Your Mission Field Is Out There: Velinda

Your mission field is out there....wherever you are. It could be Costco, the park, Starbucks, etc. You get the point. Versed listeners and readers, if you are a believer and follower of Jesus Christ, you've heard me say perhaps too many times....your mission field is out there.

So believer and follower, do you share Christ and encourage hearts in any place.? Will you shine Matt 5:16 light? Are you ready to share the reason why you have 1 Peter 3:15 Hope?

As my new TuesDudeAM brother Luis reminded our table just this week, if you are ashamed of Jesus Christ...

• The Warning (Luke 9:26): "For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when he comes in his glory".

Yikes! That's what I call a scary verse. So how did I get to that picture above and why? It hits on this theme.

One, you don't need a bullhorn and a sign that says don't rot in hell and scream and yell at people. Example, Jesus Christ didn't do that. Okay, he did turn over some tables yet that was against the religious elite. If you are frustrated with the religious elite hypocrites, you and Jesus have a lot in common.

So what was Jesus' approach to those that were open to Hope? Jesus lovingly meets people (where they are at) and asks questions. Check one of my favorite examples, the woman at the well....check John 4. He didn't pound them over the head with a Bible and quote verses left and right. Questions and stories (parables) is the bulk of his sharing.

Oh yes, that picture. So my mission field that day was a lobby at Cedars Sinai (Los Angeles). When I wake up and have my A game, I will pray, "Lord, what do you want me to do today? Do my goals line up with yours? Who do you want me to encourage today?"

Countless times I have been delivered people on planes or in lobbies or in public spaces and end up having amazing, hopeful conversations to share why I have 1 Peter 3:15 Hope. Or they share it back. Wild stuff!

So I'm sitting in that lobby. Airpods in. Listening to some needless podcast. Working away on my laptop....and this very kind woman. sits next to me. Ok, Lord, is this who I encourage? I hear yes. Not an out loud voice. More like a whisper (Internal voice). Years of discernment of helped me tune in that correct voice. The Guide says take out your Airpods. So I do. Makes sense. Headphone are a natural shield to conversation. Ok, what is the ice breaker? Ask her if she is being scanned or waiting for someone to be scanned. Ok, that is prying. I wrestle with it. I hear, just ask it. So I'm obedient, in this case, and awkwardly do. She opens up immediately. She shines super Light. Immediately, shares the Lord and the reason she has Hope. We get to talk about why I'm there and waiting for my wife. I'm blown away. In this case, I was there to affirm and encourage her and she was there to affirm and encourage me and my wife. It was so beautiful and brought tears to our eyes.

That is how your Heavenly Father, Lord and Guide work. If you are open to it, he will bless your socks off. Amaze you and sharpen you. Yet you have to take that risk. You have to be obedient even when it seems awkward.

Do all stories end like that? No. I've been rejected. Yet the positives far outweight the negatives. So I keep going.

Special shout out to Velinda, my and your Sister in Christ from South Los Angeles. When in doubt, take out your Airpods and boldly ask who you should encourage. Go!