Changing the world one life at time

Have you ever noticed just how many one-on-one encounters Jesus had throughout his earthly journey? There was woman at the well, the healing of the blind man, the calling of Matthew...the list could go on and on. In the hustle and bustle of busy American culture, are we aware of that one person who God has put right in front of us for a possible divine encounter? With so much emphasis on larger churches and bigger is better , I believe if we could just embrace a less is more mindset, we would be more and more effective as kingdom agents in this world.

As I gauge the pages of the New Testament, I am amazed at how many instances Jesus spent time dealing with just one life. Most of the people He met or dealt with were in some kind of crisis. Just think your daily encounters with humanity! How many people do you personally come into contact with who are need of love? How about prayer? How about healing? How about a kind word? How about a timely word?

I love the words of John 17:21: In the same way the Father has sent Me into the world, so I also send you into the world . In other words, Jesus mission was really simple; He simply came into the world for those one-on-one encounters with people. The kingdom simply spreads through a viral encounter. The woman at the well influenced an entire city through her Jesus encounter (John 4:28-29). Matthew threw a huge sinner party (Matthew 9:10-11). When was the last time we had one of those? A sinner party! How about the madman who was possessed with a legion (you know, the guy who had so many demons that they couldn t count them)? Yeah, that guy! After his Jesus encounter, it says He begged Jesus that he might follow Him; however, Jesus sent him to the Decapolis, which was a region of ten cities.(Mark 4:18-19)

In LifeQuest, we focus on this simple principle. We can change the world one life at a time. Just this past year our experiences could take volumes of writing. I could tell you story after story of Jesus-encounters: at coffee shops, college campuses, in living rooms, in small venues and large, in church services, in pubs... wherever and whomever. This is what Jesus has called us too.

In our church growth days, we all asked the question: how will we grow this church? In other words, what is the strategy that we need to get people to the building? When we begin to think marketing, we have left Kingdom living. When churches puts this above our compassion for humanity, then people become a commodity instead of an asset. We stop thinking about kingdom advancement and start thinking strategy. Jesus thought assignment and target. This was His strategy.

His assignment was to GO! His target was people. Everyday encounters. Think about this! Three years of His life was walking around where people were. Who is that life that God has put in front of you today? Whoever it is, that one might change the world.

Peace,

Mike G

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