BEAUTIFUL FAITH HISTORIES
One of the wonderful things about the church of which I am a member is its diversity. Ethnicity, age, socio-economics, educational levels, religious backgrounds . . . there doesn't seem to be a majority or minority in any of these or other categories. And it makes for an unglamorous, motley, and quirky community. Just the kind that I think God finds beautiful.
One of the nice perks about such a diversity is the varied faith histories of our members. There is definitely no homogeneity here: our members are from around the world, from all sorts of religious (Christian and non-Christian) upbringings, deciding to follow Jesus at varied stages and stations of life.
Every so often, as a member of our leadership team I get to here some of these faith histories. The other day, we heard from three people wishing to join the church. (I've varied some of the facts below to protect privacy.) As I listened to their testimonies, I marveled at God's creativity and ability in bringing the lost back into fellowship with Him. One person came to our building because it was on the way from his apartment to his landlord's office, where he had to go monthly to pay his rent. Another shared of how 18 months in isolation overseas deepened his faith. There were stories of great sorrow: losing two children to miscarriage, growing up in a violent neighborhood, forsaking parents to follow Jesus. With every piece of these faith histories, I sensed God's tenderness and persistence in making Himself known to these brothers and sister.
I imagine that this is what heaven will be like: telling stories about God's work in us and through us. And with each story, all of our hearts will swell with love for our Savior and worship for a great and mighty God, creative and far-reaching enough to even bring us into fellowship with Him. I am glad to have had a little taste this past week of such a heavenly delight.
One of the wonderful things about the church of which I am a member is its diversity. Ethnicity, age, socio-economics, educational levels, religious backgrounds . . . there doesn't seem to be a majority or minority in any of these or other categories. And it makes for an unglamorous, motley, and quirky community. Just the kind that I think God finds beautiful.
One of the nice perks about such a diversity is the varied faith histories of our members. There is definitely no homogeneity here: our members are from around the world, from all sorts of religious (Christian and non-Christian) upbringings, deciding to follow Jesus at varied stages and stations of life.
Every so often, as a member of our leadership team I get to here some of these faith histories. The other day, we heard from three people wishing to join the church. (I've varied some of the facts below to protect privacy.) As I listened to their testimonies, I marveled at God's creativity and ability in bringing the lost back into fellowship with Him. One person came to our building because it was on the way from his apartment to his landlord's office, where he had to go monthly to pay his rent. Another shared of how 18 months in isolation overseas deepened his faith. There were stories of great sorrow: losing two children to miscarriage, growing up in a violent neighborhood, forsaking parents to follow Jesus. With every piece of these faith histories, I sensed God's tenderness and persistence in making Himself known to these brothers and sister.
I imagine that this is what heaven will be like: telling stories about God's work in us and through us. And with each story, all of our hearts will swell with love for our Savior and worship for a great and mighty God, creative and far-reaching enough to even bring us into fellowship with Him. I am glad to have had a little taste this past week of such a heavenly delight.
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