Dear ,

This Sunday is national Back to Church Sunday, and I encourage you to invite one or two people to church.

To support you, this week's Going Deeper emails will be geared towards what gets in the way of us inviting people to church, and how to get by it.

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Fear of Rejection

If you were to tell me you're not inviting anyone to church because you're afraid they'll reject you, I'd be tempted to tell you that I get it completely, and don't worry about it. However, if I did that, I'd be encouraging to keep thinking about yourself and not about the person who needs to be invited.

Fear of rejection is sneaky. On the surface, it looks like it's about the other person ...

• What they'll say
• What they'll do
• What they'll think

It's easy for us to make it all about them, and act (or not act) accordingly.

But, if you peel back the layers, what you'll actually find is our fear of rejection has 99% to do with us, and 1% to do with the other person.

What we're really concerned about is ...

• How we'll look
• How we'll sound
• How we'll be treated
• What they'lll think of us
• What they'll do to us
• What they'll say to others about us

And the list goes on.

We're passionate about looking good. Saying the same thing in another way, we're passionate about not looking bad.

And, we'll go to great lengths to not look bad—including not inviting people to church if we run the risk of them declining or worse, they show up and don't like it.

We're not alone in wanting to look good.

Moses faced the same issue when God told him to go to Pharaoh to represent him. Moses had a number of hesitations, including he didn't think Pharaoh would listen to him.

Finally, Moses, said, "But, Lord, I am telling you, I am not a good speaker. I have never been able to speak well. And that hasn’t changed since you started talking to me. I am still not a good speaker. You know that I speak slowly and don’t use the best words.” (Exodus 4:10)

Moses was concerned about him, and how he'd look in front of Pharaoh. We suffer from the same thing. It's called being human.

To deal with your humanity, I encourage you to first acknowledge your deep desire to look good, then second, by an act of your will, set it aside. Third, begin thinking about the person you want to invite to church. Fourth, see your invitation as an act of love and care for them. Fifth, invite them with love and care for them in mind.

I've invited a couple of people, and have had to do the exact same thing I'm writing to you about, so I'm with you in this.

You've got this! Go make it happen.

Prayer:

Lord, I come before You, recognizing my desire to look good. Remind me that my value isn't determined by others' perceptions, but by Your unwavering love for me. Give me the strength to place genuine love and care above my own insecurities, and let my invitations be true reflections of Your love. Amen.