THE PURPOSE OF PUMPKINS
One of the very recent and popular theological catch phrases in the American Christian church is “missional community.” It’s a great turn of a phrase that reminds us of something as old as the Bible – the church’s primary calling is always to be an instrument through which God can win the lost to Jesus Christ.
Whether it’s a Sunday School class, youth group, choir, men’s work day…everything we do ought to be at some level an invitation to those who are strangers to God, to know Him and grow in Him.
EVEN PUMPKINS! While the money we raise from our annual pumpkin patch helps us in our church budget, our focus ought to be the scores of our “neighbors” who stop to shop. We Methodists are not known for aggressive evangelism (we once were!), but it would be interesting one year to take a survey of our pumpkin shoppers to see how many of them are active in a church. I bet the number is lower than we think.
I encourage you to sign up to “man the patch” for a two-hour shift…or much more! I am absolutely certain that if you do, you will bump into someone who doesn’t know Jesus.
Hungering for Holiness,
Pastor Scott
