Not Experienced Enough // Movement of the Gospel

[The Midweek Encounter is a ministry of Encounter Church in Kentwood, MI. These posts are reflections on Sunday's message, which can be heard here each week: http://myencounterchurch.org/#/messages-media]

I’ve always had good intentions about sharing the Gospel—after all, I’ve been a Christian my entire life and it is simply a task that comes with the territory. However, unlike Kendall’s Grace Encounter shared this week, I haven’t really owned my identity in Christ. It’s something that I put on the back-burner and continually think someday I will be qualified to share the love of Jesus with someone, but not today. Today I’m a mess and can’t possibly imagine adding one more thing to my to-do list, to my agenda for the week. Nope, it’s just going to have to wait.

I continue to see myself as too broken, too busy, too hypocritical to share the Gospel and love of God. If I can’t even manage to regularly connect with a Bible study, have my own daily devotions, or be a godly wife and mom, then who am I to tell somebody else about Jesus? It’s easy to shrug off God’s calling on our lives when we feel that we don’t have the experience necessary to be a credible witness. However, as we learned from Paul and Timothy this week, God can use us despite our perceived inexperience.

Paul, who was previously called Saul, had been involved in the persecution of Christians. Acts 8:3 says, “But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off both men and women and put them in prison.” But Jesus met Saul on the road to Damascus, and Saul was changed; after spending time with the disciples, he began to preach that Jesus was the Son of God (Acts 9). Saul did not have any experience preaching the Gospel—in fact, his experience was persecuting those who followed after Jesus. In spite of this, God used Paul to become one of the most well known missionaries in history, and led him to disciple Timothy—another man who lacked experience in sharing the Good News.

While Paul was in Lystra, he asked the disciple Timothy to join his journey (Acts 16). After ten years of discipleship together, Timothy was left to lead the church in Ephesus, and Paul wrote to him, “Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity” (1 Timothy4:12). Although Timothy was considered to be young in age and in wisdom, Paul still urged him to set an example—to disciple others—just as Paul had done for him. Timothy did not have the experience to lead the churches in Ephesus, but he did not let that stop him from answering God’s call.

Both Paul and Timothy were not experienced enough to disciple other Christians, but God still called them to spread the Good News. In the same way, we are called to connect with others and participate in the movement of the Gospel from person to person. This act of obedience to God and leading others in discipleship is not just for those who have years of ministry experience. Even new Christians, changed by the Holy Spirit, are credible witnesses to the amazing testimony of Jesus Christ.

Photo credit: Flickr Creative Commons user John Loo

So when you feel unqualified to share your faith or walk in obedience to God’s call, remember that lack of experience or credibility is not an excuse. God will use you, but only if you let Him. Instead of feeling too broken, too busy, or too hypocritical to share my faith, I can hear God calling me to trust in His will and allowing His power to be made perfect through my weaknesses (2 Corinthians 12:9). Are you unwilling to share your faith because you feel inexperienced? Are you ignoring God’s call in your life out of fear that your credibility will be questioned? Let the power of the Holy Spirit be made perfect in your weakness, your inexperience, and your fear this week. Don’t put off your response to God’s call any longer—the Gospel needs to continue to move through personal connection and discipleship. Don’t let the Good News stop with you!

[Megan Stephenson is a proud new mom to her two-month-old son August and spends her days trying to figure out how to take care of her tiny human. She also works for a private education group in Grand Rapids as an Assistant Registrar. Megan loves spending time with her husband, Ben, trying out new breweries, restaurants, and local attractions. She also self-identifies as a crazy cat lady, despite owning no cats of her own, thanks to her loving and allergic husband.]

Your Past is Not Your Future

[The Midweek Encounter is a ministry of Encounter Church in Kentwood, MI. These posts are reflections on Sunday's message, which can be heard here each week: http://myencounterchurch.org/#/messages-media]

There are many reasons we may think we’re unqualified for God to use us. Sometimes it’s a matter of perception, like when I originally went to college with the intention of studying youth ministry, but ended up changing my major partly due to starting to believe the lie that what I had to offer students wasn't good enough. My own life had been so seemingly boring, my path to faith so unfraught with any kind of devastating events, that I felt like I couldn't relate to what the students would be experiencing. Or we might think we’re not educated enough talk about God to other people if we didn’t grow up in church or don’t have a seminary degree. Or we might think we’ve done way too much bad stuff for God to still love us and invite us to be a part of the work he’s doing in the world. 

