One Service Fits All

"Stop asking for God to bless what you are doing. Find out what God is doing, because it is already blessed."

Bono

I remember being on a trip with friends and we were working really hard and food was put in front of us. We all immediately began scarfing. A trigger went off in my head. Hey guys we forgot to pray. One of them spoke up. He said, "I find that when I am working for God he will have already blessed me and my food"

It made me feel better at the time but overall it sent me a message I haven't heard before.

God blesses those who are seeking (insert all of what seeking means) him.

I feel that we fall in traps sometimes in our service. We want to do something that is true to us or that fits our style or our skills perfect. We wait and pray and wait and find excuses not to get our service off the ground.

Here is an example. I would love to go abroad and find a way to share the life and love of Jesus to third world countries through team sports. Instead of solely focused on that goal and praying and praying and waiting. And then eventually doing nothing. I will find something now that I might not necessarily want to do but I know God is blessing and let him steer me from there. For example New Orleans is my ice breaker. Sure gutting houses in New Orleans is not sharing basketball with AIDS inflicted children but God is already blessing MercyResponse. I feel like New Orleans is preparing me for something closer to my vision. And as a result of my first trip and soon my second God has shown me more blessings than I could imagine a service like this could. I do enjoy being handyman but I suck at it when it is my own home. But when God puts me on a team with other great Jacks than all of a sudden I do better work. Surely not from my own ability.

This is why our God is so cool.

It isn't a matter of volunteering for something you are good at (that sure would limit some of us). It is how good you are at volunteering that matters.

You can't volunteer for the wrong outreach. Its impossible.

Christianity isn't a Right, Wrong religion. - - - - - - It is a Yes No.
Service isn't a Good Fit, Bad Fit for a person. - - - Its one service fits all.

Find a service that God is already blessing and plug in. When he wants you to move to another service or start one he will make it happen.

I do still pray for the day when I find that trip to give hope to the hopeless needing my skillset, whatever that is.

And the Lord Sayeth "NO"

"No prayers are unanswered, its that sometimes the answer is no."

another Bonoism.

For some reason when something in our lives doesn't go the way we don't want it to we blame someone else. Sometimes we blame God. How can we blame God for anything.

Why can't we as humans accept no.

Why do we believe that God intends everything to be easy for us here on earth once we believe in Him.

Oh I am a Christian only good things happen for me.

How about I am a Christian and even when bad things happen for me I have a greater perspective of what is and is not important and I have a God to pray to who understands and takes care of me.

Avoid "Christians" at all costs.

"I never had any problems with Christ but Christians were always a bit of a problem for me. I would always avoid them if I could."

Bono

He speaks for many with this quote which is pulled from his interview with Bill Hybels. Don't for one second think that he is just speaking what is on his mind. He is speaking what is on the mind of many.

What have we done that we have allowed ourselves to be considered in this way.

Have we allowed ourselves to appear judgemental, stubborn, radical, unsocial, racist, etc..

I agree. There are more "Christians" that I have come across that I would rather not waste any more time with.

What must we do. What must we be.
What will we do. What will we become.

Here is the question I think everyone needs to answer to themselves. What do I offer?

What do I offer myself.
What do I offer my friends.
What do I offer my spouse.
What do I offer my church.
What do I offer a stranger.

You could replace what do I offer with what do I do for?