Easter Prayer Experience: Day 1
SHARING OUR HOPE
When you go to a great movie, what do you do? Rave to everybody you know..
"You've got to see this movie!"
You buy something cool, and you submit a five-star rating on Amazon. And if you’ve ever gone to Joey Garlic’s, you're like -
"You've got to try their eggplant fries; they’ll change your life!"
When we taste and experience something amazing, we publicize, use lots of exclamation points, and talk endlessly about it. But what about the hope within us? For those of us who are Christ-followers, we have complete forgiveness, freedom from sin, new life in Christ, and we claim it's the best thing that's ever happened to us. And yet, we're tempted to keep that part of our life private.
Here's where many of us get hung-up. Before we share about the difference Jesus has made in out lives, we feel like we have to have all the answers, that we have to memorize some convincing verses and provide a powerful explanation of the gospel that will instantaneously sway them into faith.
But have you ever thought to take the approach like you would with a great movie or a amazing eggplant fries? "Just go and check it out." Simple as that. No drawn-out explanation. No dissertation on prophecy, evolution, and the end times. Nothing time-consuming or in-depth. Just straightforward uncomplicated, and definitely not pushy. Just come with me to church and experience Jesus on your own. Then, you can decide for yourself if he's the One you should trust.
Let's change our idea of what sharing our hope should look like, and just be real in our invitation. When we do, God will use our effort and do immeasurably more than we ask or imagine.
LET THIS BE OUR PRAYER TODAY:
Thank you, God, for never giving up on me and for the truth that your love will always find me no matter what life brings. Don't let what You’ve done in my life stop with me. I want to be a conduit of Your love so that others may experience true joy and peace that only comes from you. Lord, use me to reach _________. They matter to You and therefore, they matter to me.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen.
As a bonus, you may want to take the next few days to read about the final week of Jesus’ life. It’s recorded in Luke 19-23. There’s a short video describing the events that you may want to view first. I hope it makes this week and your time with God meaningful.