Looking Outward

More from Craig Groeschel

If your gospel isn’t touching others, it hasn’t touched you. – Curry R. Blake

I’d argue that people today aren’t rejecting Christ so much as they’re rejecting the church.

It-free churches are often very friendly. In fact, they can be so tight, so bonded, so close – to each other – that they unintentionally overlook those they don’t know. On the other hand ministries with it remember that Jesus came for outsiders. He came for those who were lost. Broken, hurting, disenfranchised. Alone, overlooked.

Who Do you love?
Do you love those who are without Christ? Be honest. Does your ministry have people whose hearts beat for those outside the family of God? Churches that have it care fore each other and for people who are far from God.

An Open-Roof Policy
When have we forgotten that the church doesn’t exist for us? We are the church and we exist for the world. – Erwin McManus

Turning Outward
- When is the last time you’ve had a lost person in your home
- How many meaningful conversations did you have with non-Christians this week?
- Who are the nonbelievers you prayed for today?

Your love for them will increase. When that happens, you get it, and it’s almost impossible to turn off. Your prayer life increases. You’re looking for opportunities to shift conversations toward spiritual things. You’re ever aware that you’re representing Christ.

If you’re a leader of your ministry, you need to recognize that for better or for worse, your ministry reflects you. If you don’t care about Christless lives, the people you lead aren’t likely to care.

Shifting the Focus Outward
- Your people don’t have relationships with the lost
- Your people are too embarrassed to bring their friends to church
- Your building and/or people are subtly communicating ‘stay away’.