Standing Together in Unjust TimesSample

Bring Someone with You

Not long after moving back home from college, I received a phone call from my childhood friend Harvey that changed the trajectory of my life. He extended an invitation to come with him to church. The pastor preached from Romans, and I listened as he talked about Jesus dying for me while I was still a sinner. The verse that he read was Romans 5:8: “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (NIV).

Before that moment, I had never understood the true, unconditional love of God. This good news of Jesus would shape the rest of my life’s work. The gospel message is what has fueled my desire to influence the lives of others for good, showing God’s grace and mercy to those who have often never experienced it. Love Beyond Walls, the ministry my wife and I founded in 2013, might have never existed had Harvey not decided to follow that nudge to ask me to attend church with him.

Our efforts don’t have to be grandiose to have a profound impact. Harvey dialed my number and then sat next to me; that’s it. He didn’t know all the answers. He only knew that I was struggling, lost, and in much pain from the journey in my life. He was serving as the community that I needed. He communicated this simple but much needed truth with his actions—he was there with me and so was God the whole time. It still brings tears to my eyes because his invitation changed my life, and Harvey is still working alongside me twenty-plus years later at Love Beyond Walls. 

We can all extend an invitation to people to come with us to serve in order to benefit their lives and because we believe they’ll benefit the lives of others. Whether we’re inviting them to church or to join us at another kind of organization, a simple invitation can have monumental effects.

Challenge yourself to think about the people you know, and catalog the skills of your friends, family, and coworkers. Then begin to cast a vision for each of them. Let them know that you see them.

What are some of the ways in which Jesus allowed ordinary people to contribute to the extraordinary works of healing and restoration that are described in the Bible?