Photo Credit: Darius Sankowski

In the book of Acts, we see one of the most dramatic conversion stories in the Bible. From the outside, if anyone would have been a candidate for not being good enough to be used by God, it would be Saul. He had literally been in charge of seeking out Christians and killing them because of their faith, and then, on what was supposed to be an ordinary journey to another town so he could kill more Christians, God showed up and showed him the error of his ways. From then on, instead of terrorizing Christians, Saul sought to spread the word about God so that more people would become Christians. 

While his conversion was immediate, it took a while for others to believe it was real and was going to “stick.” Over time though, the existing Christians recognized the work God was doing in Saul’s life and began to work alongside him. Saul never fully forgot about his past, and it’s unlikely that everyone he worked with was able to see beyond it either. In the letters he wrote to churches later in life, he refers to himself as “the worst of sinners.” But even though Saul recognized the importance of owning his sin, he also refused to let his past disqualify him from doing things differently in the future.

Our sins may not be the same as Saul’s. For us, it may be gossiping and judging others, refusing to admit an addiction, cheating on our schoolwork, failing to see the image of God in people who annoy us, ignoring our spouse in favor of someone who seems more interesting, cutting corners at work to make our coworkers look bad and ourselves look better, or any number of other sins that continue to plague us. Whatever they are, whatever “level of wrongness” we may view them as, God is able and willing to forgive them. We don't need to keep looking at our past when God is looking at our future. Despite Saul’s mistakes, he came to understand that who he was wasn’t defined by the man he saw in the mirror, but by the work that Jesus did for him. When we believe this too, our identity suddenly becomes not about what we have or haven’t done, but about who Jesus is and how he transforms us to be more like him.


The other ways we try to disqualify ourselves from God’s service fall flat too. We don’t need special training to tell others about what we’ve seen God do in our own lives, of the experiences of his love and grace and mercy that have transformed the way we work and play and live. Over time I realized that even my story of faith, while very different from someone like Saul’s, had value of its own, and it in no way meant I wouldn’t be able to relate to students or be used by God to speak into their lives. That’s the beauty of the kingdom of God--he can, does, and wants to use all people to accomplish his purpose. He sees the potential in everything, even when we can’t. With God, no sin is too great and no story is too small to be used.

[Brianna DeWitt believes in Jesus, surrounding yourself with good people, and that desserts are best when they involve chocolate and peanut butter. She writes about faith, growing up, and whatever else pops into her head on her own blog, and tweets (largely about food) at @bwitt722.]

Delayed Obedience is Disobedience

[The Midweek Encounter is a ministry of Encounter Church in Kentwood, MI. These posts are reflections on Sunday's message, which can be heard here each week: http://myencounterchurch.org/#/messages-media]

If you tend to procrastinate, you’re not alone. The word procrastinate has only been in the English language since the mid-16th century, but its Latin roots stretch back to the 1300s, and other iterations date all the way to antiquity. Around 800 B.C., the Greek poet Hesiod urged people not to “put your work off till tomorrow.” But of course we do this all the time. People tend to procrastinate in two ways: either they will make a to-do list and put the most important tasks at the end, right after “run 11 miles” and “scrub grout with a toothbrush,” or they will find other productive things to do and then focus on those tasks until they run out of time. I’m sure that some of you have taken on monumental endeavors, such as organizing the basement storage room or cleaning out the garage, in an effort to delay a major decision or overwhelming task. I know some college students who decided to test several quiche and cheesecake recipes during exam week. This, of course necessitated several trips to Meijer and a party for taste-testing. Recently, as I was studying for a foreign language exam, I found it necessary to paint the spare bedroom. The one in the basement that no one uses. And to replace window treatments, and rearrange all of my childrens’ toys and clean out their closets. You get the idea.

You don’t need a scientific study to tell you that procrastination is bad for you, but I’ll cite one anyway. Eric Jaffe (2013), a researcher for the Association for Psychological Science, writes that “people who procrastinate have higher levels of stress and lower well-being.” Delaying a task that we know we have to do is harmful in two important ways: it weakens resolve and it increases tension, making it more difficult to tackle the task we are putting of in the first place.

We put off all sorts of small tasks on a regular basis, such as exercise or responding to an email, but what about the big tasks? Some of you may be familiar with the story of “Daniel in the Lion’s Den,” in which King Darius is tricked into tossing Daniel into a pit where he is left to be eaten by ferocious lions. In the morning, after a sleepless night, King Darius rushes back to the den to see if Daniel’s God has protected him, and indeed Daniel’s life had been spared. Daniel reports back that an angel of God shut the mouths of the lions, and thus he had passed the night unharmed.

