The Measure of Greatness

Communitas Group Notes

June 14, 2015 – Series: “Love My Hood” Message 3

Randy Willis

Icebreaker questions:

  • What do you think human nature desires more: greatness or significance?
  • In what waysdo our culture and society celebrate and feed the desire for greatness?

Discuss: How did Jesus measure greatness?

Mark 10:43-45 Butit shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must beslaveof all.For even the Son of Man came not to be served butto serve and to give his life a ransom for many.”

What is your gut reaction? Does serving others come naturally to you?

True story: After a cancer diagnosis and enduring 17-months of chemo and radiation, Robin Quivers, co-host for shock-jock radio show host Howard Stern, claims to have discovered the meaning of life. In an issue ofRolling Stonemagazine she said, “What I learned is very simple: that your life belongs to you. And it really doesn't matter what you do with it, but it should be what you want to do with it. Not what your mother or father or friends or society want. It should be ‘I’ directed. And that's the only purpose for being here.” What do you think about this statement when juxtaposed with the verses you just read?

What makes it difficult for you to serve other people?

Do these verses have any effect on your attitude toward service? Why or why not?

Ephesians 2:10“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

Matthew 5:16, “let your light shine before others, sothat they may see your good works andgive glory to your Father who is in heaven.”

Read & Discuss: There’s an app for that!

There are now more than 1.3 million applications, or “Apps,” on the apple.com app store. It’s now true that there really is “an app for that" for almost anything in life.

But when there’s a need, a concern, something that God wants to do in this world, we are the app. We're the apps for what God wants to do on this planet. But we don't usually think that way, do we?

One of the biggest breakdowns in human life, the reason why more lives don't have the force God dreams for them to have is that God says, "You're it," but we say, "No, I'm not."

•God says, "You're the one I want to send," but we say, "No, I'm not."

•God says, "You're the way I want to solve this, fix this, and accomplish this," but we say, "No."

But, there's no plan B. If you are a follower of Christ, there is a call on your life, and that call is to be a part of Christ's mission on this planet.

Communitas

The definition of “communitas” embodies the idea of living missionally:a community for the community.

To live missionallymeans to embody the mission, the purpose of Jesus -- by being the physical representation of the gospel to those we encounter. How does living missionally look for you?

There’s a culture of life written on every page of the Bible, telling us that God is on the side of the weak and the unprotected, the widow and the orphan, the infant and the infirm. So don't water down this mission. It's not about serving in general, or giving yourself away just anywhere.

We can give our life to a lot of things that don't promote the cause of Christ. We can serve in countless areas that don't build up His Church. This type of serving has nothing to do with volunteering as a little league coach, or volunteering to work with the PTA at school, or serving the homeowners association in our subdivision. Those things are fine and good. But they are vastly different than taking up our place in the body of Christ and using our gifts for his kingdom.

Don't let serving in these other areas get in the way of what God has called you and gifted you to do for his purposes. Some people will say, "My job is my ministry," or "My family is my ministry." No, it's not.

It can bea ministry, but it's not what your spiritual gifts were given for. Your spiritual gifts were given to you for the sole purpose of building up the body of Christ and for advancing his mission. There are thousands of things that are worthwhile, good, and noble that you could invest in. But there is only one Church, one Mission, one cause. Don't confuse that with anything else.

Richard Foster:“There’s a difference between choosing to be a servant and choosing to serve. When I choose to serve, I retain control about whom I serve and when I serve. But when I choose to be a servant, I have given up all rights and all control."

What’s the difference between the two hoses: in your service, are you more like a garden hose or a soaker hose?

Randy talked about personal ministry – how do you answer the question: What’s YOUR ministry?

DiscussJohn 15:13: Greater love has no one than this,that someone lay down his life for his friends.

Discuss ministries that your Communitas Group can be involved with, perhaps using the list of agencies below.

A True Story

In 2012, on a cold November night in Times Square, Officer Lawrence DePrimo was working a counterterrorism post when he encountered an older, barefooted, homeless man.

The police officer, who is normally assigned to different section of New York City, said, "I looked over and someone was laughing at this elderly [homeless] gentleman who had no socks (and) no shoes. You could see the blisters from a distance. I had two pairs of socks and I was still cold."

So, he asked the man if he had anything to cover his feet. "It's okay, Sir, I've never had a pair of shoes," the homeless man replied. "But God bless you." As the homeless man strolled away, DePrimo caught up to him and asked him his shoe size before walking into a Skechers on W. 42nd St.

