Serving with the right Attitude
I'm involved in some local outreach work in one of the estates near where I live. Lately a lot of people have been asking me why I do it, why do I go along each week to be sworn at, shouted at, ignored and all out not appreciated. One thing I've noticed though is that this attitude isn't solely about this sometimes in our churches we have this attitude of wanting to do "perfect" outreach. Outreach where we go out meet the kids on the streets, bring them into the church and the week after they are great and by our standards perfect christians. The reality is much so different, these kids are living in a world where loving your neighbour has gone out the window. Where it's one for all and everyone against those who don't fit in. Kids are exposed to Alcohol and drugs at younger ages and their sexual awareness from such a young age is shocking. But instead of ignoring it and looking the other way, we as the church need to take a stand against this attitude and be the change we want to see.
After all these kids aren't anywhere near as bad as ppl make out. They just want to be loved. And yes they treat us like crap at times and swear at us etc, but the fact is its the only way a lot of them know of reaching out. We need to remember when Jesus looks at them he sees the same as when he looks at us. But why can people not get that. Only by the grace of God we could have been in their situation and them in ours. How would we have wanted them to treat us if the tables were the other way around. Jesus didn't slag off the people or cast them aside after trying once, he went and had tea with them, healed them, spent time with them. He was radical and people didn't like it but he knew they needed love and someone to be with them. Those people later went on to start the church that we know today yet we are judging these kids who are in similar circumstances. Whose to say that one of those kids isn't the next robin mark, Brian Houston, pete greg etc etc. if we dnt encourage them to be something more than a layabout then we are never going to change this world through faith. We need to be radical and we need to find radical leaders who are willing to love. People need to grasp the love Jesus has for them and start showing it to others.
So if you want to serve in some sort of outreach capacity then maybe we need to readjust our attitudes and ensure that we are serving from the right heart and love for reaching out to these people.
Maybe I'm a radical but I'd rather be a radical with love than not love at all.
After all these kids aren't anywhere near as bad as ppl make out. They just want to be loved. And yes they treat us like crap at times and swear at us etc, but the fact is its the only way a lot of them know of reaching out. We need to remember when Jesus looks at them he sees the same as when he looks at us. But why can people not get that. Only by the grace of God we could have been in their situation and them in ours. How would we have wanted them to treat us if the tables were the other way around. Jesus didn't slag off the people or cast them aside after trying once, he went and had tea with them, healed them, spent time with them. He was radical and people didn't like it but he knew they needed love and someone to be with them. Those people later went on to start the church that we know today yet we are judging these kids who are in similar circumstances. Whose to say that one of those kids isn't the next robin mark, Brian Houston, pete greg etc etc. if we dnt encourage them to be something more than a layabout then we are never going to change this world through faith. We need to be radical and we need to find radical leaders who are willing to love. People need to grasp the love Jesus has for them and start showing it to others.
So if you want to serve in some sort of outreach capacity then maybe we need to readjust our attitudes and ensure that we are serving from the right heart and love for reaching out to these people.
Maybe I'm a radical but I'd rather be a radical with love than not love at all.
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