The Invitational Compass
The fearless person is well aware of the fear they face. The fear, though, becomes a compass, not a barrier. It becomes a way to know what to do next. In the Acts of the Apostles there is a story about Paul and Barnabas in Antioch speaking to the crowds, but as they spoke they were confronted by a group of Jews. “When the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy. They began to contradict what Paul was saying and heaped abuse on him. Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly: “We had to speak the word of God to you first. Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles.” It can’t have been easy being rejected by your own people, and having to take abuse. But they used rejection as a compass to point them in the direction of the gentiles. In other words they did not give up inviting, they just turned to a new set of people. Invite someone today to take a closer look at Christ and his church and if face the fear of rejection use it as a compass to understand where God may be directing you next.
