I’ve heard many slogans in my 11 years coming to church. “Somebody has to do something” is a good one as it’s the call to go and serve where the need is. I am also fond of, “Make disciples that make disciples” because it’s our duty as Christians to go and make disciples as Jesus says in Matthew 28. But my favorite has got to be: “So they may know Him by our love”.
I’ve adopted it into the High Sierra Fellowship Student Ministry, and it’s our goal as leaders for any student that walks in the door. We are to love them with the same love that we have been loved by. Likewise my hope for the students is: “So they may fall madly in love with Him”
True heart change doesn’t come from just knowledge. Infamous atheists such as Richard Dawkins, Christopher Hitchens, or Friedreich Nietzsche knew who the historical Jesus was. There is no dispute of his existence, there is only a dispute in his deity.
However, it’s when we fall madly in love with Him that our hearts will be transformed. When we can look into the eyes of our Savior, see Him, and believe that He sees us, smiles at us, loves us tenderly, that we begin to fall madly in love with Him. The love we have for our Abba strives us to want to serve Him, share the Gospel, and make disciples that make disciples; Afterall, somebody has to do something…
My hope is that you, the reader, will understand that you don’t have to serve, but instead, you will want to serve. See the difference? ‘Have to’, denotes a chore. ‘Want to’ comes from the heart. “I want to share the Gospel with the lost.” “I want to sit down for coffee with this individual in my small group.” “I want to love this person while they are in their darkest moment”
We should want to serve because Jesus served us. He sought you out when you were lost. Used his Word to help you grow. He sits with you when you are alone. Encourages you when you are down. As the maw of the world crushes down on our mortal bodies, he is there to mend us whole once more.
Somebody does have to do something, we have needs that Jesus wants us to respond to. Out of our love for Him, I pray we can listen and respond to the call. We all have a passion and place that he wants us to serve in, I implore you to take some time and ask your King Jesus where he wants you to go. It’s uncomfortable, messy, difficult and at times maddening enough that you want toyou’re your head through the drywall. But I can promise you that when you do start to serve in a place you are passionate about, you will never want to stop.
Christopher Robinson is student ministry director at High Sierra Fellowship
