How Do You Invite Those You Love?

  

  Unless I have my spiritual wires crossed, this fall I plan on going through Alien Love with the people that God places on my heart.  For anyone who has already went through the study, if they remain with me, they will be playing a vital role in it as well.

   I have spent a lot of time lately thinking about the kinds of conversations I need to be having with the people in my life, whether they be believers, non-believers, family or coworkers.  I have also done a lot of thinking as to how I would go about inviting loved ones to take the journey with me.

   I know that you might go about it much differently if you were in my shoes, but here is a sample of what has been on my heart as I consider inviting the people on my heart.

  

 

 

 

Dear Fellow Christian, 

 

  It’s a privilege to share a common faith in our Lord Jesus Christ and I trust that you are allowing Him to continue to mould and to make you more and more like Himself.  I hope you desire the same for me.  I’m writing today to invite you to be a part of something that I am very passionate about .

   Beginning this September, I plan to lead a study group through my book, Alien Love.  I think very highly of you, so I thought that you might be interested.  We will be meeting once a month for 10 months.  If you are interested and if you think you would have the time, I hope you will consider attending our first gathering, just to try it out.

  We will be kicking off the study on September 15^th.  If you’re interested, please let me know by August 3^rd.  If I don’t hear from you, I will assume that you aren’t interested, but I would appreciate hearing your thoughts either way.

   Have a great day!

 

  In Christ, Love

 

Kevin

 

 

 

Dear Non-believer,

  Kevin here.   I’m writing to you today to invite you to be a part of something that I am very passionate about.  As you know, I’m one of “those” Christians; the kind that thinks forever lasts a very long time.  And because it lasts a very long time, I am convinced that whatever happens to us there, is far more important than what happens in our brief time here.  I also believe, that in forever, there is One God, and Jesus is the way to be made right with Him.

   Beginning this September, I plan to lead a study group through my book, Alien Love.  I understand if it doesn’t interest you, but please know that I’m not inviting you because I want to force it on you.  I’m inviting you because I love you, and would enjoy nothing more than for you to be my brother in Christ.   

  We will be kicking off the study on September 15^th.  If you’re interested, please let me know by August 3^rd.  If I don’t hear from you, I will assume that you aren’t interested, but I would appreciate hearing your thoughts either way.

   Have a great day!

   In Christ, Love

 

Kevin

 

 

Dear Family Member,

  Kevin here.   I’m writing to you today to invite you to be a part of something that I am very passionate about.  As you know, I’m one of “those” Christians; the kind that thinks forever lasts a very long time.  And because it lasts a very long time, I am convinced that whatever happens to us there, is far more important than what happens in our brief time here.  I also believe, that in forever, there is One God, and Jesus is the way to be made right with Him.

  You also know that I am quite active in my church.  At times, I feel like I give more of myself to my church family than I do to you, and in doing so, somehow neglect you.  I often wish that my life there were not separate from my life with you.  Perhaps you hope the same.  If so, maybe there is a way to remedy the situation.

   Beginning this September, I plan to lead a study group through my book, Alien Love.  I understand if it doesn’t interest you, but please know that I’m not inviting you because I want to force it on you.  I’m inviting you because I love you, and would enjoy nothing more than for you to walk with, me as I walk with Christ.  

  We will be kicking off the study on September 15^th.  If you’re interested, please let me know by August 3^rd.  If I don’t hear from you, I will assume that you aren’t interested, but I would appreciate hearing your thoughts either way.

   Have a great day!

   In Christ, Love

 

Kevin

 

 

 

Does God Take Pleasure in You?

He Likes Me!

by Margaret Neufeld

What does God like about you? This is a question that came up when studying Alien Love by Kevin Abell with a group of believers. At first, the only thing I could come up with was God likes me. To be honest, I didn't like the question at first. It sounded kind of conceited. Who am I to say what God likes about me? I don't know what He thinks. I was afraid to put words into the mouth of God. Also, asking what God liked about us sounded kind of cheap, like we were downplaying His love for us. However, as I began to think about it, I became very thankful for this question.

At first "like" sounded like a cheap word when we consider God's love for us. But it isn't. God isn't immature like we sometimes are. He doesn't say "I love Margaret, but that doesn't mean I have to like her." Imagine if God was like that, if He only loved us, but didn't like us. Every time I feel compelled to say "I love that person, but that doesn't mean I have to like them", it's always because I feel like I have to love them, that I'm obligated to. I have to love them because God commands it, not because I want to. I'm glad God isn't like that. He loves us because He wants to, not because He has to.

It's much easier to think about what God doesn't like about me. After all, there are a lot of things about me that are not desirable. It's almost as if I'm so used to focusing on sin in my life, my faults, things I need to change, that I forget about the good. As I mentioned, I was afraid of putting words into the mouth of God. I think it's harder to say what He likes about me specifically, because His Word doesn't tell me. I can go to His Word and see what sin is in my life that doesn't please Him. I can go to His Word and see that He loves me and created me for His pleasure. I can go to His Word and see what my position is in Christ. I can say I'm a saint, and that I'm His bride, because the Bible says I am. The Bible never tells me what God specifically likes about me, Margaret.

However, we as Christians are quick to point out things in each others' lives, and perhaps even in our own lives, that don't please God, even when the Bible doesn't specifically say so. I can say with confidence that it would not please God if I spent all my free time watching dirty movies and playing video games. The Bible never specifically says I shouldn't do that. But the Bible does say we are supposed to redeem the time and that we are to put no vile thing before our eyes. The Bible gives us general guidelines and we come up with our own specifics. Sometimes this can be dangerous and other times it can be beneficial.

If we can do that with things God isn't pleased with, then why shouldn't we be able to do the same thing with things that God is pleased with, on the condition that we are using His Word as a guide and not coming up with ridiculous ideas and claim God is pleased with them? After all, His Word does give us indications of many things that do please Him, even if it doesn't tell us anything about our lives specifically.

So what does God like about me? I started by looking in the mirror. God likes the way my eyes squint when I smile or laugh. (He likes it when I smile or laugh.) It may sound silly to some, but my eyes are a facial feature a lot of people notice about me. And since God delights in the way He made me, I think it's safe to say He likes that about me. God likes the way I share my heart with Him, no matter how dark, fearful, painful or sinful. No, He doesn't like everything I think and feel, but He does like that I don't hide those things from Him, but trust Him and lay them bare before Him. He knows anyway, but He still likes when I talk to Him about it. God also likes how I write to share with others what I'm learning and what He's doing in my life.

I also think that perhaps God likes some of the same things about us that the people who love us like about us. When I ask people for things that characterize me, I get various answers, but there are some things people mention that I believe God likes about me. How I take risks, do things to make a difference even when I may not be guaranteed results, how I'm not afraid to share what I believe, even when others might not like what I have to say. I think those are things that God likes about me as well.

This has been a good question for me to think about, and I encourage you to think about it as well. You can drop a comment to share your thoughts.

What does God like about you?