C02 spreads to England (3)

Chris Jefferies attended the House2House Conference in Dallas last September. At the conference, Chris became "infected" with the CO2 (church of two) virus. When Chris returned home to Cambridgeshire, England he began to share C02 with others. As a result, other people in his part of England are starting to get "infected" with the same virus. Observation: The CO2 virus seems to be "sneezeable."

Here's an excerpt from his post:

As far as I'm aware nobody was doing CO2 in the UK until I brought it here from Dallas in September 2009. I'd like to outline the history of it since then.

Infections follow a pattern that is true for viruses, bacteria, trees, rabbits, and even us humans. The stages of this pattern are...

Infection > Latency > Spread > Symptoms > Impact > Dieback

Lets look at these one by one.

Infection - In this stage an active form spreads to a new home. With a cold virus, you might breathe in virus laden particles after someone with a cold sneezed. Or you might touch a contaminated object and then transfer the virus to your mouth or eyes.

The active form of CO2 is the knowledge of what it is, how to do it, and the value it brings. By the time I returned from Dallas I was already infected.

Latency - This is the time during which nothing much seems to happen. The cold virus has to enter a living cell, a seed takes time to absorb water and germinate. During the latent period something essential has to happen but there is no sign of it yet.

In the case of CO2 I needed to find someone who wanted to hear about it and do it with me. Until I found that person, the CO2 virus was present in the UK - but latent.

Continue reading Chris' post on the early stages of the spread of C02 in his part of England from his blog.

CO2 spread to England (2)

More "church of two" insights from Chris Jefferies in Cambridgeshire, England...

I've had a further thought about CO2 based on my own experiences with it. Just wanted to share in case it's useful to you in any way. If so feel free to share it any way you wish.

Long, long ago (about 1975/6) I was involved in the so-called Charismatic Renewal in the UK. When we met at home across the denominational divides it was normal to experience prophecy, visions, interpreted tongues, and to receive words direct from the Lord. In other words, the flow that Mark Virkler pointed out as available to all of us was well known at that time and expected eagerly - but only in meetings! (At least, that was my experience.)

We expected the free flow of the Spirit during our meetings, but it didn't occur to me that this was also available personally and at any time. I think I was under the impression it was only possible because we were meeting - as if the Spirit fell on the meeting, not on the individuals gathered there.

So the flow component of Virkler in CO2 comes very naturally to me and leaves me wondering, 'Why have I not been doing this for years and years?' How silly! But better late than never, and CO2 has played an important part in achieving it.

Very helpful comment, Chris! Thank you.

John

PS. The photo is of Ely Cathedral in Cambridgeshire where Chris lives. Seems that a new and very different expression of church is now developing there!

CO2 spreads to England

Chris Jefferies lives in St. Neots, Cambridgeshire, UK. Chris learned about the "church of two" concept at the House2House Conference last fall in Dallas, TX. Here's Chris' story. (BTW, file this under "Viral Multiplication".)

In early December I began CO2 with a house church friend, Sean. After the first week we were clear that we very much wanted to continue, and after three weeks we both agree that our relationship with one another and our relationships with the Lord are deepening noticeably.

Our experiences are similar to those reported by others commenting on 'Stories from the Revolution'. I had expected CO2 to be good, but it was trying it out for myself over a period of days that really convinced me. It's sometimes been difficult to keep going on a daily basis, but it is so worth the effort. My advice - don't give up, keep on keeping on and you will benefit.

Even if you don't have a partner for CO2, I would recommend doing the VIRKLER and SASHET exercises on your own each day. You will still see some useful benefit. But working in pairs or small groups will amplify the value greatly.

VIRKLER (particularly the hearing and journaling aspects) has deepened my awareness of the Lord's constant presence in my life.

SASHET has brought us closer to one another in mutual understanding, respect and trust.As we pray with and for one another in the light of hearing the Lord's direction to each of us, I'm fully convinced we'll be led into church life and sharing the gospel in ways we could hardly have imagined at first.

CO2 is not an end in itself. It is, however, a really useful framework for hearing from the Lord and at the same time developing broader and deeper relationships between individuals. In this way it stimulates spiritual growth and can act as both a building block for church and a platform for sharing the gospel. What a versatile tool!

Thanks, Chris!

To read more of Chris' CO2 story, check out his blog at http://blog.scilla.org.uk/2009/12/church-of-two-co2.html

John