Church calling

Just got the following from Tear Fund's monthly email and thought it was well worth posting on:

Have you noticed it? Are you part of it? There seems to be a growing movement of Christians who are passionate about taking God out of the pews and into the aching margins of society.

Church communities are perfectly placed to make a lasting difference in their towns, cities and villages. Cuthbert Gondwe is National Church Mobiliser for Tearfund’s partner Eagles in Malawi. He says, ‘You really have to go down to the ground to find the very poorest who have no voice in the village. We find that local churches work with everyone. They know who are the poorest people in the village, because the pastors and the members live there.’

In his book Velvet Elvis, repainting the Christian faith, Rob Bell writes, ‘The church is like a double edged sword. When it’s good, when it’s on, when it’s right, it’s like nothing on earth. A group of people committed to selflessly serving and loving the world around them? Great. But when it’s bad all that potential gets turned the other way...

‘But she will live on. She’s indestructible... And while she’s fragile, she’s going to endure. In every generation there will be those who see her beauty and give their lives to see her shine.’ (Rob Bell, Velvet Elvis P172)

What would happen if you prayed for the love of God to motivate you and your church to selflessly love others? What would change in your life if you were willing to give your life to see the church shine?

‘For I was hungry, and you gave me something to eat. I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink. I was a stranger and you invited me in. I needed clothes and you clothed me. I was sick and you looked after me. I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ Matthew 25:35-36. What would it cost to pray for opportunities to clothe and shelter a hungry and homeless God?