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What I've learned (pt. 4)

At The Journey we have tons of people who are new to faith, the Bible, church.  I've been following Jesus for over 20 years.  And, although there is so much I don't know, understand, practice, and so much more I have to learn and live out; there are some things I've learned along the way.  Last week I began a blog series that might be helpful to some.  This week I'm finishing it up with a couple more thoughts.  On Friday, I ended the week with this post.

Another thing I've learned through the years that God is a God of grace . . . and The Church is not (often).  God is full of grace.  It doesn't matter what you've done, where you've been, what you've said, God offers a second chance, a third chance.  You're never too bad, too broken, too far away to begin a relationship with God.  I know this to be true, because I've seen it over and over again.  I've had the honor at The Journey to see this truth lived out over and over again.  Every time I see it, I am reminded of God's grace for me.

I've lived in the professional church world for years now, and I've seen The Church be an institution of "ungrace".  The very people who needed the message of grace and hope that Jesus brings have been outcasts to The Church world.  But, I've learned along the way a couple things:  God can overcome those shortcomings in the church, AND that's NOT how follower of Jesus are supposed to be.  I've also learned that God's grace can touch the hearts of those who have seen the worst of the church, and overcome that bad experience.

I've also learned that I don't ever want to be part of a church that practices "ungrace" in any form.  And, I love The Journey for that spirit of grace and authenticity.  It's better this way.

Sharing our faith . . . I think I need my mommy!

For whatever reason, we get very nervous, even scared to share our faith with others.  We've been told for years that the two things you don't talk about is politics and religion.  We're nervous about what others will say.  How will they respond?  Will they still want to be my friend?  Will they think I'm some sort of religious nut?  I've had those feelings.

For the guys in the New Testament it was much simpler than that.  Check out this link to1 John 1:1-3 (go ahead, I'll wait).  They were simply telling other people their story of what they had seen and heard and touched.  It was their experience, and it's tough to argue with someone's story.  

You might think, 'Well, if I had been there and seen and heard, and touched Jesus, it would be a different story.  I would have NO problem telling others about my experiences then!'.  But, the truth is, for many of us, we've experienced just as much.  We've seen our life change, or the lives of others.  We've seen God provide for us in some pretty remarkable ways.  We've seen God heal someone that had no business being healed, but He did it.  We've heard God speak to us and encourage us to talk to someone, help someone, stop and give money to someone . . . and we've experienced the blessing from doing what He said.  We've 'heard' Him speak to us through His Word, the Bible.  We've 'heard' Him speak to our hearts during the worship experience at The Journey (or wherever you go to church).  We've experienced His touch in our lives.

The point is, for so many of us, we've heard and seen and touched.  So, sharing our faith is simply sharing our story of what we've experienced, and then letting God do the rest.  Will we still be nervous?  Of course.  But, God calls us to 'testify' about Him.  Sharing what we've seen and heard and experienced, so that others might see and hear and experience the same life change. 

How have you 'seen' or 'heard' or 'experienced' God this week?

Intentionality

If anything, at The Journey, we try to be intentional.  But, it's that way personally as well, when I think about making an impact and a difference and loving people well.  At The Journey we are a church that is committed to helping people take their next step with Jesus, especially when it comes to people who have been disconnected with God.  So, intentionally, we create environments and use language that will help with doing that.

I try to do that personally as well.  I believe God has revolutionized my life and that real living - living the adventure comes from living connected to Jesus - so I want to share that with those around me.  I'm a "raving fan" of Jesus.  Yet, we also live in a culture that has gotten Jesus all twisted because of how people try to share about Him.  I wish I was better at this than I am, but here's a couple things I'm constantly trying to do to connect people to the God they were designed to live connected to:

1.  I try and go to the same places.  For example, I frequent one coffee shop where I'm building relationships with people like Curt, and Colleen, and Sara, and others.

2.  I try to look for opportunities to talk and get to know my neighbors.  I try to ask questions, stop by their yard, etc. and get to know Stephanie, and Claudia, and Jack, and Pete, and others.  Simply because I want to be a good neighbor and I want them to experience their best life possible.

3.  I pray that God would help me to see people like He sees them. 

4.  I pray for courage.

5.  I listen to people's questions, and I look to open up the conversation.  I try to understand what is behind the person's spiritual questions or concerns, to the bigger issues they may be struggling to understand.

How are you being intentional about being a "raving fan" of real life with Jesus?