I'm quite taken with the parable of the persistent widow these days (Luke 18:1ff.). Jesus tells us that He shares this parable so that we will persist in prayer. In the parable He observes that even if an unjust, unloving, godless judge is pestered long enough, that judge might eventually give in and grease the squeaky wheel. Then Jesus concludes with this somewhat enigmatic line, "But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?"
Jesus is reminding us that God is the opposite of an ornery, uncaring, unfair judge. The opposite.
He is fair.
He is caring.
He is, above all others, godly.
He is not ignoring a single prayer.
He is the perfect one to Whom we make our appeal. Am I relying upon that?
Is God finding that faith on earth in me?
I think so. Just a mustard seed's worth, but that is enough. I will persevere in prayer.
CO
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
10-7-09
Thanks for the feedback from Vicki regarding “Who are the people you are called to reach?” I appreciate her ready response to reach her family. I liked her named ministry of sharing the love of God, the grace of Christ and the comfort of the Holy Spirit.
I also heard from another person (not a post) that his ministry is quiet and “small.” I so much appreciate that observation. When we talk about someone finding his or her ministry niche or identifying the people he or she is called to reach, we tend to use examples of high profile ministers. This makes sense because their example is visible, hence known, to many. That is a helpful communication method. However, it is counterproductive in that high profile ministers are sort of ministry freaks. They are odd because the other 99.9% of us are doing the low profile, quiet, miniscule ministry.
The low profile, quiet, miniscule ministry sounds to me like just what God had in mind for most of the body of Christ. It is also not-so-miniscule. Here are some thoughts submitted by another person (also not a post) that is an outstanding illustration of the need to reach people, and the significance of quiet, low profile, miniscule ministry. Read on, it will be worth your while:
”This month we, as a church, are focusing on missions. With that in mind, I feel led to issue a challenge to all of us to also be attentive to the ‘mission field’ that is our own church family. During the past week, I had a conversation with a few other church members which reminded me of a question we discussed in Sunday School. “What do you think heaven will be like?” FOR ME, HEAVEN WILL BE A PLACE WHERE I BELONG; A PLACE WHERE I WILL TRULY BE KNOWN.I recognize many of your faces as I’ve seen you around the church. I’m sure many of you recognize my face. I know pieces of some of your stories. I’ve shared pieces of my history with some of you. However, I really know very few of you and very few of you know me. Although our tendency is to hang out with those who are already within our circle of friends, my challenge to all of us is to step out of our comfort zone. Look around and really notice people. Speak to someone who is not already in that “circle.” Encourage someone. If someone is not at church, give them a call and let them know they were missed. There are hurting, disconnected people right here in our congregation. Let’s make our entire church family feel like they belong. Let’s make an effort to really get to know each other.”
Thank you for contributing those thoughts. They are right on. Comments welcome, as always.
The Lord is with us,
CO
Thanks for the feedback from Vicki regarding “Who are the people you are called to reach?” I appreciate her ready response to reach her family. I liked her named ministry of sharing the love of God, the grace of Christ and the comfort of the Holy Spirit.
I also heard from another person (not a post) that his ministry is quiet and “small.” I so much appreciate that observation. When we talk about someone finding his or her ministry niche or identifying the people he or she is called to reach, we tend to use examples of high profile ministers. This makes sense because their example is visible, hence known, to many. That is a helpful communication method. However, it is counterproductive in that high profile ministers are sort of ministry freaks. They are odd because the other 99.9% of us are doing the low profile, quiet, miniscule ministry.
The low profile, quiet, miniscule ministry sounds to me like just what God had in mind for most of the body of Christ. It is also not-so-miniscule. Here are some thoughts submitted by another person (also not a post) that is an outstanding illustration of the need to reach people, and the significance of quiet, low profile, miniscule ministry. Read on, it will be worth your while:
”This month we, as a church, are focusing on missions. With that in mind, I feel led to issue a challenge to all of us to also be attentive to the ‘mission field’ that is our own church family. During the past week, I had a conversation with a few other church members which reminded me of a question we discussed in Sunday School. “What do you think heaven will be like?” FOR ME, HEAVEN WILL BE A PLACE WHERE I BELONG; A PLACE WHERE I WILL TRULY BE KNOWN.I recognize many of your faces as I’ve seen you around the church. I’m sure many of you recognize my face. I know pieces of some of your stories. I’ve shared pieces of my history with some of you. However, I really know very few of you and very few of you know me. Although our tendency is to hang out with those who are already within our circle of friends, my challenge to all of us is to step out of our comfort zone. Look around and really notice people. Speak to someone who is not already in that “circle.” Encourage someone. If someone is not at church, give them a call and let them know they were missed. There are hurting, disconnected people right here in our congregation. Let’s make our entire church family feel like they belong. Let’s make an effort to really get to know each other.”
Thank you for contributing those thoughts. They are right on. Comments welcome, as always.
The Lord is with us,
CO
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