Remaining Outward FocusedIt is very important for us to not just talk about reaching out to the lost; but actually spend time doing it. A weakness of people who have been Christians a long time is that they no longer have any unchurched, non-Christian friends. Jesus said that “the Son of Man came to seek and to save that which was lost.” (Luke 19:10). If we are not placing a priority on befriending and loving people who are lost, then we are not really following the example of Christ.
An example of a person who lives focused on reaching the lost is Charlene West (see photo). West could have retired more than a decade ago, but she continues ploughing ahead. Recently, she told me how she was handing over her church she had planted to another pastor. When I asked what she was going to do next, she replied, “Plant another Hispanic Church in another city.”
The church where she came to Christ in Ponca City, Oklahoma as a small girl is closing down so she decided to use this opportunity to start a new Spanish speaking church there. West surely can talk about good old days, but she does not dwell on them. She has authored books, been a missionary in Latin America, and planted more than 20 churches in her lifetime. Her daughter and son-in-law, Gary & Kathy Petty, have followed her example and are now missionaries in southern Spain. A church she planted in Caracas, Venezuela has now over 4,000 members. She has had great ministry “success” yet she chooses to focus on what is most important: winning the lost.
Bill Wilson, founder and leader of Metro Ministries in New York City once said, “I have the biggest sunday school in the entire United States with over 25,000 kids coming every week. Yet that and 50 cents will buy you a cup of coffee.”
Wilson’s attitude is to focus on what matters most. As a small child he was abandoned on a street corner by his mother, he now lives to see that the children of New York City can be reached with God’s love. His motivation stays focused on what matters most: reaching the lost.
The Apostle Paul expressed this same concept when he said, “...one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”(Philippians 3:13, 14). This is the same man who wrote the church in Rome telling them about his ambition to travel to Spain since, “It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, Rom 15:20a.”
This is the same passion that led my parents to give more than 25 years of their lives as missonaries in Chile and to start and pastor a spanish speaking church in Oklahoma. This is the same passion I see in my brother Aaron who is pioneering a multi-cultural church in the inner-city of Chicago. This is the same passion that has brought us to Amsterdam, Holland to start new Christian communitis and make Christ known where he is unknown. Yet, to do this we must be continually remained outward focused.
Jesus said, “Do you not say, “Four months more and then the harvest '? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest (John 4:35).
The words of Jesus speak of urgency and the need of remaining more outward than inward focused. We can get so busy with our Christian programs that we can totally lose sight of reaching out to non-christians. Then we miss the joy of seeing friends and family come to Christ. Here are a a few practical suggestions to prevent becoming too “inward focused.”
1) Pray: Ask God to open your eyes and give you a burden for friends and family members who do not know Christ. Keep a list of names in your Bible of people for whom you pray for daily. Also, when you see that someone has a need offer to pray at the drop of a hat. Don’t be surprised when people are healed or recieved an answer to your prayer.
2) Be a real friend. If you do not know many non-Christians, intentionally find ways that you can naturally befriend some from your work, kid’s school, community events, etc. Do what you love to do (hobbies, sports, etc.) with people who are not Christians and then be a real friend. As long as you lead an attractive lifestyle and share what Jesus means to you then evangelism will naturally happen. Our goal is not to make people an evangelism project, but simply to love them as God has loved us.
I now have a long list of people in my Bible for whom I pray daily. A few of them have already come to Christ, yet I am expecting that many more people will. I spend time with non-christians intentionally in order to remain outward focused. As I learn about their lives, then I can talk to God about them in order to later talk to them about God. Evangelism and discipleship is a process, not just a moment when someone prays a prayer. It is not just about coming to Christ, but daily becoming more like him.
It is wonderfully rewarding to see people’s lives change as they come to know Christ through your life. Then you can celebrate since, “there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.” (Luke 15:7). So lets share Christ and get ready to party! (with God, his angels, and some unsaved friends of course).
-By Matthew Helland
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