Lets Make a Difference
This week I traveled to Orlando, Florida for several meetings. I started the week out by visiting an awesome church in the Orlando area called “Church in the Son”. This church has grown immensely over the past couple of years and I was very interested to see the “look and feel” of this up and coming mega-church. There are two things that I took away from this Sunday service that I thought I would share here. They are issues that we have to address as we grow and do what God has called us to do.
First, we have to be and remain relevant to those in our circle of influence. I am not talking about a relevance in words only, I am talking about being relevant like Jesus was relevant. Jesus did not spend time just talking about touching those around Him with the power of God, Jesus took steps to reach out and touch people at the point of their need. He then told us in His Word that if we DO (give a cup of water, etc…) that we are doing it to Him. If we are going to be relevant to the community that Christ has called us to, then we have to be doers of the Word and not just hearers of the Word. Being doers makes us relevant to our community. One of the things I noticed about the Church in the Son was that they are taking great strides to ensure they are relevant by touch as many as they can at their point of need. They are relevant and they are growing.
Second, we have to maintain an attitude of love and acceptance to all that would come. This is not a time for us to focus internally; this is a time that we must focus outwardly and expand our vision and influence. We have to do this with genuine love, heavenly compassion, and unconditional acceptance. I’m not talking about loving and accepting sin; I am talking about loving and accepting people in spite of their sin. If we will do our job and bring them in, the Holy Spirit will deal with the sinful nature. I love the way the Church in the Son took the time to ensure each person that came into the service knew that they were loved and that someone was glad that they were in service that Sunday morning. It wasn’t just the staff that made you feel that way, but it was the people that made the difference.
I am very much excited about what God is doing and what God is about to do at Victory International. Lets take a second to ensure that we are touching those that God has called us to at their point of need, and lets embrace people with the incredible love of the Father.