What if the opposite of being personal is being shallow? Kristen Ivy expanded upon with this thought in her opening night main session talk of the Orange Conference 2019.
In the church, we like to say we aren’t shallow; we like to say we are deep. What if, instead, we decided to be more personal?
Jesus explained why He taught in parables by saying we are blessed because our eyes see. Maybe we need to get better in really seeing kids/teenagers, the needs in our community, and our neighbors.
No one needs to be seen by everybody, but everybody needs someone who sees them.
In middle school, when Kristen’s life was turning upside down, a teacher came along and saw her. She sat aside everything and made it personal for her.
No one needs to be seen by everybody, but everybody needs someone who sees them, including you. You can’t stop being shallow until you learn to see someone but to also be seen yourself. You’ve been entrusted with this ministry even though God knows everything about you.
Seen people see people. When you allow yourself to be see, you begin to see people differently.
So, as Kristen suggested, let’s stop being so shallow.
Photo credit: Provided by ©Taylor Zorzi / Zorzi Creative and The Orange Conference
Steve Cullum 