results.....

...been a long time, been a long time...lonely, lonely, lonely, lonely time....

So, our church got the results of this survey done a couple of months ago and the results were that we do Need-Oriented-Evangelism very well and we do not do Loving-Relationships very well.
Hmmm....
This was no surprise to me because it has been my passion to establish purposefully-relational minstries in our age group for a long time.
Are we good at it?
Not yet...but we're working on it.
Our coffee group has grown and has become vital to our building trust and fellowship within the group and it has been a blessing to the employees at Starbucks.
Did that happen over-night?
No.
We have been meeting over coffee for 3 years and we can say that only within the last year or so have we really become truly accountable and trusting in one another.
We hold each other up to a standard and we call each other on it when we fall below it and we encourage each other and we laugh.
It is a wonderful and vital part of my life that happens outside of the church walls.
I believe very strongly that we CANNOT build loving relationships within the confines of our services and programs at church, it has to happen beyond the borders. so to speak.
I had an interesting conversation about these things and she stated that she NEVER gets together with friends outside of church because she doesn't have time, i.e. it isn't a priority to her, and she holds firm that she doesn't need to, that the relationships in church are enough for her.
I call this person the epitame of clueless because, she is Me-Centered not God-Centered.
She is saying that church blesses me is not willing to be a blessing to others, outside the walls.
Why does God bless us?
So that we can be a blessing to others!
Why?
To show the love of Jesus to a lost and dying world!
It was a really sad conversation to have but I think it shows the general attitude of our body.
Is our church good at having resources and programs?
Oh, yeah.
Is that enough to grow?
Not at all.
The pastor asked us to prayerfully consider what we can do to be better at loving relationships, including calling on people, inviting them into our homes, etc.
I will do my part.