I hear it often:  someone is greeted with a “how are you doing?”

The response:  “Well, I’m above ground and that’s a good thing.”

Is it?

Is it enough to just be living and breathing?  To just exist, floating from one moment to the next with no clear intention.

God calls us to be ALIVE in Him, to serve His greater purpose.

Collosians 3 tells us that we, as Christians, are made alive in Christ.

¹² Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. ¹³ Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. ¹⁴ And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.

Guys like me, we stumble along, trying to live out our lives as Christians………..in our mind and on a keyboard.  Spending too much time reading and sorting out thoughts.

Seemingly having a relationship with God, but leaving out a large part of that relationship……loving His people.  Love doesn’t happen in books, thoughts, theories, or in one’s mind.

Love happens in deed.  For all those things (opportunities) that I may claim to “not have time for” because of work and family time obligations, etc, it’s not TIME that I am lacking.  It is COMPASSION that I am lacking.

Compassion, being a Christian, is First Baptist Church in Grayson, KY pulling together people and resources to package over 120,000 meals to send to Haiti……… in one day.

A church this size, in a community the size of ours, has no business pulling off something so monumental.

But when compassion and love become action, all things are possible with God.

A mission team from First Church of Christ in Grayson is currently serving in the Dominican Republic, sharing God’s love and the hope of the story of Jesus.   Daily, the pictures are shared on Facebook of our youth and adults conducting a VBS at an orphanage, singing praises to God, preaching, and simply loving His people there.

Compassion.  Love.  Faith.  Action. 

These are the things that change lives, give hope.

I can’t say that I’ve ever experienced a true life-changing moment because of things I’ve read or words that have been spoken to me.

Life change happens when people are loved and when they witness the love of Jesus being poured out around them.  It’s a blessing right now to see God’s people in Grayson, KY pouring it out so faithfully.

Lives are touched.  Lives are changed.  God’s people are ALIVE here.  Bless these fine people and pray that because of their efforts and faithfulness, countless others will become alive in Christ.