This may be a familiar story for some of us, but familiar or not, it’s easy to overlook the important details of obedience to God’s big ask on Daniel’s life, and his ask on our lives, too. Long before the Lion’s Den story, Daniel arrived in Babylon as a result of King Nebuchadnezzar’s victory over Jerusalem. Daniel was an Israelite living in a foreign country, and his life was spared because he showed promise as one who might be useful to the king. Immediately when Daniel arrives in Babylon he is told to follow the customs of the Babylonians, including the worship of false gods.

But Daniel refused.

The language used in the Bible is this: Daniel resolved.

He resolved to be faithful. He resolved to be honest. He resolved to be holy.

And then God acted. God gave Daniel wisdom, courage, hope, and life.

Perhaps God is asking you to do something today. Perhaps he laid a task on your heart long ago, or maybe there’s a recent idea that you can’t seem to shake. A job change, a new hobby, a new habit, a conversation, the beginning or ending of a relationship. Perhaps you’ve been delaying obedience to this call because you’re afraid. Afraid that you don’t have what it takes, afraid of what others might think, afraid to trade the comfortable for the unknown. Daniel, as a newcomer to a foreign land, as a religious and cultural outsider, had no political capital to burn by denying the king’s request. And yet, he resolved.

Daniel knew that delayed obedience was disobedience, but he also knew that if he obeyed God’s call, that God would equip him for the task at hand. God worked miracles in Daniel’s life, and God bestowed wisdom and courage to Daniel. And we are armed with the knowledge that God has already defeated our worry and fear through the death of his son, Jesus Christ. Through Jesus we can accomplish the impossible. If we resolve to complete the work that God has laid on our hearts, then we can trust God to act. It’s one of his many promises to us.

[Kristin vanEyk loves Encounter Church and hopes that you have found a community at Encounter as well. You can find out more about what Kristin is up to here.]

Seek and Save the Lost

[The Midweek Encounter is a ministry of Encounter Church in Kentwood, MI. These posts are reflections on Sunday's message, which can be heard here each week: http://myencounterchurch.org/#/messages-media]

As a well-seasoned Christian, it’s easy for me to think of salvation in terms of the big picture: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). This has been engrained in me since I was born, and even if you weren’t raised in a Christian household, this verse probably sounds familiar to you. The story of Zacchaeus, however, provides perspective on salvation at a more individual level.

As the chief tax collector in Jericho, Zaccheus had reached the top of his career field and was extremely wealthy. Even though wealthy men didn’t run or climb trees, Zaccheus was excited enough about Jesus that he broke social and cultural norms in order to see him. Jesus reached the tree and said, “Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today” (Luke 19:5). Sharing a meal meant having a certain level of intimacy, and those who saw Jesus leaving for Zaccheaus’s house noted that he was the guest of a sinner.

Jesus always kept company with sinners, but Zaccheus isn’t typically who comes to mind when we think of those that Jesus came to save. Instead, we often focus on Jesus saving the poor, brokenhearted, widows, and orphans, not a wealthy, manipulative tax collector. But save him Jesus did, and Zacchaeus changed his ways and vowed to give half of his possessions to the poor and pay back four times the amount to anyone he had cheated (Luke 19:8). Luke 19:10 says, “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost”—this includes all those described above, as well as you and me.

Flickr Creative Commons, user gezelle rivera

As the Parable of the Lost Sheep (Luke 15:1-7) shows, Jesus is like the shepherd and rejoices when he finds one lost sheep and returns him home. Jesus seeks to save all those who are lost, and we are all lost in our own way. Whether we are the broken and oppressed or those who have caused brokenness and oppression, Jesus seeks to save each of us from our own sins.

Just as Zacchaeus was changed by encountering Jesus, we are changed when Jesus finds us and returns us home. This change can reach the lives of others and cause Jesus’s love to spread even further—aiding in God’s rescue mission to save the entire world, one life at a time… starting with Zacchaeus, with you, and with me.

As you continue your week, reflect on the salvation that Jesus offers—not only to save the poor and weak, but also to save the powerful, the wealthy, and all who are lost. Ask that God reveals to you how you might still be lost, and ask him to bring you back home into his unconditional love and unending grace.