DiPrimo told a worker, "I'd like to buy a pair of boots, something that will last a while. I don't care what the price is." A few minutes later, the kindhearted cop bought a $100 pair of all-weather boots, size 12. A store manager later said, "We were just kind of shocked. Most of us are New Yorkers and we just kind of pass by that kind of thing. Especially in this neighborhood."

The act of kindness would have gone unnoticed and mostly forgotten, had it not been for Jennifer Foster, a tourist from Arizona. Foster said, "The officer expected NOTHING in return and did not know I was watching."

Jennifer Foster of Florence, AZ was visiting Times Square with her husband Nov. 14 when they saw a shoeless man asking for change. She writes, “Right when I was about to approach, one of your officers came up behind him. The officer said, ‘I have these size 12 boots for you, they are all-weather. Let’s put them on and take care of you.’ The officer squatted down on the ground and proceeded to putsocks and the new boots on this man.

GPC members will have the opportunity to serve through eleven local ministries in the coming year. Please read about each ministry and pray about your involvement.

Becky’s Kids is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to bring love, encouragement, and hope to Arkansas foster children. Working closely with the Arkansas Department of Human Services, they identify specific needs for the foster children and partner with the community to meet those needs.

GPC CONTACT: Jessica Eldred ()

Boys & Girls Club of Benton County offers a safe, convenient and affordable place for children to learn, play, socialize and develop life skills that are essential to a successful and productive future. They serve school-aged children in the Northwest Arkansas area, providing out-of-school youth development and family programs that support in-school learning, promote health and wellness, and develop honorable character and leadership. They also mediate emergent family needs.

GPC CONTACT: Kevin Crow ()

Bright Futures is a grass roots community-based program that creates partnerships and utilizes community resources for the common goal of helping kids and strengthening our families and community. Bright Futures is about cultural change and building a community where education is important and valued.

GPC CONTACT: Amanda Kelly Musick ()

The Arkansas State CASA Association supports local programs providing qualified volunteer advocates to help abused and neglected children in juvenile dependency-neglect proceedings reach safe, permanent homes. Through CASA, trained court appointed volunteers represent the best interests of an abused or neglected child for whom placement is being determined by the juvenile court.

GPC CONTACT: Kelly Cope ()

Embrace Grace is a non-profit organization that provides emotional, practical and spiritual support for young, single women who find themselves in an unintended pregnancy. The primary goal of Embrace Grace is to empower churches across the nation to be safe and non-judging places for the girls to run to when they find out they are pregnant, instead of the last place they are welcomed because of shame and guilt.

GPC CONTACT: Eva Charles ()

Faith in Action is a small non-profit outreach program run through the Washington Regional Medical Foundation. They rely on committed volunteers to help provide homebound seniors with free, non-medical services, promoting their independence, dignity, and quality of life. Volunteers provide many services including transportation to physician appointments, friendly visits, grocery shopping, chore assistance, light housekeeping, and yard maintenance.

GPC CONTACT: Penny Stamile ()

Laundry Love Projects partner with community volunteers to provide clean clothes to those living in situations of poverty. It is their mission to turn Laundromats into hubs of relief from oppressive poverty. The hope is to build relationships and share a meal while restoring the dignity of wearing clean clothes.

GPC CONTACT: Lori Badeen ()

Loving Choices exists to provide counseling and limited medical services to any woman who may find herself experiencing a reproductive health crisis, whether it is an unplanned pregnancy or a sexually transmitted disease. They give unconditional care to preserve and protect human life so their clients can find hope. Loving Choices offers medical services, educational classes, emotional support, and baby items from the beginning of pregnancy until nine months after birth.

GPC CONTACT: Dana Schwiethale ()

Sara’s HOPE is a faith-based agency for victims of domestic violence and abuse providing advocacy, counseling, and resources to equip each client to overcome the effects of abuse and move forward in life.

GPC CONTACT: Vicki Thomas ()

Saving Grace provides transitional living for young women between the ages of 18 and 25 who have aged out of foster care and/or are facing homelessness without critical supports in place.

GPC CONTACT: Jaclyn Williams ()

Souls’ Harbor NWA is a transitional-living facility for men that provides food, clothing, shelter, educational, and employment opportunities free of charge, while walking alongside men who are ready to reconstruct their lives. They
are dedicated to restoring individuals, rebuilding families, and transforming communities.

GPC CONTACT: David McEntire ()