Allow for Curiosity

One major thing that I have been learning as I work in a new place has been this: We must wait on people to gain curiosity and ask questions before pushing our agenda!!  Read that again please.

The temptation as we try to meet people in a new place and accomplish our vision of planting churches is to quickly announce why we are here and what we are doing.  When we do this, we are answering a question that is not yet being asked and possible forcing our way into soil that is not yet ready to plant in.  

People are naturally curious...if you allow them the time to get there.  Then, they ask. I think that we we press answers into people who are not yet asking the right questions, we prevent them from becoming truly curious. We actually rob them of something special.  

Jesus described himself as the water of life and the disciples as the salt of the earth.  If people eat salt, it will make them thirsty, even if they have not been thirsty before.  If people are not yet thirsty for the water of life, feed them salt. Then they will become thirsty and they will drink. 

I am finding that it is FAR more effective to wait on people to ask the questions.  That is how we know if they are hungry or not.  If they are not asking for the food, they are likely not hungry for it....so, we can move on....because someone down the road may be starving! The missional relationships will be far more effective if you wait on them to get curious before sharing your agenda. 

Just my $0.02.