Are you listening to others?  Jesus stopped and listened to others.  Chris Brannon continues in our series by talking about the listening and eating portion of our BLESS acronym.  Jesus stopped and listened to the blind man who cried out to him when others were telling him to be quiet.  He also listened to the woman at the well.  God’s love for us is 100% inclusive, with no discrimination and no judgement.  He has called us to do the same.

There are two requirements in order to employ the strategy of listening and eating.  The first is that you have to like to eat!  The second is that you have to like people.  Relationship is critical to this strategy.  Who we eat with is a powerful indicator and communicator of how we really believe and think.

Chris gives us some practical steps to make this a reality in our lives.  The first step is to begin with prayer.  Pray to receive the power, boldness and wisdom of the Holy Spirit.  You must also pray for repentance and the spirit of humility.  Lastly, pray for your eyes to be opened to divine opportunity.  The next step is the build a margin into your life for hospitality.  You have to make time to invite people into your life and invest in them.  Another step is to make the most of every Sunday service to meet, greet and invite to coffee or meal with a new guest.  The last step us to put yourself in a position of being around people who are different than you.

Could Cedar Springs be known as and be filled with men and women who will stop and listen to those around us? Could we extend ourselves in true hospitality to those who are outside of our normal, comfortable circles?

Who are you going to bless this week?