk youth. Another early volunteer credits the prayer room as being a place where she got a measure of healing and restoration, then vision for serving God, and then launched Into ministry. Several ministries, in fact, have found their genesis at GOHOP.In this season where we seem to be working with lots of young leaders, we are deliberately leaning into this incubating grace that God has given us.We are a womb. Smallish. Warm. Nurturing.But we are a womb with a view. A vision for outside the prayer room. For partnering with God as he brings forth His purposes in Hamilton and beyond.Several years ago, every woman in our small group was pregnant. We had a hoot lining them up on the couch and balancing coffee cups on their burgeoning bellies."Kiiiirk, everybody else is pregnant!" I whined. "I've still got a couple of childbearing years in me yet!""Don't drink the water!" He was firm.So if you haven't come to GOHOP yet, I just want to invite you. Come hang out in the prayer room. And come and drink the water ;o)