Serving within the Body of Christ

Oftentimes, when we think of serving and ministering to others, it is perceived that we have to go on a missions trip or work camp to serve. Those are great avenues to serve and share the love of Christ. But when we do that, I believe we miss opportunities locally, right in our backyard to serve. In particular, we miss opportunities to serve within our own body of Christ.

This past week, we looked at 1 Corinthians 12:12-27. In it, it talks about the body of Christ and using our spiritual gifts in unison so that we can be a complete, fully functioning unit.

In the same way, we should be using our gifts and abilities to serve each other the body of Christ. Yes, we want to reach out to our unbelieving friends and yes we want to reach the world with the hope and love of Christ. But, we cannot forget our fellow believers. We cannot serve everywhere but our those around us and in the our local Church. There are a ton of needs out there!

It could be a mom who needs a helper (young or old) to fold clothes, watch the kids, or go grocery shopping. It could be volunteering for the children's ministry program as they have needs for childcare during the service.

Regardless of who or what it is, there are plenty of needs right here in your backyard for you to be used by God as a witness and testimony.

Application:

Take a minute and think through what your gifts are that the Lord has bless you with. As 1 Corinthians 12 points out, we are all blessed with gifts from the Lord. The question is are you using them for the glory of the Lord?

Once you have thought through your gifting from the Lord, look for avenues you can share them with others. Whether it is that mom at Church who seems overwhelmed (and rightfully so) or that Children's Ministry Director who is desperate for help or someone completely different, go before the Lord and ask Him to open doors. Then, when those doors open, do not hesitate, but pursue and allow God to use you as a witness and testimony of Him.

Pray for God to open opportunities for you to serve and be a witness of Him this week. Then, when they are presented, go and DO!

Teaching all we know

When you hear the word "witnessing", what comes to mind? How do you feel about actually witnessing to others?

It has been my experience that when the word "witnessing" comes up, more people than not will tend to shy away from that as they think, "this is not for me". This often comes about because of some misconceptions that all witnessing is standing on a soap box in the middle of the mall or school proclaiming damnation on people if the do not repent.

Well, on Sunday morning we looked began to address this by looking at these 2 passages:

• Acts 1:8
• Matthew 28:19-20

Based on these passages, here are 2 Quick Questions to think about:

1. What does Christ call us to do?
2. How does he encourage us to share about Him?

In Acts 1:8, Christ gives us a plan of action to be "witnesses" of him. He told his disciples to go to Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and to the ends of the earth. Christ shared this with them in or around Jerusalem at the time. So, if you look at where he said this, you would understand that Christ's plan for us to be witnesses to others is to first look locally (Jerusalem for the disciples and your local town/city for you).

Then, in Matthew 28:19-20, Christ calls us what to share - teach "them to obey everything I have commanded you". Again, as I said earlier, often times when we think about sharing about Christ, a good amount of us tend to think that we can't do it or we wouldn't have the foggiest idea what to share. Well, Christ gives us all clear direction on what to share - share what He has taught you about life and living. If you profess to have Christ as your Lord and Savior, surely He has taught you something. Therefore, share with your friends and family all that Christ has taught you!

Application:

Pray that the Lord would open up doors and opportunities for you to share locally to others. It could be your friends, family, a parent at your child's school or someone in your class. Pray that God would open those doors.

Then, take a minute and jot down what Christ has taught you during your relationship with Him. I have found that it is always easier to remember those great things Christ has done in your life if you have them written down somewhere.

Finally, be ready to share with others.

May God bless you and give you the courage to take this great step of faith!

Missed Opportunities

Just recently, Anne and I lost a good friend of ours, Pete Hill. I knew Pete for over 15 years dating back to when he was a youth group leader and I was in high school. Pete was a great man, husband and father. Please pray for his wife and 2 young children.

For the longest time, Pete and I were very close as we shared a love for the Cowboys and a heart for young people to come to know the Lord. We also did ministry together for years, we were roommates for a few years and he was in my wedding. We had several great times together. But, over the last few years, life happens and while we still talked, we rarely hung out. And that, is probably the one thing that bothers me the most. It is the amount of missed opportunities I had with him over the past few years.

I can make excuse after excuse as to why we both allowed things to prevent us from getting together more often, but that does no good now. Pete is gone and I had missed opportunities to spend time with a great man.

Christ says, "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." (Matthew 28:19-20)

I know this scripture is used so much in regards to outreach, but I think this passage reflects exactly what Pete did in his life. He went and made disciples in all that he did. Whether it was how he acted or what he said (or didn't say), he represented Christ and sought to make disciples. Therefore, as fellow believers and followers of Christ, I want to encourage you this week to:

• Make time for those most important to you. Don't miss opportunities and let time pass by without seeing and spending time together. One of the things I loved about Pete was that he was genuinely interested in you and wanted to spend time with you. Life happens and we become busy, but when we allow life to dictate what we do and don't do, we may miss great opportunities to spend time with others who are very important to us.
• Share the love of Christ to others. As I already mentioned, one of the other things I loved about Pete is that he represented and reflected Christ's nature so much that it was impossible for us to be together and not talk about Christ and how we can be growing in Him. When you are with others this week, especially believers, talk about and encourage each other in Christ. It is true that we never know when someone will be taken away from us. Therefore, don't miss opportunities to share Christ and who he is to others. I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that Pete was saved and knew Christ as his Lord and savior. But, there are others in my life who I am not certain of. Are there others in your life that you may not be certain of? Don't let time go by and miss opportunities to share Christ with them.

It is sad that it takes a very unexpected and tragic event to make you reflect on what matters most. I am going to miss my friend very much. Don't wait for a tragic event to happen in your life. Act now and share Christ with those you care about the most.

Take some time and pray that God opens doors for you to connect with others and share Him this week.