My Life's Invitation

Well friends, since you are reading this, Warren and I have officially survived BACK-TO-SCHOOL Weeks 1 and 2. For this high school teacher and college minister husband, it is safe to say that the first couple of weeks back to school is one of our favorites, but it is also one of our busiest.

To be honest, having a foot in both worlds can be really difficult for me sometimes. Like, my husband gets paid to share the gospel and love on college students, many of whom I consider my friends. How cool is his job? Me? I drive to the cutest town in the middle of nowhere to work with junior high and high school students. I love my job. I love my students, but sometimes I don't always "get" my being called there. So, as I prepared for the school year, my scattered brain kept coming back to the question of "How can I show Jesus to my [public school] students better?" Over and over again (because I sometimes need "over and over again"), the answer was simple: You show them.

You just show them.

But... It can't be THAT easy?

It is. And here's what I've been learning.
I don't go to the same churches my students do. I don't live in the same community. My family's ministry is not directed in the same circles as their lives. How do I get to invite them to church if I live in a town 30 miles away?

Oh, but friend. It's not about the invitation to the event. It's about the life behind the invitation. In a way, I see that there are three different types of invitation. You've got the Facebook invitation--the "come one, come all" type that takes maybe 3 seconds and keeps your interest for about 2. Then there's the standard invitation. The kind that comes in the mail or is handed out by a friend. You are one of select group--whether it's 10 or 100--that will get this invitation. Nonetheless, there's still a feeling of making the cut, of being important enough to spend time addressing an envelope to you. Then there's a third kind, the Jesus kind. The come-and-see kind. The face-to-face, take-you-by-the-hand kind. The kind that brings you along to the most unforgettable experiences.

Now here me out, I have used and will use all three of those types of invitations. Facebook events have had my back on multiple occasions, but it's not the kind of invitation I'm talking about. I want to talk about the life-changing kind. The Jesus kind.

You see, my students will never remember what my husband does. They will never remember me as a "minister's wife" [hallelujah!]. They'll remember me as a teacher. And I hope they'll remember me as one that pushed them to be their best. One that asked for a higher standard. One that let them ask questions and make mistakes. One that rallied behind them. One that sends them out empowered and prepared. One that truly cares. One that loves them.

Because--between all of the face-to-face, verbal kind of teaching--that's what Jesus did for his disciples.

So, no, maybe it's not my place to invite them to my church. And maybe I'll never get to share the gospel  with each one of my dearies face-to-face. But my life is an invitation. The one they never knew they were watching. A source of prayers they have never heard. I pray that someday when each one begins to count the costs, he/she can look back and understand. And for my students who I have been able to share with, and the ones who know me as a Jesus-follower, and the ones who I know are believers--I hope the invitation is just as sweet. One that invites them into a life of passionately pursing Christ in all circumstances.

You guys, if I really have faith that someday ALL of the prayers prayed over their sweet lives will come to pass, I have to have faith that my life's invitation is enough.

I am hyper-aware of the power of the invitation. You see, our college minsitry could pass out flyers and cards all day. We could text random numbers. We could host 10 thousand amazing events. All of that would count for something, but it will never build a strong, lasting ministry. It takes the invitation. The personal one-on-one contact. The lives we live before and after are just as important to the invitation as the words themselves. I have to be aware of what my life-invitation is--in all circumstances at all times, whether I'm at school or the store or on campus:

Is it a gloss-over, I'm asking you because you're on "my list"?

Is it an invitation with delicate designs and fancy lettering that is exclusive?

Or is it an invitation that is inclusive and special. One that is extended far and wide, but still intimate and sincere?

Over and over again, I think about the invitations in the New Testament. When Jesus calls his disciples, there had to be something so sincere and intimate in his voice that makes them drop their nets and leave everything.  And I'm pretty sure the crowds that gathered over and over again didn't abandon all their plans (let's be real--they didn't even pack a lunch), to go see a man named Jesus because of a Facebook invite. And I'm definitely sure that the woman at the well was a recipient of many delicate, exclusive invitations.  Jesus lived the third kind. Jesus' life-invitation was so inclusive everyone can be invited. But it is one so special and intimate and sincere that it went to the cross to redeem each one of us.

This time of year in college ministry is all about connecting and establishing relationships. So we do a lot of inviting. We invite students to events. We invite them out to coffee. We invite them into loving church homes. All the while, we are inviting them into ministry and into friendships. We could do any of the three types of invitations, but it'll be the Jesus kind of life-inviting that makes a difference. Hopefully, with our actions and our words, we get the opportunity to invite them into a relationship with Christ. And even if that doesn't get to be us directly, you better believe that every single invitation up to that point matters, especially the way we live our lives.