“What does it mean that Christ is a friend to sinners? At the very least, it means that he enjoys spending time with them. It also means that they feel welcome and comfortable around him…They are at ease around him. They sense something different about him. Others hold them at arms’ length, but Jesus offers the enticing intrigue of fresh hope. What he is really doing, at bottom, is pulling them into his heart.” (Dane Ortlund, Gentle & Lowly)
He used to come regularly to our church on Sundays, and many of the launch team members have actively reached out to him and faithfully prayed for him. Then he had gone under the radar, and we hadn’t heard from him in a long while. But now he was back. And as he walked through the open church doors last Sunday, he hung his head low and shifted his eyes nervously around the room. But from across the church hall one of the guys in our launch team spotted him, opened his arms wide, and gave the returning visitor a look of great joy. And I thought to myself how that was such a beautiful picture of how Christ welcomes us…He doesn’t greet us with rejection or even a cold welcome. While others may hold us at arms’ length, Jesus welcomes with great joy all who come to him.
Please pray for us as we labour on here in Merkinch…that we, who have received such welcome and grace from the Lord, may point others to the Friend of Sinners. And please pray for the man who returned to gather with us on Sunday, especially that he will bow to King Jesus and receive eternal hope & life.
Also, please pray for us on Thursday as our launch team throws a Thanksgiving outreach dinner. Since myself and another member of our team are from America, we are using our American-ness as an excuse to invite folks to not only eat “ethnic” (American 🙂 ) food with us but also hopefully taste the hope we have in Jesus. Would you pray that this time is fruitful and honouring to the Lord?
Thank you for interceding for us! Keep your eyes on the prize,
Claire
Claire in Scotland 