Let’s try this again…

Ok, so I’ve been sidetracked. I think it was meant to be, though. Well, it’s more like one of those “blinded to the forest for the trees” situations. Basically, I’m trying to cast for ya’ll a vision of my passion for the Kingdom, and clearly the Spirit isn’t bringing it home with power. Meanwhile, my perspective gets rocked as a new-found birds-eye-view reveals a forest that is at once way more beautiful and way bigger than that single tree I’ve been raving about. To put it another, less figurative way, I lost the big picture, got tunnel vision, got ahead of myself, and missed the point, all at once! As you recall, I had said that I believe the Lord wants us to be more unified, well-cared for, and influential so we can be more useful for Him to cultivate His lost sheep for the Good News. I then suggested we pursue a couple of ideas that will accomplish my goal. Unfortunately, I really focused on the means to a noble end, when I should have kept the end goal in mind, and simply laid out the principles that I know ought to guide us to that end. So, with some grace, let’s try this again…

I want to be a part of a group (a ministry team, non-prof, whatever) that is devoted to helping the church lay the groundwork for the Gospel. I believe that things like unity, love, compassion, service, bearing the truth, and sharing God’s wisdom are some of the means that God has designed for this task. I’m especially willing to challenge norms and pursue some creative and innovative ideas to sharpen these tools, and any others that God intends to use. Though I can’t say I know exactly how these values and principles ought to be applied, I do know that this is a job for the Body of Christ, so even determining our mode of operation must be a community project.

So, the “plans” I’ve thrown out so far, like the e-commune thing and the strategic social service stuff, are really just a couple of methods that may indeed make us more effective. They are ideas that excite me and that I still want to consider but it would be foolish and ironically counter-productive to dive headlong into creating an organization without a much more coherent and collaborative effort at pursuing God’s plan. Therefore, deciding exactly how to best include the proper parts of the Body is our next step. I think gathering people experienced in social ministry, clergy from other denominations, and a diverse crowd of experience “cultivators” is wise at some point. But, what better place to start than with you? So, I have two questions:

1. What are some things that the Church ought to do to effectively improve people’s soil for the seed of the Gospel? Use scripture if you can.

2. I need a Prayer and Planning Team, can you lend your time and mind to help me proceed with this wisely?

By the way, if you’re wondering exactly what I mean by “cultivating”, think of it in terms of all the different ways that Christians can help soften someone’s heart. Think of your own testimony. It may also help to look at the Parable of the Soils, the example of John the Baptizer, who went ahead of the Word and prepared the way, and the example of the early church as recorded in Acts and the Epistles. I’ll be looking forward to your response.