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Pastor's Page |
JOHN ROTHFUSZ, PASTOR - Phone 779-901-0803; email:
Dear Friends in Christ,
“Be Awkward, So They Don’t Have to Be.”
As a motto for hospitality, that is a pretty good one. I heard that phrase on a presentation for youth group leaders, and how we can guide them. Young people often are most comfortable gathering into cliques, with insiders and outsiders. They direct all of their attention and care within the group, and can be dismissive or hostile to those outside.
But if youth leaders want to make a difference for Jesus, they need to have eyes for more than just the clique of friends where they are comfortable. They need to see the ones on the outside, and engage with them. They need to broaden their circle of friends to include all those who want to be a part and learn more about Jesus. If they can “Be Awkward” to love and care for the outsiders as well as the insiders, the group will be transformed into something much more like what Jesus calls us to be.
The presenter even has her youth leaders call the kids who are missing from the group. They may be busy, or sick, or out of town, but they may also just not feel needed or welcomed. It makes an enormous difference in the lives of those kids to know that one of their peers knows them, cares about them, and reaches out to see how they are doing.
This is great advice for kids. But the thing is, it is also great advice for adults as well. We are not a highly organized youth group, with a clear covenant of expectations. But we are a part of the church of Jesus, and the same things apply to us.
What if we were to “Be Awkward” in care for each one as well? What if we come to church with our eyes open for someone new, or someone we don’t talk to often, instead of just going to the comfortable circle of those we always talk to? Can we be hospitable hosts in the Lord’s house, just as we would be in our own?
What if we make it abundantly clear that we are glad to see each person, and even call to check in with them if they miss? One of the big changes in church in recent years is not people dropping out, but “regular” attenders coming less often. We find many more things these days that pull us away from church and the worshipping community. We may travel, visit family, or go to an event, or just not feel like it that Sunday morning. And once we break the habit of regular worship, we find it easier to drift away more and more often.
So what would happen if we would “Be Awkward” and reach out to those who have not been here, and just check in and say that we missed them? Yes it might feel awkward, but they will also get the real feeling that we care about them and miss them. People often come to worship to be a part of the community of people who know and care for them as we share in Jesus together. And they drift away if they don’t feel like they are connected or cared for in a way that matters to them.
I would go even further to say that we need to “Be Awkward” by inviting others we meet or know to come to worship and activities at church with us. If we go to them to make clear that they are invited, welcomed, and even expected, then people can break through their own awkwardness and come and see what God is doing among us. If we don’t invite someone, we leave all the awkwardness upon them, and they may never take the risk to come on their own. But if we invite them, and give them a warm welcome, perhaps they will decide that they might just fit in here with God’s people. You can “Be Awkward” and bring someone to Jesus, sharing the good news that will change their life and save them. With that at stake, why be stopped by a little awkwardness, considering all that God wants to do among us?
Yours in Christ,
Pastor John
