You Never Know

Hey there, kids and parents!

We are beyond grateful for your presence within our church family. This past week, students were sent home with invite cards for our upcoming Easter service. Throughout the week, we encouraged you to invite a friend or family who’s never attended. Maybe you were thinking … "I don’t want to impose" … "What if they say no." … "What if I encourage my child and their friend rejects the invitation? How will I explain this feeling of rejection to them?"

As we look back on this past week, we want to take a moment to remember why we encouraged this in the first place.

Let’s rewind and think for a minute. We serve an almighty God who declares He is the Alpha and the Omega - the beginning and the end. Scripture tells us that Jesus sacrificed himself on the cross to take away our sin for the promise that if we believe in him we will have eternal life. Scripture also tells us that He knew our name before the beginning of the world and He has chased after our hearts to invite us into his loving family. That means that He already has gone before this invitation, He already knows the outcome and we have two options. We can go at it on our own or … we can take it to prayer.

The week may be over, but opportunity is still present, even this evening,  to sit down with your child and pray.  If an invitation was given, you have the opportunity to pray and ask the Lord to move in the hearts of those invited to ask their parents to bring them to church.  If an invitation was not given, you can pray and ask the Lord to give you and your child eyes to see and ears to hear who might need an invitation in the future. We don’t have to go at this alone!

Parents, our Lord Jesus, our Shepard is willing to guide the way we just have to step out in faith and ask him for help!

Chances are, if we sit and reflect on our own lives, someone stepped out in faith with guidance of the Holy Spirit to invite you to church at some point. They loved you so deeply that they wanted to share the GOOD NEWS with you and have the opportunity for the Holy Spirit to work within your own heart to come to know Christ. Our command is to Love God and Love our neighbors as ourselves.

For me, inviting a friend looked like someone who was at one of their lowest points simply asking them if they’d like to join me at Church. Fast forward, years later, that invite led to attending church, that attendance led to discipleship and presentation of the gospel, which led to joining a home group, that home group led to baptism, and today one of my closest sisters in Christ whom I have the privilege to serve alongside!

Is that any credit to myself? Absolutely not!

These hymn lyrics are the words that echo in my mind:

“Should nothing of our efforts stand
No legacy survive
Unless the Lord does raise the house
In vain its builders strive
To you who boast tomorrow's gain
Tell me what is your life
A mist that vanishes at dawn
All glory be to Christ” 

Is it possible the person your child invited said, "no?" Absolutely.

But I fully believe that when we seek the Lord first and ask him for direction, we are being courageously obedient.

So keep stepping out in faith.  Keep encouraging your children to ask the Lord who they should invite & then have them ask!

Because you never know who might need to meet Jesus today!