Becoming What People Are Looking For

At the beginning of service tonight we took up an offering for disaster relief missions.  Our kids were happy to make donations, no matter how big or small every donation makes a difference.  During the message Justin brought up again how little the word "Christian" was used in the New Testament.  The word Christian had a very negative connotation in the bible.  He noted that Christ didn't die on the cross for us to be called Christians, He died on the cross to give us hope and we are called to share that hope with others.  We can't be so busy being a Christian that we don't take time to share the hope and love.  It's not about doing things right and following the rules, it's about the hope we have received and sharing that hope with others.  It's not about being a Christian, it's about being a follower. 

When we share that love and hope it's not about hunting down or finding the right person to share it with, it's about becoming the right person.  We can't wait for them to come to us.  In John 13:33-35 Jesus is giving His disciples the commandment to love one another as He loved us.  In verse 35 it states " Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciple."  It doesn't say so the world will know you are Christians.  It says that this will prove you are my disciple.  We prove that we're His disciples by our love of all.  It doesn't say to love those who do right, or those who haven't made major life errors.  It says just says love; no discrimination, no limits.  We watched a video that shows individuals talking about how they've been rejected by the church.  One woman was a stripper sitting in a coffee shop while a few young ladies were coming around sharing about their church, but they walked right past her.  A man who was homosexual went to talk to his pastor about his confusion/feelings and was asked to leave the church.  A man who was divorced and shunned from his church.  A woman who was struggling in her marriage who opened up to her church about the issues and was blamed by the church.  A man who reached out to his friend about divorce and was mailed a packet about divorce and why it is wrong with no personal notes.  Are we the reason people aren't coming to our church?

We looked at Acts 2:42-47 about the first church.  There were 4 things the first church did to get the entire Roman government and surrounding area following Christ.  1) They devoted themselves to the disciples teaching, 2) They were devoted to fellowshipping together, 3) they were devoted to breaking bread together, 4) They were devoted to prayer.  Where do we need to be more devoted?

In our group devotion we spoke about how we shouldn't judge a book by its cover, and it can be hard to do so when personalities don't always mesh.  We aren't called to be Christians, we are called to be followers.  We shared our reactions to the video; amazed at how they were treated by the church, it was stupid of the church to condemn them for one mistake - that's not Gods way, the church should help get us where we need to be, not where we want to be.  Some shared feelings of being judged, seeing others judged, or judging others themselves.  It can be a struggle of or be accepted in school, even Christian schools.  Seeing others be judged can still affect us - who is anyone to judge another?

It was another productive work day as well, it was even warmer than it was yesterday.  Clarissa, Kya, Autumn, and Isaiah's crew got one side done and part of the other side, they picked up most of the ground and got to pray with their homeowner.  Shown below are a few pictures of them working and discussing how to do things on their crew. Catie and Andrew's group got the back side of the house done, the front started, Catie talked to their homeowner.  Kacey and Don almost have the backside of house done, the front is started, gutters cleaned, and plywood replaced; Don got hit in the head with some falling shingle debris but only minor scratches.  Katie, Amy, and Jana's group cleaned the front, the backside of the roof is nearly done and Amy accidentally got hit twice when someone was tossing water bottles up to the roof (she decided it was a good sign to get down after that), and Jana made an "emergency" Wal-Mart run to get Mark some boots as his were not cooperating.  Colton, Abby, and Sarah got the backside done, windows cleaned and had an opportunity to talk with and pray for their homeowner.  They also went on a prayerwalk and had great group devotions.  Mark's crew has 3/4 of the back done and has started on the front.  They also went on a prayerwalk today.  Tomorrow is only a 1/2 day and we are praying for no rain so we can enjoy some go-karts and putt-putt golf as a group tomorrow!