Y'all.
My brain is kind of exploding today. Or maybe it's my heart. I'm not sure!
Rain, rain, GO ANYWAY! Y'all showed up and showed out for the first LOVE SHELBYVILLE of 2023! It never gets old watching people move OUT the doors headed to serve. Many of you put in a little over and hours worth of service yesterday, but that hour packs a big punch! It enables our partners to stay focused on the gospel as they share Jesus with people on the front lines. PLUS, It gives you an easy way to include Jesus in your conversations this week with friends and co-workers.
There's still a lot of darkness in Shelbyville. Love Shelbyville weeks cause the rhythm of my week to change as we prepare for something different. The Lord has been gracious over the years to allow me to spend more time with people, learn stories, and see things in our community that I might otherwise not. That was true last week. Although all those stories aren't ready to be shared, know that there are so many people we're walking by everyday that are hurting deeply. Sometimes so deeply that they've lost all sense of their worth to Jesus. CCC, we have to keep pressing into the darkness with the light of Christ. I love reading the verses people wrote on the wall studs! Wasn't it exciting to begin to see the space changing??? I can't wait for our kids and students to have an expanded space. And I'm excited for how the changes will help create new opportunities to connect with people!
I'm thankful for the leaders God is calling in. Our pastor/elders met last night, and I was reminded yet again of how thankful I am that God called them into leadership at CCC. More than that, we spent time praying and discerning next steps as we begin to call our first deacons! It's incredible to me that God would allow me to serve alongside so many of the leaders that God is calling in to lead this church family. I'm being reminded of the importance of one person at a time. It was all over the place yesterday. A new face who had been invited by a neighbor in a personal conversation. A guy who reached out to another guy to have breakfast and just seek the Lord about his season of life. A teen giving guitar lessons to a kid. One person inviting another to go to Honduras. Making a special trip to pick up McDonald's for someone who didn't care for the 101 lunch menu. You can't miss how personal Jesus' ministry was when you read the gospels. The more we can remember to be present with one person at a time, the more clearly we reflect Jesus to others. Show one person the love of Christ this week!