Next LIFE Group // Sunday, December 7th @ 11am

Imagine that a total stranger calls you out of the blue and says, “You need to refinance your house, and I’m the guy to do it with.” How likely would it be that you would sign up right on the spot? Not very, because when it comes to finances, relational lives, and the future we usually don’t place ourselves in the hands of complete strangers. And if this is true in general, it is especially true when it comes to the ultimate issue in life– people’s spiritual journey.

Jesus last instructions before ascending to heaven was to go and as you go make disciples, train everyone you meet, far and near, in this Jesus way of living. The best part is he will be with you as you do this, day after day after day, right up to the end (Matt. 28.19). Traditionally the church calls this going and making - Evangelism.

God’s plan is for the good news of Jesus Christ to be spread through the circles where people work, play, live, relate, and do business with each other. But a Christian is someone who selflessly follows Christ and radiates divine love in a broken world and we are profoundly aware that there is much of who we are that lies in shadows, still needing to be evangelized.

So how should we view evangelism? There are two dangerous temptations each of us face when confronted by a stranger (someone who thinks and acts in a way that is foreign to our cultural or religious practices). The first is a desire to transform that stranger into our own image, trying to obscure and replace their cultural and religious practices with our own. The second is to exclude and reject the stranger entirely, viewing them as a threat which must be guarded against. In one the stranger is rendered into a clone while in the other they are made into an enemy.

During our next LIFE Group, Sunday, December 7th @ 11:00am we will challenge ourselves how to listen and learn from those who are different from ourselves. Ask how we can learn from the beliefs and practices of those who seem foreign to us. And how do we listen and learn without claiming that all beliefs and practices are equal value and without claiming what ‘we’ (whoever ‘we’ may be) believe is absolutely true.

Join us Sunday, December 7th at 11:00 am at the McCool’s. Please let us know if you can attend. Directions can be found below. Call or email us for specific directions: 512.699.3288 or info@gracelandpeople.com

WHAT ARE LIFE GROUPS?
As a community we will gather for worship services but we will share life together in small groups. Life Group is how we define our small groups and how Graceland began. These small groups focus on social and personal relationships that achieve a level of spiritual formation and meaningful personal interaction.

Currently Graceland is hosting Seeker Life Groups that are geared toward people with questions and doubts about Christianity. If you’re a seeker or a believer interested in Graceland and contact us at info@gracelandpeople.com

Group text messaging by Tatango.