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What if we had missed it? What if we had just slept in? What if we had gotten lazy and decided that being a church determined to reach the lost was just too hard? |
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Teresa Klassen
A young woman was invited to come to our church one Sunday. Did you invite her? As she walked in with her little girl, someone welcomed her and handed her a program at the door. Maybe it was you who did that. At the “Kids’ Nametag Table”, a friendly person bent down, said hi to her little girl and pinned on a nametag – it was her first time at church. Maybe you were the one that made her feel at home.
On her way into church, two or three people said, “Welcome here.” Were you one of them? At the coffee table, someone served her with a smile. Was that you? Then someone found her a chair. Were you on the set-up crew that morning? Perhaps you unloaded the trailer and launched this whole day for her.
Who was on the sound table that morning? Who led worship? Who was on the team? You?
Some kind people cared for the children. Were you one of them? Did you meet her daughter?
What was said in the introduction to the service? There was a drama, a multimedia presentation and a special song; all these things fit together, and then came the message. Perhaps its was something to do with how one thing connected to another that morning, but that Sunday it all made sense in this lady’s life. After the service, she went to the pastor and said, “I want Jesus in my life.” Someone had taken the time to bring her a booklet about how to start taking spiritual steps (Was that you?), and it all came together for her on that day, at that moment.
She prayed and asked Jesus to be the leader of her life that day – and you and you and you provided a place and an environment where she would be drawn into the family of God. You honoured a divine appointment.
A month after that day, that young woman was found dead in her apartment. A life of all kinds of abuse had taken its toll, and she was gone. Because her death was sudden, there was a police investigation, and her apartment was searched. The police were expecting to find drug paraphernalia (based on their experience with her) but found none. Her friends explained that after she had given her heart to Christ, she had thrown away anything associated with her old drug habit. In the month before she died, she had reconciled relationships and expressed to her parents that she had a new peace in her life. She was changed.
Like the thief on the cross, she had had but a moment to look into the eyes of Jesus and decide. The eyes she saw were your eyes – representing Him – and I guess what she saw was real. I guess there was enough right about that day – enough obedience, enough servanthood, enough truth, enough genuine love – that today she is with Jesus.
What if we had missed it? What if we had just slept in? What if we had gotten lazy and decided that being a church determined to reach the lost was just too hard?
This week, as you lean into being a passionately committed follower of Jesus, you will care for a co-worker, you will take time for a neighbour, you will send a card, you will have a meaningful conversation, you will love your family, you will come to church and hand out another program, you will greet another child, you will run the sound system, you will set up a chair, you will serve a cup of coffee, and you will care enough for the person who walks through our church doors to stand firm and let nothing move you because you know that when you do your part to make the Bride beautiful, it is never in vain.
Teresa Klassen is a member of SunRidge Community Church in Kelowna, B.C.
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Last modified July 16, 2000.
© 2000 Mennonite Brethren Herald.
Published by the Canadian Conference of MB Churches.
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