Some of you may have heard about the family that moved into the neighborhood and
the little country church decided to reach out to the family. When they
arrived at the doorstep the members of the church were surprised to find
that the family had 12 kids and were for the most part poor. They invited
the family to services and said goodbye. Later that week the church
responded to their need. They delivered a package to the family and said,
"We want you to know that you and your entire family are welcome at our
church anytime. We have bought you these gifts and we want you to feel
comfortable and at ease in our congregation. We hope you can use these," and
they left. The family opened the package to find 14 suits of clothing,
beautiful clothes for every member of the family. Sunday came and the
congregation waited for the family, and they waited. The family never
showed. Wondering what could have possibly happened, after lunch the members
of the church returned to the home and found the family just getting back,
all dressed in their new clothes.

"We don't mean to be nosey but we would like to know what happened. We had
hoped to see you this morning in church," the leader of the church inquired.

The father spoke up. He said, "Well, we got up this morning intending to
come. And we sure do appreciate your invitation. But after we showered,
shaved, and dressed, why we looked so proper we went to the Episcopal
Church."

That's a funny way of talking about a serious problem. Invitations are sent
to many to come to church but so few people respond. It's frustrating. Many
of you have reached out to neighbors or friends and asked them to come to
church and you know all to well the disappointment, how few respond.

We as Christians really need to stop worrying about where or why people go to church and start worrying about where they will spend eternity. Who cares if we reach someone with the Gospel and they go to a different church. We need to do all that we can to reach them with the Gospel and make sure they continue to grow, that's all we want. We need to be Kingdom minded in all that we do.

Thanks for reading and have a great day!