“I don’t see them, Pastor. These people you talk about us reaching. Where are they?” As the pastor looked in the eyes of this saintly lady in the church, his eyes were opened. For the first time it occurred to the pastor that many of his people had so separated themselves from the community that they couldn’t even name someone that did not follow Jesus.
ClampWe have created a church culture that has completely pulled away from the “secular.” The programs of the church have created social groups where like-minded people gather together and then become close friends. They fish together, eat together, and drink coffee together at McDonald’s. There are ministries at the church based upon every special interest under the sun. We have recreation programs as an alternative to the city recreation leagues. We have Christian hunting groups, fishing groups, and quilting clubs. Our people spend all of their time at programs on the campus, and do not have time to serve on civic boards, school boards, community service groups, or run for office. We turn over the governance of the community to others and then sit in Sunday school class and talk about what bad shape the government is in.
Please do not hear what I am not saying. I am not saying that Christians shouldn’t be around other Christians in fellowship. I am not saying to cancel Christian recreation programs. Some of these are used as evangelistic tools to reach a community. What I am saying is that we need to be intentional about engaging the culture through relationship and involvement to proclaim the gospel, and that takes time. It may even take time out of current church programs. It may be that we need to join a club off the campus to make relationships with those far from God. In the origins of our country, the church led the culture. We must be careful not to simply create a parallel culture that rarely engages the secular.
You’ll find the lost off the church campus. Nearly 75 percent of South Carolina was not inside the building of a church this past Sunday. Volunteer as a coach in the city recreation league. Mentor a child at the primary school. Serve in your local food pantry or soup kitchen. Prayerwalk your neighborhood and ask neighbors how you can pray for them. Have lunch with a co-worker. Take a buddy fishing.
Do you see the lost? It may be that you pass by them every day. Maybe it’s time to start a conversation. Pray for God to open your eyes to see those who do not follow Jesus. Be careful. He might answer that prayer today.
– Clamp is evangelism group director for the South Carolina Baptist Convention. Follow Lee on twitter @leeclamp or on his blog at www.leeclamp.com.