"Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?"
- Luke 5:30
I came across this passage in a quiet time and it caused me to think over my past week. Jesus' response was simply that he came for the sinners. It would make sense that if you hope to reach a certain group of people, you must go to them. I was reminded of the truth of this passage after a night at the West Town, the local bar and grill that was hosting a 20th anniversary party. Kim and I walked over to Locke Street and headed into the restaurant where we made our way through the packed facility looking for a place to sit (or stand as things were turning out). It wasn't long before we saw the couple that had renovated our house. We stopped and talked for a while and eventually sat with them at their table.
It was an amazing experience, as every two or three minutes or so, someone from the neighbourhood would walk by and they would introduce us. Having grown up and lived most of their lives here they know everyone! We met so many people from the neighbourhood, heard about their stories and got a history lesson about the restaurant, the people and the area. This evening also presented our first real, significant spiritual conversation. We had shared briefly before that I was a pastor and that we were coming to start new work, and so they asked more specifically about what we were going to be doing. The question was something like, "will you have your own parish here, or..." (which revealed a bit of her background). We stated that we were here to begin something brand new and start it from scratch. "Oh, so you have to convert people..." she said, slightly in jest. This gave us a great opportunity to share about what we hope to do. We see our roles as not so much to "convert" people (that is for God to do), but rather to invite people to consider Jesus afresh for themselves in order to make an informed decision, and to walk with them through that process if they would like. This was actually just the beginning of a long conversation about Jesus, faith, their own history with church and their views about faith and spirituality now. We shared where appropriate, but most of all we listened. It was amazing to consider the conversation we were having, and that it was initiated and led mostly by them. I came away struck by two things in particular. One, was their experience that Christians are "holier than thou," and unwilling (or afraid) to engage respectively with, rather than just argue or belittle, those who think differently. Secondly, that building a relationship with them over the past few months has created enough trust for them to feel comfortable sharing. The reality is that we did not do anything special, we were simply in the right place at the right time. We were, however, willing to be at a bar during a party.
It was an amazing experience, as every two or three minutes or so, someone from the neighbourhood would walk by and they would introduce us. Having grown up and lived most of their lives here they know everyone! We met so many people from the neighbourhood, heard about their stories and got a history lesson about the restaurant, the people and the area. This evening also presented our first real, significant spiritual conversation. We had shared briefly before that I was a pastor and that we were coming to start new work, and so they asked more specifically about what we were going to be doing. The question was something like, "will you have your own parish here, or..." (which revealed a bit of her background). We stated that we were here to begin something brand new and start it from scratch. "Oh, so you have to convert people..." she said, slightly in jest. This gave us a great opportunity to share about what we hope to do. We see our roles as not so much to "convert" people (that is for God to do), but rather to invite people to consider Jesus afresh for themselves in order to make an informed decision, and to walk with them through that process if they would like. This was actually just the beginning of a long conversation about Jesus, faith, their own history with church and their views about faith and spirituality now. We shared where appropriate, but most of all we listened. It was amazing to consider the conversation we were having, and that it was initiated and led mostly by them. I came away struck by two things in particular. One, was their experience that Christians are "holier than thou," and unwilling (or afraid) to engage respectively with, rather than just argue or belittle, those who think differently. Secondly, that building a relationship with them over the past few months has created enough trust for them to feel comfortable sharing. The reality is that we did not do anything special, we were simply in the right place at the right time. We were, however, willing to be at a bar during a party.
It has just been over a week since moving into our new house and new neighbourhood, and we have seen some other fun things as well. Our interview on the morning news for MacKids went really well and then on Saturday, two of our kids managed to make it onto the front page of the business section of the Hamilton Spectator. You can have a look here if you would like:
The Spec
The kids are having an amazing time and loving it. They are gone most afternoons and evenings, off to the park with their new friends. There seems to be a bit of a a new spark on our street as it is all a bustle with kids. That tends to happen when we import four at a time, but there is a vitality now that the neighbours are commenting about. All the kids seem to come together these days and it has brought a new life to our little avenue. At the centre of it all is Richard, our retired neighbour across the street, who seems to be loving this new vitality the most. He is often seen out with the kids, bringing the water balloons or sharing about the newest geocahces. We are having fun getting to know Richard and his wife and I will aim to share more about him in a later post, so don't forget to check back.
Next week I will be at the SBC annual convention in Phoenix, Arizona and I will try to post a report from there.
The kids are having an amazing time and loving it. They are gone most afternoons and evenings, off to the park with their new friends. There seems to be a bit of a a new spark on our street as it is all a bustle with kids. That tends to happen when we import four at a time, but there is a vitality now that the neighbours are commenting about. All the kids seem to come together these days and it has brought a new life to our little avenue. At the centre of it all is Richard, our retired neighbour across the street, who seems to be loving this new vitality the most. He is often seen out with the kids, bringing the water balloons or sharing about the newest geocahces. We are having fun getting to know Richard and his wife and I will aim to share more about him in a later post, so don't forget to check back.
Next week I will be at the SBC annual convention in Phoenix, Arizona and I will try to post a report from there.
Posts
Hey Jason - great to see you last week at the convention. thanks for coming and sharing your God story! love this story here on the your blogspot!
ReplyDeleteBlessings to you and Kim!
-carol baker
cbaker@namb.net
Psalm 147