Romans 10:14 in the contemporary English version says

How can people have faith in the Lord and ask him to save them, if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear, unless someone tells them?

This one statement sums up outreach to me. God has been dealing with me lately about outreach. And has brought to my remembrance many things, one in particular, my father. So indulge me a moment here and let me tell you a little bit about my daddy.

My Daddy was a simple man. He couldn’t read or write. He had a 3rd grade education. There were 9 kids and they lived on a dirt farm trying to make ends meet and feed these 9 kids. So when they were big enough to work in the fields they didn’t go to school anymore they worked to help put food on the table for the family. Now my Dad was very quiet. Very shy. When we would go to homecoming I can remember my Mom having to fix my dad a plate and take it to him in the car. He was too bashful to eat in front of a crowd. When he went to church he sat on the back row, so no one could stare at him, and when he got too uncomfortable he would go outside. Extremely bashful, Extremely shy. Now to us kids he was the opposite, the Daddy we knew was one who would chase us around and play jokes on us, and it was his lot in life to pick on us and mama. To the point of utter frustration, and he would laugh so hard at us! At the supper table his goal was to feed you! Teach you to eat "like a man". He loved me to eat with him cause I would try everything with him once, except for one thing, that was...his favorite concoction of peanut butter, cold butter, and syrup sopped up with bread! YUCK! And he loved hot peppers. One day my granddaddy gave him some finger peppers he had canned and that night at supper we did the usual put hot banana peppers Mama had canned in our rice and beans, but this one night Daddy wanted me to try the "new" ones. He took a bite right off the pepper and in a few minutes said, oh you’ll like these skeet.. (That was my nickname from him) Try one. I said no way! there too hot. He said no there not that bad really try one. I took a bite and couldn’t breath or talk for an hour, tears were streaming down my face, sweat was pouring from my forehead and the more I drank the worse it got, he laughed so hard tears were coming out his eyes.. He made our life interesting and loved. And boy did he like to pick! Only those who were really close friends or family , saw this side of my Dad. To everyone else he was an humble and quiet man. And everyone loved him! He would give you his last dollar. He was always bringing someone in to live with us who was down on their luck.

In the latter years of his very short life. He would go to church with Mom. Always on the back seat for a little while, then always sitting in the car by himself, but at home I would see him watch Jimmy Swaggart or another TV evangelist and the tears would stream down his face. He had a pure heart for the Lord.. But to publicly go to an alter and profess his faith was more than his bashful ways could stand. He would always say I am not worthy.

I can remember the preacher who was to preach his funeral ask if he was saved. Well he didn’t know what Mama did, and he didn’t know the Man that we who were close to him knew. You see God gave my Mama a promise before they ever moved to Ga. Over 20 years ago. And he let her know my Daddy would be saved. But more than that he let her know he would have fruit of his works in the kingdom of God. This humble quiet bashful man, who was too shy to carry on conversation with strangers until he got to know you. Well Mama had a dream she was in heaven, and there was glorious music all around her and in her hand she was holding a fist full of smooth beautiful stones, and the stones were glowing from the inside out. Then she started looking all over for my Daddy. And when she finally saw him he was far off. When she got to him she saw in his hand that he had a fistful of stones too, but they were all dark. She took her finger and started stirring the stones in his hands and when she did, bright smooth glowing stones like hers would began to pop up to the surface. Not as many as hers but there they were all the same. My Mama would later go on to preach the word, and Pastor a church. While my bashful Daddy stood by her side.

You see my Daddy did have fruit of his labor. This quiet gentle man had a way about him, that when he would invite people to come to church and the next Sunday there they would be at church. I remember one whole family that got saved because of my Dad.. It started in the parents, then the married children and grown children. One whole family got saved! And because of one extremely shy bashful man, generations in that family will come to the knowledge of Christ.

How can people have faith in the Lord and ask him to save them, if they have never heard about him?

And how can they hear, unless someone tells them?

You don’t have to be educated to invite someone to church. You don’t have to be the Pastor or the Evangelist. You just have to have a voice.

