Leaving the Building - 10/30/2011

What does “Leaving the Building” really mean? It’s not just a day of good deeds. It’s not just a day of charity. It’s certainly not a replacement for worshipping God. No. What it is is a day to follow one of the most important commands that Jesus gave us. We are to share the good news of Jesus Christ with as many people as we can. Matthew 28:19 says, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit”.

If we become so structured with our faith or so rigid in our belief then we put ourselves into the same position that Christ argued against when he walked the earth. We find ourselves so tied to the laws and the rules that we miss what is most important. And that is love. Leaving the Building isn’t a plan to forgo worshipping God. It’s a way to remind us that there are so many out there that don’t know him right now.

I was part of a service last week in which there were a number of brothers and sisters that were struggling with addiction. One of the women, almost a child in my eyes, gave an incredible testimonial from her heart. She spoke of her struggle with addiction, her alcoholism and even a plan for suicide. But then somebody gave her the only chance at healing that could work. Somebody explained to her that Jesus loved her. And since Jesus could love her then there must be a reason for her to love herself. And if there was a reason for her to love herself, then there was probably sufficient reason for her to love others. At the end of that service, about seven people came forward to either accept Jesus as their Savior, or to re-commit themselves to him.

That is what “Leaving the Building” means to me. It means that I have the opportunity, no, the blessing, to do my best to share with others what I have learned. And that is that Jesus is there for me, and you, and for everybody else out there, no matter who they are or what they’ve done. That he loves us, and that all he wants is for us to ask him to come into our hearts.

Don’t stop here friends. Reach out as often as you can. Through ministry, through mission trips, or just with conversations with friends. Share the good news with whomever you meet. Then go to service and thank the Father for what he has done for you.

Say a prayer for somebody today.