It’s amazing how much we need to feel a part of something, a group, a community, an organization, something.  It’s even there in the most independent people among us. They identify with something and want to be with like minded people, or at least they like feeling part of a group of like-minded people even if they don’t have much personal contact. At the very least they are comforted to know that other like-minded people are out there somewhere.

You can see this perhaps more vividly in small communities. In small communities there are always a few people who identify with a particular sub-culture that is virtually non-existent in their community. This used to be the case with skaters and punk rockers….I’m too disconnected from the US to know what it might be today.  Locally, they seem like outcasts, isolated, distant, but they long to be part of the larger sub-culture and they participate virtually, through magazines, TV, the internet, concerts, etc. They have a longing to be connected, to fit in, to be part of the larger sub-community. — (that’s a good evangelistic key by the way)

After seven months in Pacaja we are just starting to feel part of the community…a bit. Our Brazilian friends and teammates have been here for about a month, we have small group of regulars at our weekly home meetings, and we’re starting up a small community center that’s generating interest and helping us become a fixture here. It feels good.

On top of this our small group is gaining credibility among some churches here. We have been very well received by three churches in the community and this past week we had the opportunity to preach and lead worship at one of these churches. The church seems to share some of our values and we really felt at home and well received. The congregation was open and responded well to worship,  the message and ministry time. It really felt good for our team.

Having mentioned this “evangelistic key”, let me elaborate a bit more on this “feeling part of” thing…God is present and faithful even when we don’t feel accepted, part of, or at home. God has called all of us to be heroes. A hero is someone who against all fears and visible odds, chooses to live such that Christ’s character shines through them in the hope that others might encounter real and abundant life. There are thousands and thousands of people out there who want peace, joy, and hope (real life). They don’t know it by those names, but that’s what they are running hard after. These people are in search of someone who has these qualities. When they see these qualities they will know it and be attracted to it. They are seeking to be part of that which they don’t yet know.

If you and I don’t find the courage to live as heroes, people will find other groups or sub-groups to be part of, but they will likely not encounter the peace, joy, and hope which they truly seek. I want to dare to be a hero even though I don’t feel like one, even though it is scary.

Please pray for Pacaja and our team here. We want to live in such a way that people will encounter some of Christ’s character in us and ultimately encounter Christ himself.

Blessings,

Keith