Tag Archive for: Missions

Time to Love

“Being heard is so close to being loved that for the average person, they are almost indistinguishable.”

David Ausberger

One of the first gifts Jesus gave to the downtrodden and marginalized people he met was the kindness of hearing them. That is why he asked so many questions. That is why he answered so many questions. That is what made him stand out from the other religious and civic leaders of his day — the important and very busy leaders of his day.

Jesus noticed. 

Jesus stopped and asked. 

Jesus listened to the answer and asked more questions.

Jesus didn’t confuse a person’s status with their significance, but sought to understand that particular individual.

Personally, if I could snap my fingers and be different in one specific way, it would be that I consistently took the time Jesus took to truly hear people, because I believe it is true that being heard is so close to being loved that most people can’t tell the difference.

You could fill Galveston Bay with all the material that has been written on good listening practices and I imagine the majority of it is helpful. But the way of Jesus had and has less to do with technique and more to do with intent.

Do you ever ask yourself, Why am I speaking with this person right now?

  • When you are talking with your spouse about what happened at work, or what the kids did today.
  • When you are disciplining your child.
  • When you are debating ideas in a meeting at the office.
  • When you are talking about a struggle in the life of one of your small group members.

Why am I speaking with this person right now?

I can tell you that many times my answer would be one of the following: “Because I have to.” Or, “Because I can fix that for them.” Or, “Because I want to give them a piece of my mind.”

I can also tell you that it is rarely, at least initially, “Because I want to understand why they feel the way they feel. Because I want to understand who they are, and not just what their problem is.”

But Jesus’ consistent practice was to seek out the person. To borrow a phrase from Paul Tripp, Jesus “looked for the person in the middle of the problem.” Jesus knew that a person’s problems can teach us a lot about who they are, so he sought to meet and engage the person who was struggling with the problem.

What is convicting about Jesus’ kind of listening is that it is not really that hard to do. I can do it. It’s just that I often don’t, because, too often, I am much more like the religious and civic leaders of Jesus’ day than I am Jesus — important and busy. So, too often, I don’t engage the person, I just offer my brilliant solution to the problem I haven’t taken the time to understand, because it’s easier to solve problems than to hear people.

Not long ago I heard a phrase that I have been thinking about since. I don’t know who said it, but I think this gets to the heart of the issue.

“Communication depends on the humility to speak in a way that the other person can hear.”

(Source unknown)

I am convicted that my listening problem is a pride problem.

How can I speak in a way the other person can hear if I don’t know anything about them? How can I speak in a way the other person can hear if I don’t take the time to ask, to seek, to reflect, to get clarity, to build trust?

I can’t.

We don’t need humility to give superficial or trite answers. We don’t need humility to give simplistic solutions to complex problems. We don’t need humility to brush people off because we don’t want to take time to get involved. We don’t need humility to hand out Bible verses like they are medicine.

Jesus is the definition of humility. We need to follow his way with others. He already knew everything about the people he met and the problems they had. He didn’t have to ask questions, but he did. And what Jesus did — with centurions, gentile women, Pharisees, crippled people, and even the demon possessed — was teach people one thing: he cared about them.

“Being heard is so close to being loved that for the average person, they are almost indistinguishable.”

10 Ways to BLESS Your Top 5

At Clear Creek Community Church we talk often about having a Top 5, which is simply a list of five people we are praying would come to faith in Jesus. We like to use the BLESS acronym as we think about how to intentionally engage our Top 5. BLESS stands for Begin with prayer, Listen, Eat, Serve, and Story.

But what are some specific and creative ways to BLESS your Top 5?

It doesn’t have to be complicated. Here are 10 ideas to BLESS the people on your Top 5:

  1. Throw a Spring Break BBQ or block party for neighbors, coworkers, or your kids’ teammates.
  2. Surprise someone with a thoughtful gift.
  3. Volunteer as a coach or team organizer for a kid’s sport team.
  4. Hang out in front of your house and say “hi,” to those who pass by. Pull weeds, water the grass, watch your kids play in the front yard, or just enjoy a beverage on the driveway.
  5. Invite someone to dinner. It can be simple and fun! For example, put some tables in the driveway, order some pizza, and enjoy a nice spring evening.
  6. Invite someone to serve the community with you at one of our Go Local Partners.
  7. Offer to go in on a delivery of mulch with your neighbor and work together on both flowerbeds.
  8. Organize a March Madness Bracket with prizes.
  9. Pass out baked goods (fresh bread, cookies, brownies, etc.).
  10. Host a game night (yard games outside, or board games inside).

