Madi is my tenderhearted angel. She truly wears her heart on her sleeve. She is loud, happy, talkative, inquisitive, emotional, dramatic and loving. She can win you over with her charming smile and big and beautiful blue eyes. She doesn't try to be anything else.
She doesn't know how to be anyone else other than the way God designed her. She is just Madison. How my heart breaks just thinking of how this world will try to change or mold her into something she isn't. Or worse, how I or Dan might try to change her, even if we feel it is for her own good. My prayer is that she grows to be confident in who she is. And while she should always strive to improve on her weaknesses, I pray she won't allow others to tell her that the way she was designed is not good enough.
Just thinking of Madi and her personality got me thinking really hard about ministry. More specifically, about our group Illuminate. Dan and I have prayed and sweat blood and tears trying to figure out something.
"Why aren't we reaching people?"
We have a great group of young adults that come every single week. They come to experience fellowship and develop a level of intimacy with us and with others. They come to worship. They come to pray and be prayed over. They come to hear God's word. Yet, we aren't growing in a sense. People are encouraged and challenged no doubt. We hear it everyday. But why weren't visitors coming back?
It's really simple now that we look at it.
We were trying to be something we are not.
We were comparing ourselves to other churches who were trendier, cooler, had better music and tons of guest speakers people actually have heard of. We were trying to be like them.
That isn't necessarily a bad thing. We gleaned a lot from these groups. They were reaching people. We wanted that too. We were just doing it opposite of how God wanted it.
But God has a different plan for Illuminate. And He hit us on the head when He started directing our hearts toward Him. We had no choice but to look and to obey.
I am excited. I am elated. My prayers for Illuminate are being answered. Not necessarily in the way I desired them to be answered. But praise be to God they are being answered. At Knott Avenue we have a huge community of people outside our walls, literally walking distance, who don't know the Lord. They don't come to church on Sunday. They don't hear God's word, about His Grace, about His Son Jesus. They possibly don't even know Him.
And we haven't done a very good job of ministering to them. Because we were caught up in trying to be something else. Something cool. Something different. Something.....that wasn't us. And will never be.
And when Dan and I were able to see part of the picture clearly.....we were excited. And humbled. Tears overflowed.
And we say Yes Lord!
While I can't share too much (although I will soon)...will you pray for us in the next coming weeks. God is moving and instructing. We don't have all the pieces yet. But we have faith He will continually instruct us.
If you are in a leadership position...listen to God's leading. Look at your surroundings. At what is in front of you. And don't be something you're not.
Blessings,
Tiff~
