Go beyond "how are you?"

  • Pastor Duane Cross
  • Jan 11, 2008

Go Beyond “How Are You?”

 

One of the beautiful things about being a pastor is the daily contact with people.  There is a constant stream of people from without our church and from outside our church that walk into our offices every week.  We greet them and often have a chance to engage in a meaningful conversation.  The “How Are You?” question is a good and at times revealing, but what if we went deeper – what if we asked more probing questions such as:

  • How is your relationship with God?
  • What’s helping you grow spiritually these days?
  • What ministry is making a difference in your life?  How?
  • What could the church do differently that would help you grow more?

 

How about you?  How would these questions sound to you?  And how would your conversations change if you asked them?  Maybe we should consider “Stepping Up” our conversational IQ to get to the heart of each other, and the heart of God.  Imagine …

 

We belong to the Evangelical Covenant Church.  Our denomination was turned over 100 years ago by Swedish Immigrants.  Most were Lutherans by birth, but they were seeking a more intimate, personal faith that engaged their deep devotion to God and to each other.  Out of this groundswell movement emerged a vibrant church known as the Swedish Evangelical Mission Covenant Church of America (what a mouthful!).  The reason I mention our denomination is that in the early days of the Covenant, different people, as they would great each other on the street, would ask the question, “How Goes Your Walk With Jesus?”  No wonder our legacy as a denomination is one of piety and passion.

 

“How Goes Your Walk With Jesus?”  That gets to the hear of things.  Maybe the next time you run into a brother or sister from Hope Covenant Church, you ask this question, or something like it.  See what happens.  I believe you will discover something about yourself, and you will encourage a friend to ponder the most important question in the universe.

 

With much passion and a modicum of piety,

 

Pastor Duane

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