Friday, March 28, 2014
1 Corinthians 9:16-27
St. Paul, in his first letter to the Corinthians states, “I have become all things to all people, so that I might by any means save some.” I have to wonder, can we, as Christians truly become all things to all people? Is that really what Paul is challenging us to do? And if so… how is that even possible?
Perhaps, what Paul was encouraging was that we, as the church, as a group of Christ’s followers, make our best effort to reach out to connect with as many people as possible, to build relationships in all aspects of our own lives rooted in a confidence that we know who we are as God’s people and grounded in our faith in Christ. When we are confident and honest about who we are and what we stand for, the people around us, the people that we are in relationship with are free to be themselves as well and in this we learn and grow in faith together. Maybe even more dramatically, the people surrounding us that we may not know or be in relationship with will be attracted by our honesty and will want to know how it is we can live such confident lives, giving us the opportunity to share our faith and the gospel with them.
A great example of this came across my Facebook newsfeed this week in an article written in the Huffington Post with the headline reading: Nun Rocks It On Italy's 'The Voice' Singing Competition And No One Can Believe It: Sister Cristina Scuccia Wows
In the video we find a 25 year old faithful servant of God belting out an Alicia Keys tune and shocking the judges, bringing at least one to tears when they turn to find a nun clad in traditional black habit and silver cross.
Sister Cristina tells the judges that yes, she is indeed a real nun and that she came to the voice because she has a gift and she wanted to share that gift. She, like all of us are called to evangelize, and to share our gifts and the good news of Christ with everyone we meet. While being all things to all people is an overwhelming task for a single person, but when we work together, reaching out as best we can as individuals, making connections and building relationships with those around each of us, as the church we will change lives, just as Paul did.
-Rev’d Sharla Ciupak
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