relationships…
Posted on July 7, 2008, by danny beteta, under church, lifegroups.
As I was sitting at a recent staff meeting, I heard Pastor John’s vision for LifeChurch. He said, “our vision is to Know, Grow, and Go.” He added that this vision includes extravagant grace, relentless inclusion, and extreme compassion.
To me, these elements scream, relationships!!! We want to focus on having good relationships with people in the Temecula valley, welcoming everyone and being open to everyone. I recently read an excerpt from the book called, “Practicing Right Relationship: Skills for Deepening Purpose, Finding Fulfillment, and Increasing Effectiveness in Your Congregation” by Mary Sellon and Dan Smith. This excerpt talks about relationships and I found it to be an inspiration as we all strive to share grace, open our doors wide, and be compassionate with one another.
Sellon and Smith say that “each relationship we are part of has its own unique quality. Some people we click with, some we grate against and some we barely notice. Relationships often unfold haphazardly, without much thought or guidance. Whether we know it or not, however, we make choices that determine how we experience and interact with each other.” This is so true at all churches. Many of us have experienced a great deal of relationships and encounters with newcomers or other visitors at our church. The loving way of relating in “right relationship” brings life and fulfillment to each person involved.
When it comes to relationships, the Bible reminds us to have love in all of our relationships. “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might” (Deut. 6:5). “You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Lev. 19:18). Our charge is to love. Our Lord Jesus describes the neighbor as the next person we see. Any person is our neighbor. “Love your neighbor” directs us to love whomever we are with, whether we like them or not.
Sellon and Smith go on to say, “The question from the Gospel of Luke in the Christian scriptures, “Who is my neighbor?” expresses a natural desire. Let me find someone I can naturally love and I will claim that person as my neighbor. The truth is that God gives us each person we encounter as a neighbor. Our neighbor is the person begging money outside the grocery store, the telemarketer who calls at dinner, and the person at the meeting who drives us crazy. We struggle to find words to define how we love other people. Love is the subject of countless books and songs. It is clear that love is central to the faith we practice. We know love is more than a feeling, but when it comes down to exactly how to love someone, the water gets murky. Though commanded to love, the specific directions on how to do it are less than clear.”
At LifeChurch, we believe that relationships can occur at all places, in worship, in children’s ministry, in fellowship (spending time with one another), but most importantly in small groups. We place a high value of developing relationships in LifeGroups!! This coming August we are launching our 2008-2009 LifeGroups and it would be a great way to initiate relationships, to deepen relationships and/or to work on relationships… Stay tuned for more information on our upcoming LifeGroups!
-Pastor Danny
2 Replies to "relationships…"
Danny on July 7, 2008
Thank you Kendra, I totally agree!! But, it is always tough to walk the talk!
Kendra on July 7, 2008
Very encouraging reminder Pastor Danny. It’s always easier to love some people, but I know that God wants us to love ALL his people!