22 But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.23 For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:24 For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.25 But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed. (James 1:22-25)
.....we know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffeth up, but charity edifieth. (1 Corinthians 8:1)
It seems that today we live in information overload. Le me share an example. Today I was told about people in some mountain states looking for ginseng plants to make extra money. A quick search on the internet yielded results for what to look for, where to find, problems with harvesting, and other secondary issues associated with this topic. Within a short period of time I became what in the past would have been considered an "expert" on the subject. I learned in ten minutes what would have probably taken me years and much effort to learn. Does that make me a true "harvester" of ginseng. No. There are many things about this subject that I could only learn by experiencing the whole process even though I may be very cognizant on the "facts." In this example, I now "know" about ginseng harvesting but I am still ignorant of the wisdom to make it work for me in my life the way that a resident of White County Georgia (north Georgia mountains) is able to do. Many of those residents have become "doers" of the process. Doing elicits emotions and difficulties.
The problem with many of us Christians is that we have so much information in our world. This includes being able to "hear" great truths and facts spoken from God's Word. However, we haven't spent the necessary time building a RELATIONSHIP with God and others. Relationships begat emotions and feelings. In other words, there is no LOVE (CHARITY) without relationship. No amount of information and knowledge substitutes for relationship.
A friend of mine visited me this week and told me about a new approach to ministry that he start in one of the churches that he formerly pastored. He stated that he asked the people in his former congregation to think and pray about something that they were passionate about and let him know. He stated that the leadership would prayfully consider these passions as a possible ministry in the church. Something unexpected happened. He stated that a man approached him from within the church and stated that he had a passion for "making flys" (fly fishing). As he considered this, it began to dawn on him that this could be a really good avenue for ministry within the church. He stated that with difficulty he was able to cast a vision to the church with this concept. They began to hold a weekly group teaching interested people in the community to "make flys" for fly fishing. Participants begin to come to the church for this group held on a weekly basis. This in turn offered people (particularly this man who had the passion for "making flies") the opportunity to "build relationships" with people in the community. As people began to take part, the church suddenly was part of the community building relationships through mutual interests. Over time, people who otherwise would not have come to church, began attending some of the "Bible" ministries as they developed relationships with people within the church through common interests. My friend has used this model to help other churches since that time to get out of their rut of isolating within themselves. The solution did not come from more information, more sermons, but through common shared interests that fostered relationships.
Much has been shared about "lifestyle evangelism". What is that? Simply put, it is our lives (committed to God) lived in the normal stream of our existence and shared with others. This should include your interests and hobbies. They can be godly too!!!!! Being and acting religious has never won anyone to Christ. However, sharing common interests and passions with people have fostered relationships that resulted in caring for them. This has lead to concern and love for them. Loving people has brought many to the truth.
Our passions, interests, and hobbies are God-given when they are surrendered to Him. They are just as much a part of the Church as all the other "godly" things that we so often associated with church. (Remember, Jesus called many of the disciples while they were involved in their interests and passions).
Ministries from the past have often focused on getting people the right information so that they have enough "information" to make life's most important decisions ("How shall they hear without a preacher?"). In our information saturated world, it now seems prudent to stress that information without relationship often is discarded before it has time to bear any fruit. There is so much "seed" available that we are only able to receive it from a trusting hand. When the church isolates from the rest of the world, we cannot be trusted by others. If I don't know you, don't ask me to trust you. If on the other hand, I know you and spend enough time with you for you to know me (regardless of the reason), And if I have no hidden agenda and am seeking to follow my savior, trust will develop between us.
Love and Trust are good soil in which to plant our seeds.
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