Gathering 6-4-15

Smiles, then heartbreak and tears...and a long story.

One thing we discovered from our own experience is that being a missional congregation doesn't work-- at least, we couldn't make it work for us.

By that, I mean that doing "least of these" activities as a congregation doesn't, in the end, attract new attenders to your congregation. It does attract people interested in free food and clothing and cash handouts but not in people interested in repenting of sin, believing the gospel and following Jesus. That has been our experience anyway.

It has also become my conviction that righteousness will never be judged on the congregational level, which is what many have come to believe.

As a result, I have begun to oppose the idea that any of our gatherings join together to do acts of righteousness as a congregation. Incidentally, even Evelyn disagrees with me.

However,...

...one of the least of these guys from the home was celebrating a birthday. (He is so handicapped that he doesn't know how old he is and every time someone asks his age he gives a different answer and with a number that can't possibly be true.) The Thursday night gathering decided to take him out to a restaurant and buy him a birthday dinner.

And, the dinner was fine. He had a wonderful time.

But...

...when we entered the restaurant, Evelyn noticed that a person eating there is a woman who used to be a waitress at a diner we used to frequent. Her name is Fern. Fern and her daughter worked together at that diner and we used to ask them how we could pray for them before we prayed over our meals.

While we were celebrating the birthday, Fern came over to our table and showed us a recent photo of Dana, her daughter. In the photo, Dana is bald a gaunt and pale. Fern gave us the name of a type of sarcoma and said that Dana has been told that there is no cure but that, with treatment, Dana can be given time.

And, my Priesthood of all Believers wife got up from her chair, asked Fern to sit down and laid hands on Fern and led our table in prayer for Fern and Dana and everyone involved.

Fern thanked us. Interestingly, she told us that I had given her my card during the diner days and asked if I still have the same number and if she can call us. Of course, we said that she may.

On the way home, we talked about how we just experienced what Evelyn calls, "a God thing."

Wow.

Interestingly, after the prayer, the wait staff was very, very attentive to us.