Jesus Hangs Out in the Weirdest Places...

If you've been keeping up with my journal (aka blog) lately...you've hopefully seen my travel adventures which have been both amazing and tragic.  My birthday camping trip--turned soggy rain-fest found us scrambling for things we could do inside.  We originally went to Ellijay, GA for an apple picking festival.  When the rain came in like a wrecking ball, basically every single plan we had was under water (including our tent...)  We grabbed a deck of cards and a game of pick-up-sticks--{remember that game??  It was on clearance, and it's pretty fun actually} and headed off to a highly recommended winery. 

We settled into the cozy winery with its German vibe for an afternoon of excellent wine, live music and family game time.  An older man, who turned out to be the owner stopped to welcome us.  He seemed to focus in on Asher.  He told him how amazing it was to watch vines produce good fruit, and about the process of gathering the grapes then crushing them into what would become his wine.

He taught Asher how wine is a beautiful thing as long as it isn't over-consumed or abused.  He shared that he and his wife planted the vineyard because Jesus is the vine, He invites us to become part of His vine where He makes good fruit grow.  They wanted to create a space where they could share that amazing truth with people.  He pointed to the scripture boldly proclaimed over the door in German.  He shared that he gets to hang out with customers all day, and tell them about Jesus through the process of making wine.  We left stunned.  We went to a place that many people wouldn't even take children, and our son was evangelized to by the owner. 

This weekend, I went to Nashville with a couple of amazing small business owners for the business boutique conference.  Our first goal was to get there by 2:00 because Jenna had found her dream tattoo artist, Rachael, who had shockingly agreed to do Jenna's arm, even though she was completely booked solid through the end of the year.  As we sat and talked with Rachael, while she put a beautiful peony tattoo on Jenna, her story just kept coming--I will actually be writing it soon because it blew us away, and she agreed to let me share it. 

Before she had even shaved Jenna's arm, Rachael threw in a little reference to God.  We are all eager beaver Christians and latched onto that invitation.  Here is what Rachael said about her business--which is BOOMING:  "I do about 360 tattoos a year.  Usually people bring at least 1-4 people with them for support.  The way I see it, I have told over a thousand people about Jesus this year."  Mic.  Drop.

Here's what I can't shake.  In literally one week, I have seen and heard the most authentic and intentional believers use their gifts and passions to share truth with massive amounts of people, in environments that most church attenders consider inappropriate.  How Jesus-like is that?  They have set themselves up in places where people go when they are searching and hurting and trying to find their identity.  Because of their intentional decision to shine Jesus where their passions lie, people who would never step foot inside of church get to hear about the savior who is the answer to all of their longings. 

This leaves me pondering:  how am I intentional with the basic activities in my day?  How am I judgemental instead of compassionate?  How am I missing amazing connections because I have deemed certain places and activities outside of the boundaries of grace?  Who have I missed because they don't look like me or think like me or act like me?  What have I done to break into spaces that the enemy has claimed as his turf?  If my purpose is to share Jesus with a lost and hurt and hopeless world, when am I actually putting myself into situations where I will meet the people there?  How can I find people who fit into those trenches naturally because of the gifts God gave them and encourage them?  What if I just shared Jesus more?  What if I stopped being critical and started cheering on my brothers and sisters in Christ?  What if today and tomorrow and the next day I ask the Holy Spirit to convict me of my sin and show me the next right thing to do?  Then just do it.  That would make for a truly amazing life. 

Just to stir a stink, here’s something my friend Nic taught me:  Everybody go read Revelation 19:11-16.  when Jesus comes back for the second time....I think He's going to be tatted up.  KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS!  Declared on His thighs!  Come quickly, Lord Jesus!