WEEKEND 26 - 27 AUG
NOT PERFECT
READ Jonah 3:1 1 Corinthians 1:26-28
As we read, ’A message came to Jonah from the Lord a second time’ (Jonah 3:1), we celebrate that God is kinder than most of us can imagine – and we are in need of that kindness more than we think too! Part of that liberal kindness is His choosing to use flawed people who are still very much in the process of maturing. Jonah, whose ambition would have been to see the mass incineration of the Ninevites, was given another chance, as the word and call of God came once more. I mentioned yesterday that, in my earlier years as a Christian, my approach to mission was zealous but that I was somewhat inept and insensitive in the way that I talked with people about my faith. Yet looking back, I’m grateful that God seemed to use even my faltering words to reach others. I was unskilled and occasionally obnoxious, but still people came to faith through my clumsy efforts – and there were many wonderful moments when I knew a conversation had genuinely helped someone on their own life journey. Mission is always about the mobilisation of profoundly ordinary, works-inprogress people like us, not of sleek, highly trained presenters. Biblical history is littered with those who shrank back from their calling just because they felt inadequate. Henry Ward Beecher notes: ‘The church is not a gallery for the exhibition of eminent Christians, but a school for the education of imperfect ones.’8 Feel inadequate for mission? Join the crowd. To ponder: If there are times when you are reluctant to share your faith, what are the main reasons for your hesitation?
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exploregod.com/articles/four-characteristics-of-a-good-church
