Taco Tuesday & A Nasty Cry
Exactly one month ago something unexpected happened to me while I was driving home from my friend’s Taco Tuesday dinner party (Praise Him for Kevin’s moms cooking... If you’ve had it, you knowww).
On the drive home, I put on a new album that had just come out from one of my favorite songwriters named Leeland. The first song that played from the song que was called, “The Sending”. It speaks of God’s people being sent out into the world, filled with the love of God and empowered by His Spirit to share the gospel. His presence filled my car and I began to weep. Like, nasty cry; like snot everywhere.
I saw my heart rightly in His presence. The Lord began to show me how stale and familiar His good news had become in my life. I saw how I had little desire or passion, if any really, to share the gospel to the many people I pass by each day. He began to show me the eternity awaiting the many faces I see and often have no second thought of. I was reminded of the times I’d felt prompted to share my faith, and how I cared more about how I’d be perceived than I did their eternity.
I repented and asked the Lord to forgive me. I asked that He’d renew a right spirit within me and grant me a brokenness for what grieves His heart. I began to ask and have continued to ask Him to restore the joy of my salvation so much so that I wouldn’t be able to contain the gift and message I’d received. That the good news would actually be good news to me.
Time is short, my friends; we don’t have time to waste. Ask Him to give you the eyes to see with an eternal perspective. Ask Him to give you a love that eclipses yourself, an urgency that cuts through the busyness of life, and an honesty to push beyond the excuses. If you ask Him and let Him, He will change your heart.
It becomes less and less about personality, comfort, gifting, or calling as He fills your heart with love for those He loves. If you know me you know how much I love going out of my way to talk to people, and how engaging my personality is especially with people I don’t know... can you hear my sarcasm? That for suuuuuure isn’t me.
One month later, I can honestly say that He’s changing me. When before I’d be silent in fear or indifference, I’m finding myself moved by love, taking risk and sharing even if it’s awkward. An awkward exchange is a small price to pay considering the price He paid and the price they might pay if they don’t hear the Gospel. He’s putting a real love and a genuine desire in my heart to see humanity reconciled to God.
He’s given every believer the ministry of reconciliation. It is a commission intended to be enforced by and through the Holy Spirit.
2 Corinthians 5:14-21 says,“For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer.Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”
Acts 1:4-8says, “And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, ‘you heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.’
So when they had come together, they asked him, ‘Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?’ He said to them, ‘It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.’”
God, help us see. Help us love. Help us believe. Fill us with your Spirit. Give us boldness. Send us out. Transform our city we pray. In Jesus name, amen!
Love you,
Andrew