A Month of Good News

It is hard to believe we are already in the month of April. Flowers are blooming. We actually reached 102 degrees last Saturday up here in the Panhandle of Texas. It will reach 80 today. We get to celebrate Resurrection Sunday on April 5th. A day to reflect on the crucifixion and rejoice over the resurrection of Jesus from the grave. We serve a risen Savior. He is alive today seated at the right hand of the Father on the throne. He waits for the day when the trumpet sounds and God says, "Go get your bride." We as the church are the bride of Christ. One day, I believe sooner than later, Jesus is coming back for us. That is all good news. 

We all have opportunities to share the good news with those around us. I've had numerous opportunities in the past several days and continuously look for others. Jesus said the harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. [Matt 9:37] He exhorts us in the next verse to beseech Him to send out more workers. That is my prayer. That more of His followers will feel compelled to share the good news of the gospel to family, friends, co-workers, neighbors, and people they encounter in the routines and rhythms of life. 

The stakes are high. Everyday people perish into hell without having trusted Jesus for salvation. Some are ignorant. I fell into that category as a teenager. Nobody clearly explained the message of Jesus to me until I was 17 years old. A complete stranger told me the story and Jesus transformed my life. Even to this day, 43 years later, I am humbled and awed at what God did in my life back then. It is the good news I share with others constantly. I want others to experience what I experienced. It is not just good news. It is the best news in all the world. 

I believe that if we just asked God to put opportunities before us to share this good news, He would orchestrate some strategic conversations with seekers. Seekers are those who are asking spiritual questions. They are interested in spiritual things. This is a sure sign God is at work, because nobody seeks after God on their own initiative. [Rom 3:11] When people get interested in the things of God it is evidence of God at work. We need to join Him in that work. Always prepared to tell the good news. Eternity weighs in the balance. O God, please send all of us as workers into the harvest. May You bless us with many souls getting saved by Your grace. May we not be ashamed of the gospel [Rom 1:14] for it's the power of You for salvation. 

Rejected

 I saw this young high school girl approach a group of students asking if she could take a selfie with them. Those students were from a different school than the girl one who wanted to take the selfie. Every one of them turned and left declining the selfie. I know the girl who wanted to take the selfie. I have never in my life seen someone rejected more by her peers than she is. She desperately tries to fit in. Everywhere she goes she is isolated from the group. EVEN AT CHURCH. 

She tries to make friends. She excitedly acknowledges other students when she sees them. They all reject her. Not one time have I ever seen her sitting with a friend. I see her with her sister and parent, but never with a friend. It breaks my heart. To see her so blatantly rejected repeatedly crushes my heart. She is ripe to be taken advantage of by some evil hearted boy who will use her for self gratification and reject her afterward. 

She is not the only rejected person. These people are numerous. They lurk in the shadows because their wounds are deep. They learn over time not to trust others. Some were rejected by parents early in life. They may not have been kicked out of the house, but they got the message loud and clear that they were not loved or wanted. Some of them will go their whole lives without knowing love. Not feeling the support system of those who care. Their precious hearts will get harder until they are petrified in self preservation to protect themselves. 

Jesus loved the unlovely. He did not reject them.  The lepers. The blind. The lame. The demon possessed. The immoral. He loved them and accepted them. He touched them and transformed them. That can't always be said about His churches. Many are judgmental. Instead of the church operating as a hospital for sinners, it acts like a members only welcome country club. Lonely people might be tolerated, but they are certainly not welcomed and embraced in some faith communities. 

I was told a story recently of a rejected woman in another community. She felt like nobody cared for her. Not one single person. In desperation she went to social media. She made three posts pleading for anyone who cared to reach out to her. Nobody did. Each post got darker as she explained her living conditions and the condition of her heart. Not one person reached out to her. Her last post  reported she had given up on humanity. 

A few hours later she walked to some train tracks and waited. When she heard the train coming she resolved what she would do. She stepped onto the tracks in front of the coming train when it was too late for the train to stop. She was killed instantly. All because she was rejected. She lost hope. She cried out for help. Many people saw her posts, but nobody got involved. Nobody cared. The woman died alone with a broken heart. I wonder if she ever  experienced the love of Jesus. Did she ever get saved in younger years. It is heart wrenching to think this lady could have sought  relief in death only to find the flames of hell a much worse torment than she ever knew in her life. 

It comforts me to some extent to think that perhaps she was a Christian. Unlike some people, I do not believe suicide is the unpardonable sin. Jesus said the unpardonable sin is blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. It comforts me to think that after she died, if she was a Christian, that she experienced the greatest acceptance and love in the after life. 

I experienced rejection as a child. The last one picked on the playground for teams. Rejected by friend groups. Rejected by girls until I was in high school. Rejected by more churches than I can count to become their youth pastor or pastor. Rejected by people planning youth camps and revivals in favor of other evangelists. It hurt. My solace? A loving Savior who accepts me and a wife who does the same. What Jesus did for me He can also do for all rejected people. His love and acceptance are life transforming.