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A more word-ier working title of these ramblings could be:
"On Living 'Sent' Lives...while staying in the comforts of home."
They say people don't care how much you know until they know how much you care.
Cliche, I know. But still, it bears repeating.
And it's a good reminder for us believers to be modeling, to be sure.
Especially in today's day in age where "everyone does what is right in their own eyes" and "all roads lead to Heaven," and "you stay out of my business and I'll stay out of yours."
So, how in the world do people see their need for a Savior, when so many in our generation are increasingly seeing church, and even worse - Jesus, as something irrelevant and unneeded in their lives and social circles?
And another question of equal importance for me as a young mother, is how on earth do I help my boys see their need for playing a part in God's story of having His glory shown to all of the nations? How do we teach them to live "sent" lives and to not get too lazy within the four walls of their home? To not become indifferent? And to not get so caught up in the cares of this world with its "everything revolves around me" theme song mentality?
Because indifference leads to laziness.
And lazy gets real comfy.
And comfort makes us stagnant.
And things of stagnance have a stench.
I should know. I have been there.
Or, rather - I go there far too often.
Comfort is a natural default for me.
I'm the biggest fan of simple, safe, and normal. Change is not my friend.
And I really hate stepping out of my comfort zone.
I much prefer my sweet self-absorbed life in which I am in complete control.
But, God doesn't want comfort to be our end-game goal, and nowhere in Scripture do I ever see Him calling His people to a life of entitled stagnance - living bubbled days of peaceful mediocrity.
Rather, I see Him calling His people to a wartime lifestyle - always keeping in mind that this world is not our home - while using such terms as "sojourners," "aliens," and "foreigners" to describe us, His children. Those words don't sound overly safe or cushy to me.
He has called each one of us to live missional lives. We are to be transient - passing through with a sense of urgency and purpose; of duty and of passion. We are to be "on mission" for Him - no matter our occupation, or our income, and regardless of what stage of life we are in. There is not an age appropriate time of service, and never do we retire. This kind of life should be our end-game goal.
Jesus calls us to step down from our self-imposed thrones of stagnance, to throw away our gods of "me," and to consciously decide to set our agendas aside in exchange for being the tangible hand of God for others to see.
So, my boys and I...we are learning together.
We are trying to be intentional, and we are striving to not be stagnant.
We are taking baby steps.
No things really amazing in and of themselves, but we are doing something.
:: Things like going back to work at a local restaurant rather than my little Christian school.
:: Things like inviting our neighbors over for meals and game nights.
:: Things like inviting others in to walk life alongside of us.
:: Things like going door to door and meeting new neighbors in this crazy, independent, non-community oriented culture that we live in.
:: Things like intentionally stepping outside the world of "Christian" and into the reality of jaded brokenness.
:: Things like meeting Sunday nights in a basement with a whole whack of college kids and "seekers" - some who have no clue what we're about...except for the fact that in that one place, for those two hours...they know they are loved and wanted.
:: Things like worrying far less about the opinions of others and far more about obeying His still small voice.
:: And things like trying to hold everything we love loosely.
Nothing amazingly noteworthy, by the "world's" standards, really.
But the Apostle Paul, who I think is a pretty good example to follow, described his ministry this way: "We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God, but our very lives as well, because you were so dear to us."
Well, that's something we all can do - my three young boys included.
That doesn't call for a college degree or a six figure income.
That simply calls for a humble posture, unselfish motives, and hearts that wish to be a blessing.
That calls for building relationships.
And for intentionally being tangible messengers of hope and redemption; of blessing and of grace. For being vulnerable with our struggles, for stooping always lower, and for loving others deeply. That calls for conscientiously stepping into other people's worlds of pain, of disappointment, and of brokenness -- because very rarely will they ever come to us.
Our boys are learning that life is sometimes messy and relationships are often hard. They watch us struggle, and they see us learning. They see us straining to hear His still small voice above the chaos of this life, and they see our desire as a family to daily go where He wants us to go, be what He wants to be, say what He wants us to say....and just maybe have the honor of being one small paragraph in this wild and crazy story of which He has asked us all to play a part.
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