[Megan Stephenson is a proud new mom to her two-month-old son August and spends her days trying to figure out how to take care of her tiny human. She also works for a private education group in Grand Rapids as an Assistant Registrar. Megan loves spending time with her husband, Ben, trying out new breweries, restaurants, and local attractions. She also self-identifies as a crazy cat lady, despite owning no cats of her own, thanks to her loving and allergic husband.]

Burning the Past: Why God Doesn't Want You to Rely on Plan B

[The Midweek Encounter is a ministry of Encounter Church in Kentwood, MI. These posts are reflections on Sunday's message, which can be heard here each week: http://myencounterchurch.org/#/messages-media]

Since the day we decided to become Christians, our sole concentration has been on the sacrifice that Jesus made for us on the cross. Of course, this is the core of Christianity itself, but we sometimes forget that in order to follow Christ, we must make sacrifices of our own. When each of the twelve apostles were hand-picked by Jesus, they left every shred of their former lives behind without hesitation: their livelihoods, their friends, and their families. All fall-back options were eliminated. Matthew lost all stability when he forfeited his position as a tax collector. Peter and Andrew abandoned their safety nets (literally) when they left their fishing nets to follow Jesus.

This pattern can be traced back to the Old Testament as well, long before Jesus walked the earth. In 1 Kings 19:19-21, the prophet Elijah approached Elisha, a farmer who was plowing his field with his oxen. Elijah threw his cloak around Elisha's shoulders, which signaled that Elijah was passing on his job as a prophet. Elisha knew immediately who Elijah was and understood the weight of his new responsibility.

Elisha then left his oxen and ran after Elijah. “Let me kiss my father and mother goodbye,” he said, “and then I will come with you.” 1 Kings 19:20

Photo Credit: Johannes Klingebiel

Prophets were somewhat the equivalent to celebrities during Old Testament times, thus Elisha knew very well what the position entailed. It would mean having to travel long distances at a moment's notice. It would mean being physically hungry but being spiritually nourished. It would mean facing persecution, and even in some cases, becoming a fugitive. The hardships of Elisha's predecessors were a stark contrast to the stable life he currently led, so why didn't he just say no to Elijah? Why did Elisha choose the path that was obviously uncomfortable and risky?

We have a voice in how we decide to live our lives: We can be safe and comfortable, or we can venture from our comfort zones to accomplish something through God's power. Sometimes, however, it is not merely enough to leave our comforts behind. If something goes wrong and we panic, our first reaction is to run back to the familiar because it makes us feel safe. Elisha knew that he had to ensure that he wouldn't flee from God's purpose and return to the security of his past life:

So Elisha left him and went back. He took his yoke of oxen and slaughtered them. He burned the plowing equipment to cook the meat and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he set out to follow Elijah and became his servant. 1 Kings 19:21

When we cut the ties from all of our “just-in-case” back-up plans, it might feel like we are destroying our one safe haven, when in reality there is no safer place than in God's presence. God is more interested in our complete obedience instead of our total understanding. If we are willing to make the sacrifice and surrender our complete trust in Christ, we will not be forsaken. The cost of burning our past might seem immense through our mortal eyes, but the cost of failing to do so is much greater. What sense does it make to sacrifice eternal life with God for the sake of a few comfortable decades in a fallen world?

Photo credit: Roksolana Zasiadko

I'm not saying that we all should minimize our belongings to fill one backpack and leave behind everyone we know and love—I don't believe that is necessarily what God is asking of us. It could mean selling your house and moving to a place where you don't know anyone because you feel that God is calling you to a certain job position. Perhaps it means dissolving ties with toxic people that you've kept up unhealthy relationships with for far too long.

I struggled with cutting for the first half of my undergrad. The act of self-harm had become a means of comfort for me, a security blanket that I always returned to in distressing situations. I had been striving to follow Christ for the majority of those two years, but instead of leaning on God during turbulent times, I would fall back and seek comfort in my acts of self-harm, “just in case” God wouldn't be enough to protect me. Although the process was long and gradual, I eventually realized that I could not remain stagnant if I truly wanted to pursue God's purpose for me.

When I threw out those razor blades for good, there was no going back. There was nothing to go back to. Like Elisha, I had burned my oxen and my fields and all that was familiar. The past had been destroyed and all that is left now is my future with my Father who loves me. 

 What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ. Philippians 3:8

[Abby Hocking is a senior at Calvin College, where she studies psychology and writing. She is employed at Pine Rest Christian Mental Services and plans to become a therapist. Abby is a proud literature nerd, running addict, and puppy enthusiast. She thanks God daily for her wonderful family, her loving friends, and for Twenty One Pilots.]