Filed under: People in the community
I want to introduce you to a family that our church has come to know as ‘The Bandys’. They are a couple that was recently flooded out of their home. I don’t know about you but I cannot even imagine losing everything and having to start over. To make matters worse, the Bandys have been told by the emergency officials that their house is not in bad enough condition to be condemned. They cannot live it due to the mold and water damage; yet, they can’t get the assistance to fix their home. Some might argue that they should have had flood insurance but I know a lot of people who don’t have flood insurance, including me. So, I could easily be the Bandys. They simply don’t know what to do.
Our church took up an offering for the Bandys. We have never met them and probably never will. I know them through my parents and I think we can all sympathize with their plight. Starting over would be difficult but imagine doing it at 84. I took the check by their house the other day and they were not there so I left it for them as a gift from our church. My father just called me and told me that he went to visit them after church and she just cried and cried when she told him about the check. She said that it was just a reminder to her that God would provide. For many of us, it was such a simple gesture. For the Bandys, it was a powerful reminder of God’s love and grace.
Filed under: People in the community
I received a text late last night from someone who ended their text with the phrase – ‘God is Amazing!’ The person shared that God had got a hold of them over the last couple of days and would not let go. After surrendering to God, they shared with some other people what God had laid on their heart. As a result of this person’s faithfulness, two people came to profess their faith in Jesus Christ. I hear stories like this and I am blown away at the way God works. Why on earth would God use us? We constantly make mistakes, we fail Him all the time; yet, He works through us to reach into someone’s life and change them. God is Amazing.
I got another email from a parent where their child had taken our invitation cards to school and gave one to every child in their class and their teacher. This is a third grader. He cared so much for his classmates that he wanted them all to come to church. I, of course, offered to get him more cards if he needed them – I figured he might keep going to the entire third grade. Seriously, this is what God desires from all of us. God desires that we look at every person with the compassion and love that He has for them. Inviting someone to church is more than an effort to increase statistical categories – it is living out the reality that God cares for everyone and we should too.
We have watched over the last couple of days as our neighbors have had their homes, businesses and schools flooded and ruined. I have been glued to the news as I grew up in the area and have so many family and friends affected by the storm. So much devastation and despair. The reality for those of us outside the affected areas – the despair that these people feel is right here in our neighborhoods as well. Our friends and families have lost jobs, had their homes foreclosed on, have lost family to tragedies and illness. How do we offer any of them hope? First, we have to be like the 3rd grader and care. We have to be genuinely concerned for people. We have to be willing to come alongside of them and listen to their stories. Then, we have to be like the person who sent me the text. We have to be willing to surrender and let God use us.
In the midst of crisis and despair that life sometimes brings, God can use you and me to pour His Spirit into someone’s life and for them to feel the overwhelming love of the God that created the universe. God can use you and me to pour His Spirit into someone’s life and offer them comfort and peace that we cannot offer ourselves. God can use you and me to pour His Spirit into someone’s life and offer them hope when we can’t even see it or express it. God is amazing! Never forget it. God is Amazing! Live it. God is Amazing!
Changed lives are so hard to measure and yet they are something that every church desires to see. (at least, I hope we do) Every once in a while, we have the opportunity to see someone whose life is in the midst of a God transformation. Let me tell you about a young man in our church. I received a phone call yesterday from this young man about an upcoming youth meeting in our church. He wanted to come but he had already committed to a previous event with his scout troop. We talked about his choices and I did not encourage him either way. I wanted him to make the decision and did not want to get in the middle of a family decision. Scouts has been a big part of this young man’s life and I did not want to discount the effect. He thanked me for the time and hung up. Several hours later, I received a text from the young man that simply read – ‘coming 2 youth’. My first reaction was hesitant. I wondered if he felt pressured . Then, I was reminded of the scripture in 2 Corinthians that talks about being a new creation. It talks about old things passing away and new things coming. Isn’t that transformation! This young man was willing to sacrifice something that was valuable to him in order to connect to a group that is going to help him grow closer to Christ. I am so proud for him. My prayer is that we are all able to follow the example of this young man.
Filed under: People in the community
Here is a simple thought – Church should be fun! I had a discussion this morning with a gentleman that found out I was in the process of planting a new church here in Cartersville. He obviously had some pretty negative feelings about new churches and he surely didn’t mind vocalizing his dissatisfaction. His argument is one that I have heard before. Church should be reverent – church should be holy – church should be sanctified. When we bring in modern music, guitars, drums, flashing lights, according to this gentleman, we lessen the message of Jesus Christ.
I listened to his argument and I even understood where he was coming from but I simply could not disagree more. I think church IS Holy but not because of anything we do. Church is Holy because God is Holy. Why do guitars and a more modern approach to church have to be viewed as contrary to reverence, holiness, and sanctification. Jesus was committed to reaching lost people. Jesus would go anywhere and associate with anyone in order to reach people. He talked differently and he didn’t always follow the rules. When we allow any rule to become more important than reaching people with the gospel, I think we find ourselves in a very dangerous place. Don’t get me wrong – we have to keep the gospel message as core. We have to focus on Christ. We have to love God and our neighbor. If we do those things, regardless of our church model, people will come and grow in their relationship with God.
I contrast this man’s reaction and view of church with a elementary-aged young man that I was speaking to earlier in the week. He was excited that Church at The Well was having its monthly preview service this Sunday. As the pastor, this got me excited and I began to talk to him and find out what made it exciting for him. He said that ‘church was fun’. I was curious what that meant to a 10-year old boy. After some more questions, he told me that he had never gone to a church where he could have fun and learn about God at the same time. Even at a young age, he had this presupposition that learning about God and fun had to be mutually exclusive. Why? He went on to tell me that he was bringing a friend with him to church this Sunday because he wanted his friend to have fun. His friend, by the way, is from a family that does not attend church. Isn’t that cool? By allowing people (of all ages) to understand that church can be fun, people get excited and invite people to come with them. When these people come with them, I believe that the Spirit of God works in their hearts and that they experience the power of the gospel in their lives. Isn’t that what Jesus commanded us to do?
I would challenge you to ask yourself a question that I ask myself all the time – ‘is whatever I am holding on to worth it at the expense of not reaching someone for Jesus Christ?’