My Daddy would have to go outside his comfort zone, this same man who ate in the car would speak up and say, My wife and I are going to such and such church and God is blessing why don’t you come Sunday? And later it was, my wife pastors a church, we sure would like to see you there Sunday. For him to do this, he had to step out of his fear, and inferiority. And with this he did. You see He had pride and gratitude to the Lord. He lived with a woman that was an alcoholic for 20 years. And he saw God save her and put her in ministry. He knew what God could do. He had such pride in her for standing in faith, he wanted everyone else to experience what Mama did. And he himself didn’t know it but the same thing happened to him. He drank too you see. But because he was so bashful and so shy, he couldn’t see how in the world he could be worthy. But He sure did let everyone else know about what God did for Mama, and invite them to church. He got out of his comfort zone. The pride he had made him hold his head up and not be ashamed. Fear was not present when he asked folks to church.

The comfort zone of silence will freeze you from being able to operate in the kingdom of God. So we wait for others to do the outreach when it is our neighborhoods, our family our friends.

When I first moved into the neighborhood I am in now I was contacted by the Jehovah Witness first. Then some Baptist church in Blackshear welcoming me to my new home, and inviting me to worship with them. And I tell you now, it convicted me to the point of frustration. I’m not running over to invite my new neighbor to church when they move in to the neighborhood. I’m not inviting my family to come to church when I see them. As my friends tell me there present woes I don’t tell them God cares, and invite them to church. I have let opportunities that by the spirit I felt compelled to invite folks to church, but was afraid they would reject and ridicule me. So I stayed in the "Comfort Zone of Silence."

How can people have faith in the Lord and ask him to save them, if they have never heard about him?

And how can they hear, unless someone tells them?

The Comfort zone of silence says, Let someone else invite them. That’s not my job; and if "they" don’t invite them, its "their" fault if our church fails. It’s "their" fault if we don’t grow. It’s "their" fault if we don’t have the funds coming in to make our church the best it can be. It’s "their" fault if our services dry up. It’s "their" fault if it seems the spirit is far from us. It’s "their" fault if I get complacent. It’s "their" fault if I don’t get my needs met by my church anymore. It’s "their" fault if our worship service is so dry it’s like a tingling brass and a sounding symbol and something to be endured.

The comfort zone of silence is a place of fear. Fear someone will you think you’re a fanatic, fear someone will say no, fear someone will make fun of your faith. Fear of rejection. The comfort zone of silence says, I won’t allow you to make me feel inferior. Let someone else invite them. That’s not my job.

The comfort zone of silence is a place of shame. I am too ashamed to invite you to my church. I am too ashamed to tell you Where I attend church.

I am to ashamed to tell you I am spirit filled. I am too ashamed to let you know I am a child of the most high, and Jesus is my savior and yes we dance at our church.

I am too ashamed to say I was weak but He is strong. Afraid they will think I am too weak and can’t handle my own life. When all along I know inside myselfe that the only true reality is in Christ. Let someone else invite them. That’s not MY job!

The comfort zone of silence. It is A place of death., the death of my church, the death of my spiritual life, the death of a multitude that could have been saved. IF only "they" would have reached out.. And done "their" job, and tell them of the Lord. And help build their faith. If "they" had only done their job. If they had only invited them. Because after all That’s not MY job!!

The comfort zone of silence, the place of death.

I remember when I first moved to Ga. I went to church with my mama, and was so turned on to Jesus, I would take a group of girls from church and we would go sing to the folks at the nursing home. There we were, couldn’t carry a tune in a bucket, and I sure wasn’t a musician but I knew 3 chords! Ha ha... And we made a joyful noise to the Lord, and didn’t care. We prayed with those folks, and brought a little light into there lives. My Sunday school teacher at the time is my Pastors sister in law, and she would take her whole class of teens and young adults, around the neighborhood on Sunday after church that morning and invite the neighborhood to church. Here we were about 10 or so of us , walking the streets, making noise, laughing, knocking on doors. It was an adventure! Now we have been taught that you should go in pairs right? Why we may overwhelm people if a crowd converges on their home.. Well it may not have been correct what we did but it was effective and there were people that did come. We have become politically correct, concerning the things of God. Which has allowed us to fall safely to our comfort zone.. And not have to stretch our faith and reach out. What the people saw when we got to their door was a group of youngsters who were full of joy and not ashamed of the gospel of Christ. That is what witnesses to people. Not us trying to conform to the world, to reach them, but to hold up a standard of living that doesn’t compromise with the world. After all they have the world and it’s not working for them! Why would they want that? We were clean and dressed, hair combed, trying to look our best. The point is it doesn’t have to be correct you just have to invite them. Would our youth today be ashamed to go knock on doors and invite folks to church? I hope not. But of course that’s not MY job!!!

