Living out B.L.E.S.S

Earlier this year, our Teach Team taught a series called “Bless: How to Love Your Neighbor.” In that series, we hoped to give people a clear picture of the blessings that could come from engaging with the Great Commission. This is when Jesus famously said, “…go and make disciples of all nations…” So, in an effort to do that, we encouraged our congregation to take the practical next steps of reading the “B.L.E.S.S.” book and joining a B.L.E.S.S.ing group to begin implementing these teachings. 

The hope behind this series was to establish these simple practices, (B) beginning with prayer, (L) listening, (E) eating or sharing a meal, (S) serving, and (S) sharing stories, as a primary method for accomplishing the “Reach” portion of our vision as a church.

“The Great Commission is daunting, but B.L.E.S.S. gave us some basic pathways to follow Jesus’ leading in our modern context.”

The Great Commission is daunting, but B.L.E.S.S. gave us some basic pathways to follow Jesus’ leading in our modern context. Now, summer is almost here, and we’re hearing story after story about how these practices are changing Summit for the better.

Angela is a Connect Group leader who, after reading through B.L.E.S.S., was inspired to make some changes in her life, but one was just a subtle change in how she attended Sunday services. She said she often greeted those around her during the “Meet and Greet” portion of the service with a smile and a wave, but after spending time with the principles outlined in B.L.E.S.S., she decided there was more she could get out of that time. Now, she greets everyone with a “Hi. I’m Angela.”

This simple addition, a personal touch added to a greeting, might not seem like much on the way to accomplishing Jesus’ Great Commission, but Angela would say otherwise. Just adding her name made her someone to get to know. She says that since she began leaning into this portion of the service more, she’s had deep conversations with congregants she didn’t know before, and this could lead to growing her Connect Group and growing deeper in faith. She’s adamant this wasn’t happening before that simple shift.

Will enjoyed the B.L.E.S.S. book so much that he immediately began weaving the principles into the Job Partnership Class that he leads week in and week out. This vital ministry provides essential skills training, resource connections, and better job opportunities to people in our communities who find themselves looking to improve their career options. You don’t have to work too hard to imagine how “beginning with prayer,” “listening,” “sharing a meal,” “serving,” and “sharing stories” could help grow people together and deeper in their faith in an environment like that.

In yet another story, Greg and his wife, Pam, have been leading a B.L.E.S.S.ing Group in their neighborhood, and when they got to the lesson on service, they decided to go outside. Their group acknowledged that they didn’t know many of their neighbors, and Greg expressed being at a loss for how to tackle that one. So, they tried something entirely out of left field.

The group decided to do a “Chill and Grill” where they’d go around door to door and invite all their neighbors over on a Saturday. They advertised the event as “BYOBB,” meaning “Bring your own beverage and BBQ.” In their vision for this prospective event, they would set up grills in the front yard, music, lawn chairs, etc., and people would just bring over meats to grill. In Greg’s words, “Not sure if we’ll have 5 or 25 people show up, but it’s a start…” 

Well, this simple act of faith was far more successful than Greg’s wildest dreams. Thirty-eight people attended Greg and Pam’s “little” Grill and Chill event! He said many new relationships were sparked, old ones were re-established, and several of his group members were even overheard inviting different neighbors to our Summit’s Easter service!

“Sometimes living out God’s word can seem like the most daunting thing that could be asked of us.”

Sometimes living out God’s word can seem like the most daunting thing that could be asked of us. We have such busy lives and so many responsibilities that it can seem impossible to add anything else to our busy schedules. Still, these examples show how some of the regular comings and goings already built into our lives are ripe for just a bit of intentionality—how one subtle change can bring about deeper conversations and a richness of life we maybe hadn’t experienced before.

If you haven’t participated in a B.L.E.S.S.ing Group yet and want to or would just like to get your hands on a B.L.E.S.S. book, don’t hesitate to email our Summit Connect team at connect@summitconnect.org. Also, if you have more stories like these, please send them our way!