Dear Diocesan friends,

“I see what you’ve done, your hard, hard work, your refusal to quit. I know you can’t stomach evil, that you weed out apostolic pretenders. I know your persistence, your courage in my cause, that you never wear out. But you walked away from your first love—why? What’s going on with you, anyway? Do you have any idea how far you’ve fallen? A Lucifer fall! Turn back! Recover your dear early love. No time to waste, for I’m well on my way to removing your light from the golden circle.”  Revelation 2:2-6, The Message

I was reminded of this passage recently, as I reflected on the fact that we, as a diocese, and I as an individual, have not done a very good job of reaching our unbelieving neighbors with the love and power of the Gospel. Bishop Chris pointed out at last year’s Diocesan Synod that very few of our congregations are growing. And even the growing churches seem to be attracting those from other congregations (transfer growth) rather than reaching unbelievers (conversion growth). Why? What’s keeping us from sharing our faith with our neighbors? Clearly, we are being nourished by God in our congregations and small groups; most of us know that the Great Commission (Matthew 28:16-20) calls us to “make disciples of all nations”; the founding of our denomination was marked by a passion for reaching North America with the love and power of Jesus. So why aren’t we doing it? Why am I not doing it?

When my husband Whis and I attended Fuller Seminary many years ago, the Evangelism Professor, Robert Munger, said: Until you become convinced that the greatest favor you can do for another human being is to introduce them to Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior, you will never be effective as an evangelist. Could that be the reason we’re not reaching out? We don’t really think that we are doing others a favor, the greatest favor, when we introduce them to Jesus?

In the book of Revelation, Jesus tells the Ephesians that he knows how hard they are working to be faithful. They are persistent and courageous in a hostile culture. (Sound like us?) But He goes on: You walked away from your first love. And they are working so hard, they are oblivious to what they have lost. Could it be that we are like the Ephesians? We’ve gotten so caught up with being faithful, that we’ve forgotten that the point of our persistence and courage is the Love of Jesus. And could it be that we have not just forgotten how much we used to love God, but also just how much God loves us! Has something gotten in the way and caused us to lose our first love of God? What would it take for each of us to recover it? Maybe if we recover our first love, if we reconnect with God’s deep, deep love for us, then it will be more natural for us to love our neighbors and easier to share Jesus’ love with them.

This month, as summer wanes, I’ve committed myself to rekindle my first love. Each morning I’m taking time to remember just how much Jesus loves me and to reflect on how many times He’s demonstrated that love in my life. I’ve started asking Him to give me His love for those around me – at my exercise class, at the grocery store, with my neighbors. I’ve even begun to picture Jesus walking with me lovingly in various situations. I’m praying that His love will touch those around me and open opportunities for conversation. Will you join me in doing the same? Let’s together ask God to open us more fully to His love and to share it more easily with others.

In Jesus’ love,

Mary