God has put people in your life for a reason and sharing your faith with them doesn’t need to be intimidating. It can start as simple as showing someone the love of Christ and looking for opportunities to share with them the hope of the Gospel.

Listening Well

Good relationships often start with a lot of listening.

It’s hard to know someone if the only thing we’re focused on is being known.

And so whether it’s a romantic relationship, a business partnership, or just a casual friendship, we build relational equity by taking the time to know the person sitting across from us.

We take the time to listen.

When it comes to relationships with people we’re praying would come to know Jesus, truly hearing and understanding what they’re saying and feeling may be the kindest and most loving gift we can give.

In order to BLESS our neighbors, friends, or coworkers, we need to listen with intention.

We need to listen to understand their hearts, their fears, their dreams, their disappointments, their hopes, and their longings.

And fundamentally, we need to listen with the simple goal of getting to know them better.

But not everyone is a confident and charismatic conversationalist. So, if you need some help knowing where to begin, here are some conversation starters…

  1. Tell me your story. Where did you grow up?
    • What’s your favorite part about living here?
    • What do you miss from home (if they moved recently)?
  1. What do you do for fun? How do you spend your free time?
    • What are you reading?
    • Are there any Netflix/Hulu/television series you’d recommend?
  1. What’s your favorite (team, Burger, BBQ or Mexican food restaurant, vacation spot, etc.)?
  1. What kinds of jobs have you had? Which did you like best? Which was the hardest?
  1. What are your dreams for the future?
  1. Have you traveled anywhere interesting lately?
    • If you could visit anywhere in the world, where would you go?  Why?
  1. What brings you joy?

Tag Archive for: Missions

177: Anchor Point – Giving Families Hope

No one is beyond hope: that is the vision behind AnchorPoint, which provides education and empowerment to parents.

On this episode, Rachel Chester talks with Debbie Simmons, founder and CEO of AnchorPoint, and Amanda Ring, Executive Director of Hope Community, about the many ways AnchorPoint comes alongside parents from prenatal care, parent education classes, financial planning, and much more, in their effort to value life and provide tangible hope for all types of families.

https://anchorpoint.us

174: BLESS – How to Love Your Neighbors and Change the World

As we experience the grace and goodness of the gospel, we naturally want to share it with others.

How can we share the love and life of Christ with our neighbors in an authentic and winsome way?

In this episode, Ted Ryskoski talks with Denise Ward and Tanner Smith about the book, B.L.E.S.S.: 5 Everyday Ways to Love Your Neighbor and Change the World, by Dave and Jon Fergeson.

 

172: Global Mission — Feet on the Ground in Africa

God is at work all over the world and he invites us to join with him in his mission.

Over the next 5 years, our hope is to see 1,000 people from Clear Creek set foot on foreign soil in the name of Jesus.

In this episode, guest host Ted Ryskoski, sits down with Karl Garcia, Greg Poore, and Richard Sarpong to discuss our church’s heart for global missions, church planting, and their recent trip to Africa.

170: Go to the Ends of the Earth

What does it look like to plant churches beyond the 4B area and to the ends of the earth?

On this episode, Ted Ryskoski sits down with Chad Clarkson and Karl Garcia to answer this question and more!

 

 

 

166: Local Ways to Serve During the Holidays

How can our generosity make a real impact in our communities?

How do we step into the mess, right where we are, with the light of the gospel?

In this episode, Rachel Chester sits down with Ryan Thomas, CCCC Go Director, and Shari McCormack, CCCC Go Associate, to discuss how to serve our local community as the hands and feet of Jesus.

 

 

165: 2022 Year In Review

As we end 2022, what are you celebrating?

How have you seen God move in your life, your family, and as a church?

On this special “Year In Review” episode, Aaron Lutz sat down with Ryan Lehtinen and Kyle Mikulan to look back on the year that was and look forward to a new year personally and as a church family.

163: How Can I Become Generous?

We know we should be generous, we want to be generous, but how can we actually become a generous people?

In this episode, Rachel talks with Patrick Johnson, the founder of Generous Church, and Mark Carden, Clear Creek’s Executive Pastor, about practical ways to cultivate generosity in our hearts, our family, and churches so that we can be on mission as the body of Christ.