Our fifth and final “G” in our “5G” Series: Embracing a GROWTH mindset. Last week we talked about Romans 12:11 which says, “Do not lack diligence in zeal; be fervent in the Spirit; serve the Lord.” In case you missed it, “fervent” literally means “boiling … hot.” And, it’s a command! So Part 1—we explored what it means to have a boiling hot fervor for Knowing Jesus, Becoming Like Jesus, and Serving Like Jesus.
Think about a time in your life when you were totally locked into just one of these goals. Maybe you were obsessed with gaining certain knowledge. Maybe you were obsessed with becoming like someone you admired. Or maybe you set your hands to some great project. Paul spoke of “pouring himself out like a drink offering.” When you’re passionate about something, you empty your cup. You pour out your time, treasure, talents, attention, strength, affection. Are we boiling hot, fervent for knowing our Lord, Becoming like our Lord, serving our Lord?
To this I’d like to add one more question: Are we fervent for Jesus’ mission? Something worth noting. Our world is filled with “sojourners.” A sojourner is a person who resides “temporarily” in a “place” that is not their home. A while back Lara found a cute little Schnauzer puppy for sale, over in Indianapolis. So, we decided to make a day of it, hopped in the truck, and drove over. Now you can’t go to Indianapolis without stopping at the Beef House, in Covington, IN. If you only get water and bread—their strawberry jam, apple butter, and rolls are to die for. It’s worth the stop!
But as we pulled into the Beef House my truck was steaming. The distinct smell of antifreeze, the puddle under the truck said it all. We were stuck. So, Lara called her poor dad to come get her, and help her get that dog! So, as she waited for her dad, I hopped in the tow truck and sped off to the nearest Chevy Dealer. But it was the end of the day, and they didn’t have parts, and they were closing. So, they booted me out of the lobby, into the street. Suddenly, I became a sojourner. I walked to a farm store—because I didn’t have phone charger. I walked down to a gas station, then a dollar store. I literally became a sojourner, there was no place to so much as sit! Everyone is zipping by on their way to somewhere, but I was in middle of nowhere.
There are more sojourners right now than any time in history of world. >Sometimes the sojourner is the unwelcome “squatter.” A whole new industry has been created to drive squatters out of unwanted places.
>I’ve noticed around town here, so many sojourners walking, standing on street corners, displaced. Many have addictions, quite a few are mentally ill, many are unsanitary or perhaps unsafe.
>Our country is divided over matters of immigration enforcement—who do we welcome? How many can we realistically welcome?
>So many European nations are being overrun by refugees, displaced by wars, poverty. >Also, there is tourist fatigue. While the tourist’s money is always welcome, the tourists themselves overrunning and overstaying their welcome.
“Sojourner Fatigue” is epidemic. Our attitude is often, “Oh no, one more?” One more is one-more too many. I’ve noticed through the years that even people like us, the Church, can have sojourner fatigue. We have our nice buildings and parking lots, our favorite seat, our settled routines and safe interactions. But what is our attitude to the spiritual sojourner? The person who comes seeking a word from God? Do we notice them? Do we get to know their story, do we remember their name, do we practice hospitality and welcome them?
One of the things Israel learned is that God is ferociously pro-sojourner. In Leviticus 19:33-34 God says, "When an alien resides with you in your land, you must not oppress him. You will regard the alien who resides with you as the native-born among you. You are to love him as yourself, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt; I am the Lord your God." In the gospels a certain man wanted to follow Jesus, but Jesus told him, Luke 9:58, “Foxes have dens, and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son on Man has no place to lay his head.” Think back to a time when maybe you were displaced. How would you have liked to be treated?
Peter takes this idea of sojourner still further. He reminds us that all of us, in a sense are spiritual sojourners ourselves. In 1 Peter 2:11 he address the church as such, “Dear friends, I urge you, as strangers and exiles, abstain from evil desires that wage war against your soul.” For Peter this has moral implications. The world can become so evil, we feel like we belong to a whole other world—and indeed we do. We’re citizens of heaven. But Peter has something quite profound in mind. Not that we pray to just die, and be raptured to some heavenly place, but to be set free of sojourner’s fatigue.
