resonate.
Yesterday was an incredible message at church – about passion for the harvest, and something Chris and I desperately needed to hear. (i.e. passion for reaching the lost) The past few weeks have been a bit frustrating for Chris and I on the church planting front. We both have a huge excitement and passion for launching Resonate, but right now things just feel like they are on hold for several reasons. We love our neighborhood, and we want to reach our neighborhood – there is such a need, and we want to help fulfill that. It’s a difficult place to be, because we live in one community, but our roots (and time) are deeply tied to our church in a very different part of the city – which makes it hard to invest our time and resources into where we actually live.
I think it’s so easy to look at “the harvest” as a missions thing – like, going on short term or long term trips, but right now God is clearly speaking to Chris and I that our role is right here in our community. We are called to start this church and we are itching to figure out what it is going to look like, how it is going to happen, and start making things happen!
The pastor said a John Knox quote, “O Lord, give me Scotland. Or I die!” What a powerful quote. And you know what? God gave him Scotland. He was so passionate for the lost people that he begged God to give him the opportunity to invest there and change lives…and God gave it to Him. Part of me is terrified to ask this question, mostly because it’s a very bold statement…”give me ______, or I die!”….ummm…whoa. Powerful. However, even though I am fearful to make such a bold statement, I feel like as believers and passionate followers, we are asked to be bold. So I ask “O Lord, give me Resonate, or I die!”
I am not asking for a huge church, I am not asking for fame or notoriety, I am pleading for the opportunity to bring Jesus to our neighborhood through Resonate, into the city of Atlanta and bring hope through a community – a place that restores their faith in the Lord if they have walked away, or a place that introduces them to it for the first time. Make me uncomfortable, stretch me, grow me…so that I may draw more near to the Lord and be a powerful witness to my community.
So I plead, “O Lord, give me Resonate, or I die!” What are you begging God to give you for the sake of His name?
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