The Personal Touch (Bulletin Article for October 1)
[NOTE: As we have mentioned previously, Sunday, October 1, is our annual “Friends and Family Day” at the 9th Avenue church of Christ. Our goal is to have 600 in attendance at our morning worship service. Please know that you are invited and are encouraged to attend. Our Bible classes begin at 9:30 AM and our worship at 10:30. We will then enjoy a meal together. In past years, we have come ever-so-close to the 600 goal, reaching 585 on one occasion. Come and help us make this goal. If you need more information or directions, please feel free to call the church office at (205) 486-9247, or email me at adfaughn@centurytel.net.
With “Friends and Family Day” in mind, I wrote the following article for our weekly Family Newsletter. I hope you find it helpful. My dad, Jim Faughn, often writes articles with themes similar to this one, so I’m giving him “idea” credit.]
Lou Brock was a great baseball player for the St. Louis Cardinals. Fans of that team still remember his clutch hitting and, especially, his speed on the bases. When he retired, he was the all-time leader in career stolen bases.
Today, Lou is still active. He is giving time to organizations that help low-income areas build baseball fields, teams and leagues. He is even a spokesman for one such organization.
Recently, Mr. Brock was giving a radio interview and was asked why he thought it was important for young people to play baseball. One of the reasons he gave intrigued me. He said that he was speaking with a little boy about baseball. The boy said that he had hit a game-winning home run. No doubt with a smile on his face, Mr. Brock asked the boy, “And how did it feel when you rounded third base and the coach patted you on the back?” The little boy answered, “What coach? I was playing a video game!”
This is not an article against video games. It is an article for being in contact with other people! We live in a drive-through window, ATM, online banking, PlayStation society. Many times, if we can avoid people, we will. I’m just wondering if the church isn’t suffering somewhat because of that.
When we read the four accounts of the life of Jesus, it seems that He was nearly always around people. We often think of the times when He wanted to get away for prayer or even mourning. Much of the time He was around people, though and it was very intentional. He wanted to be a part of their lives.
Jesus taught us that we are the “salt of the earth” (Matthew 5:13). For salt to preserve or add flavor to meat, it must be in contact with the meat. Otherwise, it is “good for nothing.”
None of us lives as a hermit. We don’t go out to some cave in the mountains and avoid any human contact. But do we ever make sure we are in contact with other people? Do we ever take an extra two or three minutes to go in at the bank instead of using the ATM? Do we ever go in to the counter at Burger King instead of driving through? While these may not seem like important things, they could be.
Today, we get a special opportunity to have people come “into our lives.” On this “Friends and Family” Day, some people will be here who have never been before. They are looking for something good in their lives, but they are also looking for people who care.
Once again, the small things will make all the difference. Did you give up “your pew” to a visitor? How about “your” parking space? Did you smile when a visitor walked into your Bible class, or did you go on talking with your neighbor.
People are looking for that personal touch. Let’s not let them down.
