Luke 17: 20-21 "Once, on being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, “The coming of the kingdom of God is not something that can be observed, nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is in your midst.”
I had 2 very interesting encounters recently, one with a gay man who was the owner of a flower shop and the other with a pastor who has left the ministry to sell real estate. Both conversations lead to us talking about the "Kingdom of God". This phrase has been brought before me several times lately either in reading, in something I’ve seen or in conversations.
I think that often the local church loses sight of the big picture and gets comfortable. Don’t get me wrong, we need to worship together and we need to encourage one another but if all of our time is spent with the body then we lose sight of what we are called to do. We are called to go and engage and love and share and involve ourselves with the world because if we don’t, then how will they hear or see or experience the love of God. I don’t think that we even need to purposely plan to do this. Setting ourselves aside and acknowledging others should come very natural to us as believers. We should be so others focused that time restraints, agendas, priorities, etc. aren’t a high priority anymore. We should even be willing to wait in lines, at a traffic stop and at restaurants realizing that the wait is just another opportunity to share the love of Jesus with someone, after all God is allowing the wait for a reason. If we truly let God lead us then we can go with the flow and not be bothered by the so called “interruptions” that can frustrate us. This phrase makes so much sense to me now, “God willing”, and I’ve been using it more. It leaves room for God to interrupt my plans for His purposes.
The owner of the flower shop was so hungry to talk to someone. He explained that he believed in my God, the one true God, but that people the likes of him were not welcome in churches. It was a wonderful conversation and he asked if I would come back and talk to him some time. It was an opportunity I would have missed had I not listened to God when He prompted me to enter the flower shop. I had no reason to go in except that I felt led to do so. As we talked I was able to just love on him where he was at and listen. I didn’t condemn or judge but was there re-presenting Christ and letting Him work through me to reach out to this man.
The pastor who is selling real estate said that he has a much greater influence on people in his real estate ventures than in the church. He explained his experience was that most people in the church come to church under the pretense that they don’t have any problems and that they are better than those who don’t believe. They dress up, get comfortable and make it a habit of coming to church when the programs are offered. They’re judgmental of those who are different than they are and critical of their preferences. He said, “I can love my clients and the people I meet where they are at and show an interest in their lives. They will often respond to my genuine concern and multiple opportunities for me to share are presented through my engagement with them.
I share all this to say that God has placed us where we are for such a time as this to re-present Jesus to all those He sends our way. We’re to be humble and real. We’re to love them and do life with them. We’re to build their trust in us and truly let them know that we care. If we try to impress them with our biblical knowledge or how much scripture we’ve memorized, they will quickly lose interest and turn and run. They are hungry for the love of Jesus and to know that they are not alone. They are watching to see if our actions follow our words and if we truly care about their situation. The Kingdom of God is in our midst, it's here and now and we must be open to whatever and whomever God brings across our paths each and every day.
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Dear Lord,
We love you and are so very thankful that You chose to pursue us and save us. Words cannot appropriately express our gratitude. With this privilege comes a great deal of responsibility on our part so we ask that You help us to totally surrender our lives to You for Your purposes and Your will, not our own. Give us the ability to focus more on others than ourselves. Help us to be totally present when You bring others across our paths and not preoccupied with our own agenda. Give us eyes to see where others are hurting or in need and show us how to love them the way You would. May we be Jesus to each person we meet whether it be in the grocery line, at work, at the park, or just walking down the street. Radiate Your likeness from us so that we cause curiosity wherever we are! Bring forth all the Godincidences You want and equip us to say and do whatever You desire. May we rest in You as You work through us!
In Jesus Name,
Amen
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