In 1 Peter 4:8-11 he says, “Above all, maintain constant love for one another, since love covers a multitude of sins. Be hospitable to one another without complaining. Just as each one has received a gift, use it to serve one another as good stewards of the varied grace of God. If anyone speaks, it should be as one who speaks God’s words; if anyone serves, it should be as one who serves from the strength God provides, so that God may be glorified through Jesus Christ in everything. To him be the glory and the power forever and ever. Amen.”
In the ancient world, hospitality wasn't about hosting a polished dinner party with fine china. It was a life-or-death practice of taking in vulnerable travelers, sharing food, providing safety, and offering shelter. And if that can be true in a physical, bodily sense how much more in a spiritual sense? People may be . . .
- Sojourning as a stranger in strange place… or they may be…
- Sojourning as struggler in a strange season of life…. positively… newlywed, new parents, home, career; Or... failure, frustration, stress, mental health, loss, grief, divorce, addiction, debt…
Where the world sees a burden, a fervent follower of Jesus sees a mission field brought directly to their doorstep. For all the commands of Scripture to “Go into all the world” (imagine the inconvenience and disruption of that)! Making yourself a sojourner like Jesus, for the sake of Jesus’ mission… Braving Jesus’ mission is practically “ready made” these days and magically shows up on your doorstep!
For Peter, “Knowing Jesus” means understanding His heart for the broken, the displaced, and the forgotten. “Becoming Like Jesus” means developing His compassion, resisting the cultural pull toward cynicism or apathy. “Serving Like Jesus” means opening our hands, time, and resources to minister to those who are stranded—physically, emotionally, or spiritually. Showing hospitality. Maintaining a constancy of love. When we are "boiling hot" in fervor for Jesus' mission, we don't just tolerate the sojourners around us; we actively seek ways to reflect the hospitality and grace of Christ to them.
We, the Church, ought to be the most hospitable people on all the earth. A spiritual sojourner is anyone who walks through the doors searching for grace, truth, or connection—often carrying heavy baggage, doubts, or trauma. The World's Response: "Don't disrupt our space." The Fervent Response: "We have been expecting you; welcome home." When we lack fervor, new faces look like extra work. When we are "boiling hot" for Jesus' mission, every new face represents an answer to prayer—a soul God brought directly to our doorstep (i.e. we didn't have to travel to reach them).
The contrast between a COMFORT/FATIGUE Mindset and GROWTH/FERVENT Mindset cannot be more pronounced. One views interruption as an annoyance. The other views interruption as a divine assignment. One hoards their personal time, space, and resources. How dare you encroach on my nest or nest egg? The other pours out their time, treasure, and talents freely. They empty their cup, pouring out their life like a drink offering. One asks, "How does this affect my comfort?" The other asks, "How can God be glorified through this? What would God have me say? Do? How might God give me strength needed here? The one views the stranger as a potential burden, the other views the stranger as a fellow image-bearer, child of God.
Jesus lived with complete vulnerability—having "no place to lay his head" (Luke 9:58)—so that we could find our eternal home in Him. When we cultivate a boiling-hot fervor for His mission, we stop fearing disruption. We realize that the Church isn't a “gated community” for the settled, a “Christian marketplace for consumer” but a rescue station for welcoming home every sojourner seeking peace. House prayer for the nations!
Ministry Staff have implemented practice of asking: WHO IS MY ONE? We gather to give updates and pray for our ONE weekly. Who has the Lord put before me? Maybe it’s a literal, physical sojourner. Maybe it’s a spiritual struggler. Advice: I engage what I’ll call “hard-miracle-prayer cases” (like Ronnie). Who is someone receptive and open. . . start here