The Invitation

I remember back in High School when the dreaded turn around dance would come, where the girls would have the chance to ask the guys if they would be their date at the dance.  That time each year I painfully learned what it must have felt like for girls to wait around to see if anyone would come and invite them to come to the dance.  It was tough, placing your hopes and feelings on a simple invitation.  To be invited to the dance meant that you were wanted, accepted, and that you belonged.  If you were not invited it hurt, you wondered if you were valued or even mattered.

Enter Jesus’ words from the Message translation in Matthew 11:28, “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest.”  Jesus made it his ministry to go to those who were far from God and outside the church, to extend them an invitation to come closer, to meet God.  Jesus spent his time going to those who felt that they did not belong, were not worthy of being asked, to come and join Him, to come and meet God.  Jesus heart and life were dedicated to reaching those who did not know God.

Who invited you to meet God?  For some, we were invited us to meet God, to go to church, and to grow in our faith.  Maybe, someone invited you to come to Trinity, to a program, to a ministry, a concert, or a cookout.  There is so much power in an invitation.  It can bring us such joy, such a feeling of belonging, of love, of connection to others.  It can make our day, bring a smile to our face, or completely change a course of events.  Invites can help someone move from a stranger to part of the family.

So who are you going to invite?  Who will you invite to our Rush of Fools Concert on June 26^th?  Who will you invite to VBS August 2^nd-5^th?  Who will you invite to come to church on a Sunday morning?  We are a church passion about serving, caring, growing, and reaching, and this is one primary way that we can do all of those things.  Through invites we can invite people to come and be served at events like God’s Closet.  We can invite people to be cared for and to grow with us in a small group.  We can reach out to people by inviting them to check out our website or listen to a sermon.

It is time to get our hands dirty, time to take the next step, time to get to work.  It is time to make our vision statement not just words on banners, but the reality of who this church is, and the focus of all our work.  Take sometime to prayerfully consider who it is that you can invite to the concert, VBS, small groups, Sunday morning, or to our website.  Your invitation may be the one that leads someone to come to know God, to help them plug into a church, to have their life changed by God forever.  Knowing you could change someone’s life by a simple invitation, how can we not invite someone?

For Those

This past week I was thinking about our upcoming Rush of Fools concert and listening to their song, “For Those.” Read the words of the chorus:

Lord we know it’s for those You’ve come
Lord we know it’s for those You’ve given Your Son
Lord we know it’s for those who can’t come on their own
That You’ve come, You have come for those

Hear these words of Jesus from the gospel of Mark, “On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” Mark 2:17, TNIV When you read this, who is it that Jesus is coming for, who specifically do you see? Jesus came “for those” who are those? If you are like most people you see “those people” as outside the church. You can probably even envision a neighbor or co-worker. Have you ever envisioned that you are the one Jesus came to save? Jesus came to save those who can’t come on their own, those who are sick, and those who are hurting, and that is us. This song, this passage is not just about people who are outside the church, they are about us.

During this season of Lent we are focusing on the life of Christ, and what he did for us. Have we forgotten that Jesus cleanses us from our sins? Jesus washes us clean; Jesus came to heal our brokenness, our addictions, and our struggles. It is because of Jesus’ work on the cross and in his resurrection that we all can stand with hope today; it is because of Jesus that we live life with purpose.

Knowing he did that for us, does it change your day? Does your life look any different since you invited Jesus to be your Lord and Savior? Our pews are filled with countless stories of God’s grace and the work of the Spirit. The work of the Spirit in our lives is real and powerful, if we can slow down enough to listen and look for it. Knowing what God has done for you, that he gave his Son so you might have life and life to the fullest. John 10:10 What will your response be?

This passage and song reminds us that “those” Jesus came for include us, but it also includes a number of people who are not here right now. Jesus came to save a number of people who don’t know the Good News yet. As those who have been told, whose lives have been changed we have a responsibility to share that Good News, to invite others into that full life that Jesus promised to us. Easter is a time of year to extend that invitation, since a number of people who usually don’t regularly attend will go to church Easter. But this does not end with Easter; we as a church have dedicated ourselves to a call to be, “Community Focused, Caring, Growing, and Open to All People.” Jesus’ message needs to touch and drive each part of that vision, and for us to be a church who seeks to continually invite “those” in, who do not know the Good News….yet.

Pastor Bill