God not only has a plan to help us make a divine connection with Him and others in the faith: He wants to use us to be a bridge of His love Beyond the family of God. We want to talk about not just making connections in Christ but also for Christ in the world.
“And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him. For God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. So we are Christ’s ambassador’s; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!”
— 2 Cor. 5:18-20 (NLT)
This verse tells us that God wants us to be ready to make connections with others outside of our circle of faith to help Him fulfill His mission in the world.
It is not only easy for us as Christians to become isolated, it is also easy to become “insulated” in the bubble of church friends.
We see in the Word the assurance that if we will build bridges, God will bring blessings and breakthroughs to those who need Him.
Some observations about the importance of connecting for Jesus (being His hands and feet):
1. Connections are keys to spiritual resurrections. When we touch a heart, He takes a hand.
2. For most people, before they can hear God’s truth, they need to see His love. Hearts are like safes; before we can get to the treasure within, we have to open the safe. The connection code is kindness. The kindness of Jesus can help take the sour taste that many people have in their mouth.
“Or do you think lightly of the riches of His kindness and restraint and patience, not knowing that the kindness of God leads you to repentance?
— Romans 2:4 (NASB)
Keys from example of Jesus of how to make a divine connection with people on God’s behalf. Ways to be “fishers of men.”
Jesus got into their boat (Luke 5:1-10).
We connect with people for God when we step out of our comfort zone, to really seek to relate and understand their story, to connect with others in their world. Making a God connection begins with a decision to be present with someone else for the sole purpose of adding benefit and value to their lives.
“To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some.”
— I Corinthians 9:22
1. To reach people we have to go to where people are. Connection is the decision to lay down our agendas and be on God’s agenda for others.
2. Stepping into divine appointments with people often feels awkward, messy, uncomfortable and requires a step of faith.
“Faith is walking to the edge of your fear zone and taking another step.” Most divine appointments have meant giving when I couldn’t afford it, working when I felt too tired, and opening my mouth when I wasn’t sure what I was going to say.
Connecting for God
Connecting for God means looking beyond people’s faults, differences, and offensive behaviors to show them God’s love which is unconditional.
1. We can’t make a difference in people’s lives unless we truly value them, love them, and desire to show them their worth.
“So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view.” — 2 Corinthians 5:16 (NIV)
2. We can learn to value people by choosing to look through God’s eyes, choosing to put on the cross our human opinion of people.
Why we connect with others matters so much:
If love isn’t that motivating factor of what we do as a church and how we seek to relate to the world then we are “a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.” Love is not a feeling but a choice not based on something we feel or desire but something we choose because of what Jesus did for us.
3. Love is believing God can even use the negativity in other people to magnify the positivity of God’s love in and through you.
Meet the needs of others
We connect when we reach out to meet the practical needs others have, when we discover and respond to the hunger or hurt in their hearts.
Find a hurt and heal it, find a need and fill it. You change a city by serving one person at a time.
Keys to meeting needs:
1. Sow a seed even if you can’t meet all of the needs. Don’t ever underestimate the power of small things done with great love. Instead of dreaming of doing something great someday, do something small today and add great faith to it.
2. Do for one what you wish you could do for all.
3. Impact lives by showing them honor. The commission of Jesus is unapologetically aimed first to the members of society who typically experience the least honor. When we show them kindness the volume of the kindness is magnified.
Expect God to do great things.
If we sow faithfully, we can always expect God to give the increase. It’s not what we say or do that makes the difference; it is what God can do with what we say or do that makes the difference.
Just like a seed has exponential potential, so our connecting with others to show Jesus has the power to start a loveolution. We can start a chain reaction of love. Touching a person, we potentially touch all of the persons that can be touched through their lives.
“I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth.”
— I Corinthians 3:6-7 (ESV)
Share the Good News of Jesus whenever you can.
“Preach the gospel at all times and whenever you can use your words.”
“And Jesus said to Simon, ‘Do not be afraid. From now on you will catch men. So when they had brought their boats to land, they forsook all and followed Him.”
— Luke 5:10-11 (NKJV)
Be always ready to tell your story and tell His story.
Preach the word of God. Be prepared, whether the time is favorable or not. Patiently correct, rebuke, and encourage your people with good teaching.
— 2 Timothy 4:2 (NLT)