How Beautiful are the Feet

First, an update. I wrote several weeks ago about Scripture Cards and how I was reading those with my children in the mornings, and what a difference it made. Well, over Spring Break, my Mom invited the 3 middle cousins over to her house for a sleepover. Abby is mine, and she is 7. Grant and Claire are Jack's, and they are 5 and 3. Mom was trying to get them calmed down for bed, so she put them all back on her big bed to watch a movie. A little while later, she heard Abby adamantly quoting scripture to them. She walked back into the room, and saw that the movie was paused and poor Claire was sitting in the bed with tears rolling down her cheeks and Abby standing over her saying, "Listen...listen to me...Blessed are the poor in spirit...." Abby had the box of scripture cards that she had taken over to Kaykay's to "share" with her cousins and was bound and determined that they were going to listen...whether they liked it or not!

Obviously, we don't exist to shove Scripture down people's throats. But, it reminded me that when we are enthusiastic about something, we are anxious to share with others. Easter is over. We geared up to invite people to our campuses for Easter Sunday morning, and it was exciting. But we don't exist just for Easter Sunday. There is so much more going on week by week that is exciting--and it's not about numbers, but rather about changed lives.

Who do we need to tell? Who do we need to personally invite? Who do we need to follow up on?
I find personally that it is so much easier to invite someone to a soccer game than it is to invite them to church. But, statistics show...actually, forget statistics....real life shows that a large number of people who receive a personal invitation WILL ACTUALLY COME!

When my grandfather was a young man, he was not a Christian. My grandmother got up and took my Dad and his brother to church by herself. A couple from that church followed up on that visit, and showed up at my Grandfather's door with a steak and invited him to church. He didn't go. But he appreciated (and remembered) the steak and the invitation. My grandmother continued to go to church every Sunday faithfully, until one day, she was tired of getting up and getting two boys ready by herself. She rolled over that Sunday morning to go back to bed. Their church life could have ended there. But God had been wrestling with my Grandfather's heart. Quietly, my Grandfather got up and helped get the boys ready. They all went to church that morning. My Grandfather accepted Christ shortly thereafter. That invitation from that family who took the time to visit him and invite him, combined with the faithfulness of my grandmother, changed his life forever.

This past Sunday, a lady who came to Brown Blvd Campus on Easter with her 2 sons and daughter came back, and brought 3 more children. They were excited about what they experienced on Easter, and wanted to come back and bring others.

Isaiah 52:7: "How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, "Your God reigns!"

This week, I'm asking God to light a fire in me to be bold in inviting people. I want to share what I am enthusiastic about. I want to share with others the excitement that this church brings--that BOTH campuses bring. God is doing AMAZING things. It's up to us to share that with others in our community and personally invite them into this place.

Unlike Abby, you have to be prepared to take "no" for an answer, but I'll bet most will say "yes" or at least "I'll think about it".

Lord, help me to proclaim the Good News. Lord, I know that you have not gifted me with evangelism, that I can't quote large sections of Your Scripture from memory. But I know that You have given me the simple task of inviting others to come and share in this Good News, to be fed by the message You give our Pastor each week and to share in the fellowship of Your people. Help me to be faithful in proclaiming that which I am excited about. Help me to be bold, but gracious. Prepare the hearts of the people I will tell, that they might be ready to embrace the Gospel and not reject it. Prepare my heart for rejection, that I might not be discouraged, but rather strengthened. Help me to grow in my expectation of the difference that one person can make by simply extending an invitation. Lord, there are so many people here that have never heard of your Love and sacrifice. Help us not to keep it hidden...as if it is something that is just for us. Help us to share it with this world, boldly and faithfully. Amen.