Reaching Out..., August 2024
Reaching out… I hope everyone of you is having a great summer! We have been blessed here in Western Washington with great weather and because of that, there are greater opportunities to go out and be among people.
Way back in the book of Genesis chapter 12, God told Abraham that he would make a great nation from him and that the world would be blessed. I know that for some, the Old Testament is not valid because it is the “old covenant.” Yet Paul, in Galatians 3;29 tells us that “if we are Christ’s, we are of Abraham’s seed” or descendants or part of his family (verse 29). We are Christians and are to be a blessing to this world. What does that look like?
Certainly, sharing the Good News about Jesus and what He has done for us, opening up the treasures in the Bible through study, reaching out to the poor and needy, but what about the highly educated and anti-God, anti-religious? The temptation is to share our faith and then turn away because they are put off. As a person who wanted nothing to do with the “born-again” Christianity, I fully understand how they feel.
When we take the approach of “How can I bless this person?” and look for opportunities to do for them, instead bombarding them with the Bible and argue about issues of God existing or not or creation versus evolution, thinking “I’m going to show them a thing or 2,” a genuine friendship can emerge.
At this point in time, everyone, Christian or not, is suffering in one way or another. Why not bring patient love and caring into the lives of others? Why not approach those who do not believe as we do, with kindness and courtesy and not with an agenda? Why not share basic health principles and the gift of a healthy diet and lifestyle?
God has a plan and we are to cooperate with Him and He will bring in the harvest. Yes, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” But please do not forget, “For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.” (John 3:16, 17 NKJV)
May God’s blessing rest on you as you bless others for Him and as you do, you might be surprised later on down the road! Know above all else, you are loved.