Well, no totally life-changing or earth-shattering experiences as of yet, but I have continued to try and adjust my perspective. I'm trying to view every experience as an opportunity to point people to Jesus. Now, I'm not really going around saying explicitly, "Jesus loves you." I'm trying to just meet people where they are at. Even if the action is to simply be with them or give them a smile or a word of encouragement. Also, I'm not trying to be something I'm not. My hope and peace and joy comes from Jesus. I'm striving to be authentic and aware of any desires to impress or win the affection of others through my words or actions. Here's a helpful process/action plan I found in Missional Moms, by Helen Lee:
1. PLACE yourself where you can see, hear, and become aware of the needs around you. (reading newspapers, looking around you on the bus, sitting on your front porch, etc)
2. PRAY that the Holy Spirit would speak to you if there is a particular issue He wants you to address or confront.
3. PROBE to gain a deeper understanding of a particular issue that is called for your attention. (start to take baby steps to get involved)
4. PARTICIPATE with God in helping combat the issue with concrete steps of action.
The diagram below is helpful to me in thinking about how I interact with people on a daily basis. In most Christian circles, people are viewed as Christians or non-Christians. The goal of Christians is to simply get other people over the boundary that divides them and bring them into the circle of the saved. Now, I believe that becoming a Christian occurs through asking forgiveness of sin and confessing faith in Jesus, but I think that in some ways we over emphasize this "conversion moment." There are many events and experiences that lead to the point that a person places their life under the lordship of Christ, as well as many events and experiences that will continue to shape and disciple them. The "Centered Set" focuses on whether people are headed towards or away from Christ. As a Christian then, we strive to influence everyone, whether "believer" or "non-believer" to become closer to Christ. We try to show everyone his love and joy and forgiveness, just as he has shown it to us. This viewpoint breaks down walls and barriers that are so easy to put up under the "Bounded Set" model. This diagram has been helpful to me as I try to live openly!
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