This morning we talked with M on Skype. He seems so happy! Just yesterday, he was able to share Christ with his roommate's brother and his heart was tender and ready to believe. It's the neatest thing--to see how God is using M. Nearly everyday he goes to the university and plays basketball and/or soccer with the students and some evenings they come to his place to hang out and study scripture. He gets to know the students by going to the places where they congregate, by learning their language and their culture. By rubbing shoulders with them as they do life.
As we were talking with M, I thought to myself, he's actually doing what I believe God longs for all of us to do.
...to be the church WHEREVER we are.
Maybe we need to remind ourselves that the church is not the building down the street with the towering steeple.
WE, as believers in Jesus Christ, ARE the church.
Brothers and Sisters in Chirst...that's you...and me.
He placed us here to minister to people in our everyday lives. Not just when congregate with our fellow believers in our home church on Sunday. But everyday. Everywhere we go---the grocery store, the mall, at work, the coffee shop, the gym, in our neighborhoods...
Okay, you say--I can handle that.
BUT, there's more.
We need to get off of our comfy sofas and move on out into our communities and into the world...and minister to people.
And not JUST the one's YOU want to minister to.
I'm talkin' about the homeless, the poor, the single mother, the adulteress, the drug addict, the homosexual, the alcoholic, the pregnant teen, the handicapped, the mentally ill...
Don't you think HE would go to these people? Then shouldn't we?
HE chose me. And HE chose you, too.
To be His hands. His feet.
Let's get goin'.
~P