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Here is a brief summary of the
comments made by the attendees of the Question and Answer session
following the prayer breakfast.
Personal
relationship with Christ
- We need to look in the mirror,
and recognize how far short we have fallen from God's intended
purpose for us. We must confess and repent of our sin and move
forward in obedience to His call.
- We need to press in in intimacy
and utter dependency on Jesus, love Him, and love our neighbors
as ourselves. Our love for Him will compel us to grow and demonstrate
our love for our neighbors in action.
- We need to recognize that prayer
is dialogue with God, not a monologue. If we ask Him in faith
to show us where and how to serve Him and the community, He will
answer. Then we must obey by doing what He tells us to do. This
can be applied individually or corporately. This is "kairos"
sensitive.
The
Church
- We must adopt a missionary
attitude toward people who are hurting and lost in Madison. Matthew
28 defines missionary attitude.
- We must open the doors of the
church and let the people out to do what God calls them to do
in the city.
- At the same time the church
must be more integrated on Sunday mornings. For example, we can
be culturally friendly by offering sermon translation, reach out
to different ethnic and racial groups and welcome others by special
invitation to our services.
Relationships
with people of other cultures and ethnic groups:
- We must get out of our comfort
zone and go where the people are. We cannot expect them to come
to us. We need to take other ethnic groups and cultures seriously
and humbly, recognizing that we all can learn from each other
and grow together.
- We need to change our mind
set and recognize that we need to get uncomfortable with one another
in order to make progress.
- God is going to do the work
in us, through us or without us. Our responsibility is to respond
to His call to join Him in His work.
- We have to be:
- Humble,
recognizing our own inadequacies and total dependence on
God. We need to have a "helpee" mind-set, coming
along side of others in need,
- Committed
to seize the "kairos" moment through action
- Intentional
about what we do, when, and with whom, and how.
Rev.
Brenda's Advice for the Future
- Prayer comes first. An individual
cannot do everything, as much as he/she may want to. God will
answer the question, "where do I fit in and what do you want
me to do?" when we ask Him in prayer. And when He tells us,
we must obey.
- We must engage in partnerships
to meet a need, building on the unique contribution others can
make. We need a mind set where no person or group gets the credit
for what God may do or how He chooses to do it.
- Fellowship springs from mission,
not mission from fellowship. We build relationships when we discover
areas of common self interest and when we work toward a common
goal.
- Finally, God has spoken to
the city of Madison. We are in a "kairos" moment. We
have an opportunity and responsibility to respond to what God
calls us to do: "to let our light shine before men in such
a way that they see our good works, and glorify our Father who
is in heaven." Matt 5:16. We have been given hope. The Holy
Spirit has laid us open and created a hunger to listen, to change,
to make a real difference for the kingdom in these days. We MUST
act. If we don't, we will shut down to the God challenges of the
future, we will lose hope, we will close down and check out. It's
up to us.
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