The comfort zone of silence. The place of death. Death of a church, death of a generation raised up in the knowledge of God.

How can people have faith in the Lord and ask him to save them, if they have never heard about him?

And how can they hear, unless someone tells them?

One simple quiet man didn’t care if it was his job or not. He was proud to invite people to church. He overcame fear and stepped out of his comfort zone of silence of shyness and timidity. He wouldn’t eat with you because he was way too bashful....... BUT he would invite you to church. I look at His life, and can’t help but ask myself.. So old girl, what’s your excuse?

The story is told in Nehemiah how he wept for Jerusalem. They had been carried away captive to Babylon and were now free, but the city was destroyed. The wall was torn down. He prayed to God then went to the King about rebuilding. Read the story. When we get up to Chapter 8 we see that the wall was rebuilt. Guards had been posted, the priest, singers ministry was put in office and everything had been put in place. Then Ezra a teacher of the law, went up on a wooden platform to preach the law to everyone who was old enough to understand it. They didn’t know the law. They had been a scattered people far from home. As he began to preach the people came to understand everything he was telling them and they fell on their face and worshiped. But first, they had to come from captivity. The world is holding hostage, our neighbors our family, our friends, and we have to get them to the platform where the word can be preached. Then they will understand.

How can people have faith in the Lord and ask him to save them, if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear, unless someone tells them?

Nehemiah didn’t stop at prayer. He rebuilt then had Ezra preach, the people were gathered they heard the word and came to understand, then he met their need and told everyone to make sure their neighbors had something to eat and drink, and for everyone to celebrate.

The same man who rebuilt, and set things in place was not the same man who preached to those people. It was not Ezra’s job. It was Nehemiah and the people’s job, to get everything in place. So that ministry could go forth. Again.. The world is holding hostage, our neighbors our family, our friends, and we have to get them to the platform where the word can be preached. Then they will understand.

God has been having church to minister to his people throughout the ages. Moses in the wilderness built a tabernacle unto the Lord. We had Solomons temple.. There was always a temple if it was nothing but a tent. In acts the apostles, set up church... And sent people out to witness of Christ and invite them to church. We are commanded in the word to go out and bring the lost in. We are.. Not the mysterious "they", who we have placed all the work of the kingdom on. The kingdom of God is about people. About people.

My Dad somehow understood this in a very elementary way. And today we have seminars on how the proper way to invite folks to church should be. The Bible says to compel the lost to come in. Compel them. I have not yet read where the church became mature enough that they no longer were required to not compel the lost to come.

In our search for freedom we have become so legalistic and of no effect. In our search for maturity we have become of no effect. Maturity is being effective in the kingdom of God, and being effective means your about people. If it weren’t we have no need of preachers no need of church.

The comfort zone of silence, the place of death.

If the church is to mature and be like him, like it says in 1Jn:3:2:

Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. (KJV)

Then we MUST consider this...

Acts:10:38: How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.

He went about... Went about... He went about... doing good.

Wanna be like him??? Then we have to get out there like he did. The kingdom of God is about people.

Jn:3:16: For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Jn:3:17: For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.

Of course it’s not MY job.. It’s "theirs" so I will just sit in this comfort zone of silence... The place of fear, the place of shame, the place of death.

My daddy... God Blessed him. For he went about doing good. He brought people to the kingdom of God. He wasn’t a walking concordance, he wasn’t a man of eloquent speech, but he walked out of the comfort zone of silence, and invited people to church. He was bashful un educated and it made him feel inferior to most people, but he would invite you to church. He couldn’t read and study the word, and grow into a mega walking talking fire breathing preacher, but he invited people to church. To me he was a mature son in the kingdom of God. He knew a sacred truth that the church has forgotten, Gods heart and kingdom is about people.

That’s NOT MY JOB!!!!, It’s "theirs".... So let me just sit here in my comfort zone of silence....

The place of fear...

The place of shame...

The place of death.