Disruptors

By Doug Bing, Washington Conference president

Have you ever had something disrupt your life? There are many things that come to mind: phone calls in the middle of the night, cars honking at you while you are in a dream world at the traffic light, or the lights being turned on before you are fully awake.

This morning it was the sound of a running water fountain. I know that we have a water fountain in our master bathroom and I’m used to hearing it. However today while half asleep that sound was a major disruptor for some reason. In my subconscious it was like there was a huge water leak and we were all going to be flooded out of the house. When I was fully awake I realized that in fact it was just the small little fountain doing what it always does.

The gospel is also a disrupter of our lives. Jesus as He shared the good news of why He came disrupted many lives. He went against the norm and shared truths of scripture that went against what people had been taught. He called people to action to do things that they didn’t know they needed or should do. He woke people up and brought hope. He was also a disruptor of the establishment at the time. He made people uncomfortable. He did what he did with love and caring. But no matter His methods He still disrupted people’s thoughts and actions.

In today’s 28 for 1000 Bible reading of Acts 21, you see that even after Jesus left this earth the gospel continued to disrupt. Paul had been sharing the gospel around the world and had come back to Jerusalem to visit. He went to the temple with some others and was recognized by the people who started an uproar regarding Paul just being in the temple. He had disrupted their lives because he had clearly shown the power of the gospel for both the Jewish people as well as for Gentiles.

This upset people. They wanted the Almighty God to fit in their box and be only for the Jewish people. They had so many rules that were placed on people’s lives that no one wanted to join them and they were ok with that as well. Paul’s sharing of the gospel was a major disruptor to their lives and they wanted to destroy him.

The gospel disrupts the lives of those who accept Jesus as it changes them. It also can cause disruption and opposition in the lives of those actively trying to resist the good news of Jesus. Standing true to the good news of a loving Jesus who died to save us from sin is foreign to many who don’t like to be dependent of someone other than themselves. It is foreign to those who see no need for a higher power. It is offensive to those who want to only do their own thing. Yet the gospel today is still filled with love and hope to those who sense their need for something to fill the void in their lives. And yes, once that void is filled it will disrupt those who accept Jesus as well.

As we pray this month for the Holy Spirit to fill our lives and the lives of those around us let us also ask for power from God to lovingly stand even when we have disrupted others’ lives. Let us also be willing to have our own lives disrupted daily as God helps us grow more and more like him.