If Jesus was right when he said that even a child could understand his message (Luke 18:16-17) then more people should be inspired to follow his dream. Unfortunately, God’s dream has been distorted. Rather than jealously pursuing justice and love, some are more concerned with religious piety and legalistic morality.
It’s a bit ironic: Christ’s message was so simple that even a child could understand it yet so radical that many ‘Christians’ shy away from the actions necessary to embrace it. It’s too uncomfortable.
Unfortunately, today most faith seekers are looking for something easily consumed, not a radical change in lifestyle. This comes at the expense of becoming participants in God’s redemption dream for the world at worse, and a loss of imagination at best.
But rather than lament on lack of action, I think I have one piece of the solution that could draw people to respond positively:
Inspiration.
People enjoy to be participants rather than observers.
You don’t have to be part of any faith or community in order to be inspired. The desire to be inspired is an innate quality in all of us, we just need to be unlocked.
One way to unlock inspiration is to tell a story. I know of no greater story or reason to engage in righting wrongs in our world today then the inauguration of God’s dream as told through the life of Jesus Christ.
Once people get a taste of this, once YOU get a taste, then live it out.
To exist in a church that nurtures the community outside rather than the Christians inside enables a level of imagination and participation that will inspire a movement.
Too often church leaders want to start with ‘vision’. I suggest let’s start with mission (the message of God’s rescue plan for humanity), inspire people to become participants in this mission, THEN watch how fast people stop ‘adopting’ vision but rather ‘call it their own’.
Once people have something to be excited about their engagement inevitably leads to the transformation of lives.
Even though it’s safer to sit in your church building nestled away from the world outside the four church walls, I believe people are inherently drawn to dream and imagine bigger and better.
Perhaps we’ve lost the will to dream….let’s capture our stories.
The gospel is inspiring, translate that inspiration into the context of your church and watch people participate in God’s dream together.