What would it look like?

What would it look like? What would the modern church look like? Would we be able to recognize, even call it "church" if a group of freely gathered believers began connecting and caring, if they started a revolution of love - not the '60's kind of eros love, but koinonia love? The kind of love that sent Jesus to the cross to become our sacrifice so that we may have an eternal relationship with our Heavenly Father.

On Bible Gateway I found 10 references in the New Testament where Jesus, Paul, Peter, and John tells us to "love another." Jesus, himself, says, "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another" (John 13:34 NIV). So let me get this straight, we are supposed to love each other - koinonia love, not just "Hi, how are ya?" love? Not just stale donuts and bad coffee love? Not just a smile and handshake love? It sounds like a lot more - as a matter of fact, it is a lot more.

To get to the kind of love Jesus and the NT authors are talking about it takes time, effort, and contact - face to face, eyeball to eyeball, heart to heart contact. It takes living life together. It means letting others in on what's going on in my life and investing in the lives of those God brings to me. Ohhh, it get's in the way of my life, my desires, my agendas, my schedules, and a host of other "my's" but it's not about us, remember? It's about being and doing all God wants me to be and he wants me to do.

It's about connecting and caring. It's about connecting~reaching out to those around us to help, for help. It's about caring~caring enough that I get out of the way and allow God to use me to minister, encourage, love someone else.

Valley experiencers . . . imagine a being with a group of people who were sincerely and genuinely interested in your valley, your pain, your journey? Flock . . . imagine what our flock would look like and how healthy it would be if we joined experiencers in their journey. Imagine the joy WE would experience on the other side of the valley? I've been there with those who have come out on the other side. I know exactly what it feels like!! You could, too.

Now, if both experiencers and flock learned to love one another as Christ and the early church fathers envisioned us doing what the church would look like. Do you think it would even look like what we have come to call "church"? Don't think so.

Close your eyes. See the vision. Have you got the picture? If not, stop for a moment and ask God to help you see what His church would like if we came together and truly lived life together ~ connecting and caring. Picture in your mind the people God would draw to His church through you.

Goose bumps!! Goose bumps!!

Join me in the dream!
Mike