Sunday 3:7:10

Pointing UP Living in 3D Is the God that you know worth knowing? Would other people love the relationship with God that you have? Would you be willing to leave your comfort zone to pursue someone whom God puts in your path? People are worth pursuing. If you’re willing, what do you do once you reach the destination – the person standing on the other side of the room? What do you do next? We don’t disagree with the need for people to be pointed toward God, we just struggle with how to get it done. • Develop friendships • Discover their stories • Discern next steps Develop friendships The longer a person attends church, the fewer friends they have who are unbelievers, the fewer discussions about God they have with unbelievers, the fewer opportunities they have to share their faith. This is the path of almost every average Christian. But as we walk with Christ, we ought to see an increasing love for people and an increasing propensity to reach out to them in friendship. Luke 15:1-2 Jesus hung out with people of questionable character and terrible habits and lifestyles. He truly believed that the old could be made new. The fallen can be restored. The prideful can be humbled. The wanderers can come home. The weak can become strong. Derelicts can become disciples. He told three stories telling about how the lost can be found… Luke 15:3-7 Luke 15:8-10 Jesus truly believed in the grace and power of God to transform all, any human lives. He sees people as they can be – not hopeless – not unreachable. He has power to transform any life. If we believed in the grace and power of God, we would develop an insatiable pursuit of all sorts of people at all points on the spiritual spectrum. As you pull into your driveway, fight the temptation to look past your neighbor. Perhaps for the first time, stop long enough to wonder why God chose to put the two of you on the same block. When you go to the store, take four seconds to smile and ask the name of the person behind the counter. If he or she has served you well, then say so. When you run into the drugstore to pick up your prescription, take a good look at the clerk who’s assisting you. What’s that person’s story? Will you carve out 2 minutes of your day to find out? When you bump into a classmate or coworker invest a few moments in discovering if he or she has a spouse or kids – what do they like to do? – be full of grace. • Develop friendships • Discover their stories We all have conversations with people about the weather, sports teams, hobbies, family, and children. But what has life been like for them? What do they dream about? What is going well in their life and what needs work? God made you exactly as you are. He wired you and gave you the temperament and the experience and the background that you have because he wanted someone just like you in just your place at just this time. Acts 17:26-27 26From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. 27God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us. For the extroverts, you will probably befriend extroverts, for the shy, you will probably befriend the shy. But everyone can be used by God in a profound way in the lives of people around you. • Develop friendships • Discover their stories • Discern next steps Listen for the Spirit’s leading, are they ready to talk about something deeper?