Sunday 2:28:10

Pointing UP Worth Pursuing Romans 5:8 8But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Luke 19:1-10 Jesus left the fellowship of the trinity, the glory of the Godhead, the praise and adoration of the angels, and wrapped himself in humanity to reach out to people like you and me. John 17:5 5And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began. He left the glory of heaven to pursue us on the earth, making an incredible statement that “people are worth pursuing.” What does it take to see people come to know Christ? Usually, someone has to leave what’s comfortable and step out into the unknown and take a risk. “Almost without exception, Christ-followers tell me that their faith stories involve someone somewhere who took a risk to walk across a room and to reflect the curiosity, kindness, and love of Christ. Someone somewhere made the decision to take the gift they’d been given and bestow it on them – at the time, a wayward soul living very far from God.” – from Just Walk Across the Room by Bill Hybels Are you willing to step out of your comfort zone? If you are, you may find yourself being used by God to influence someone’s life and eternity. We have different comfort zones. Our homes. Our families. Our friends. But if Christians hang out at home, with their families, and with Christian friends, how do the lost get found? How do the down-and-out get connected to God? When you’ve been a Christian for a while, you can tend to have less and less contact with the lost. Where do you have contact with the lost? At the grocery store? A restaurant? At work? At school? We must sometimes leave what’s comfortable for what’s imperative. People are worth pursuing. Work I eat lunch at work every day with close friends. But God has been pressing on me to leave my comfort zone so I can spend that time talking to the man across the building who’s going through a divorce. We’ve had a number of discussions where I got to tell him about how God saved my marriage. Now I’ve been able to tell him about the grace and strength that comes from a relationship with Christ. I need to talk the guy from India down the hall, Restaurant We have some friends that ate a particular restaurant frequently. They liked the food there, but they also found a woman there, the owner, who was far away from her home in Asia. Over a period of months, they made conversation with her and got to know her. Over time, they got to talk about their faith with her. 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 for the zone of the unknown? You don’t have to save the whole world. Just pursue who God puts in your path. Is there one person that God has already laid on your heart and mind to pursue? You may find yourself being used by God to influence someone’s life and eternity. People are worth pursuing.