This past week, the Salvation Army’s Communication Team released a printed article and associated video announcing the opening of the Prayer Garden at the Service Center in Lewisville. I am prominently featured in each of them.
Our local newspaper, the Lewisville Leader, picked up the story and ran it on their front page (click here to see). I’m planning a trip to Walmart this morning to pick up a copy (or maybe two, but definitely no more than four). In a house that provides no safe haven for knick-knacks, I have no idea what I will do with them, but I’m excited nonetheless.
The two-minute video that features me is promoted on the Salvation Army’s Facebook page. Click here to watch it!
Last, Steve Thomas asked me to mount a plaque in the garden yesterday, thanking me and the First Fruits team for our efforts “serving the community in His name”. It memorializes our contribution and is also very thoughtful.
Most of what I do is performed quietly in the background. It has been uncommon to get a chance to explain my motivation to construct the garden or serve my neighbors. My excitement to have a moment of spotlight is hard to overstate.
I realize that the Lewisville Leader isn’t exactly The Washington Post, a Facebook video isn’t 60 Minutes, and the plaque isn’t a billboard on Times Square, However, the media’s attention gave me a chance to tell neighbors about my faith and to spread hope in our city in Jesus’ name.
My quote below made the front page of the local paper. It surprises me that they would print such an overtly spiritual statement, but here it is.
“My hopes are that it just physically changes the city. I think it is powerful that as you come into Old Town Lewisville the first thing you see is a cross that reminds you what Jesus did for us, and then you get an invitation to be still and spend time in prayer.”
The plaque Steve ordered for the garden was carefully worded to include both my name and the First Fruits team. Those names are featured throughout my book, Build Neighbors. If anyone asks Steve who they are, he has free copies to distribute. The book is all about loving your neighbor and connecting with them while you serve. The small plaque is intended as a guide to that larger message.
It is exciting to have a voice to tell people that we are the church, and our building is not our home. Our hands are dirty and our shirts sweat-soaked because we want to restore our city in God’s image, with his peace resting on every home, with his love painted across every wall, and his Spirit guiding each heart.
Although actions get attention, words provide clarity. People naturally question the motives behind actions they don’t understand. Our answers expose our hearts. The strength of our message reflects the consistency between our actions and words.
When the Apostle Peter wrote a letter to the early churches, he described how they should act. Because his prescribed direction was so different than the world’s norms, he cautioned believers to be ready to explain their actions.
But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect. (1 Peter 3:15)
I am not a natural speaker, so I have to practice my message. Anyone who worked with me during the prayer garden’s construction endured me endlessly refining the same quotes that I gave in the interview. It’s my way of developing my message and being prepared.
I have watched the video repeatedly, trying to see if my reason for hope was clear and if it was delivered with the gentleness and respect that Peter directed. In the end, I gave up interpreting how other people would respond but concluded that my passion was on full display, evidenced by the unbounded energy that causes my arms to flail wildly when I talk.
Even though I believe in the power of speaking my faith, I frequently avoid it.
First, everything that I do is a shared effort. It is uncomfortable to stand in front of a beautiful garden that was built by a great team and answer questions alone. I worry that my friends will feel their participation was marginalized. I want to lift them up, but spotlights draw a clear line between who is illuminated and who is not. It is simple to avoid offending people if I avoid center stage.
Second, I worry about pride. When the camera shines in my direction, it is like a grow-light for my ego. If the truth is known, I like me a lot. Too much sometimes. Attention has a way of warping the good pride in what was done through me into the bad pride in myself. The book of Proverbs warns that pride comes before destruction. That’s scary. Many times it is enough to keep me offstage.
The easiest way to avoid doing the wrong thing is to stay away from places where you can be tempted. Recovering gamblers should change the venue for their Vegas getaway weekend and prideful people should pass the mike, right? You won’t say the wrong thing if you don’t talk. You won’t appear to be prideful if you stay in the shadows.
A spotlight only displays the fear and pride that are already in my heart. Even if it may feed them, It doesn’t create them. There are a multitude of paths that will hide the ugly stuff inside me and prevent it from spreading.
There is only one path that is reckless in its passionate pursuit. It is full of mistakes, embarrassments, failures, and offenses. It requires an exhausting focus to stay on task while it leads to what Jesus referred to as the narrow gate that leads to life, and only a few find it.
Sometimes it passes through a spotlight.
I hope that the world sees me in all of my shortcomings – bumbling over word choice, waving my arms when they should be still, and occasionally talking about myself too much. That is who I am and who I was created to be. While they may laugh about my style, maybe my message will bind to my actions.
In this case, one thousand square feet was transformed into a vision of the coming kingdom. That place is now sacred. As a child of the King, I have His authority to say so. That is how I want to spend my moment of spotlight.
