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In Acts 1:8, Jesus tells us we will receive the power of the Holy Spirit and exhorts us to be His witness in Jerusalem, all of Judea, Samaria and to the ends of the earth.
Unfortunately, spiritually speaking, most of us never leave town. We’re still caught up in our own lives here in Jerusalem. Furthermore, as we grow in our faith and mature as Christ followers, our circle of friends and those we choose to interact with begin to look just like us…maturing Christians with whom we have comfort and commonality. We tend to isolate ourselves from a world of lost souls living without knowledge of God’s love for them.
Jesus’ ministry was a living example of living in a world of non-believers and seekers. His last three years were spent interacting with a great cross section of His society…the rich, the poor, the holy and the unholy, the strong and the infirm. In fact, if you wanted to spend time with Jesus, just throw a party and He would be there!
Suggestion- today, ask God, through the power of the Holy Spirit, for a divine interruption. Then, be receptive and open to interacting with whoever God leads your way. You will be amazed at how quickly people respond to your interest in them. Let’s be proactive in stepping out of our comfort zone to engage God’s children in our little corner of Jerusalem.
~ Bud Llewellyn
September 20th, 2007 at 6:25 am
This is a big challenge for me personally. In order to do what Bud suggested it means intentionally putting myself in places where I can interact with and build relationships with people who are not Christians. That takes time. Being receptive to “divine interruptions” – stopping to talk to a neighbor when you’re both rolling out the trash can at the same time or stopping to talk to an acquaintance you run into at the store – takes time too.
Usually I’ve got a full schedule and have to focus – avoid interruptions – to stay on track. And then when I get behind schedule and something has to give, the easiest things to cut back on are the relational things, and in particular the casual acquaintances, my neighbors and unchurched friends. I really have to work hard to build time into my schedule for unchurched people and even harder to leave margins in my schedule for interruptions.