BLOCK Church – Being Loving, Outgoing, Caring, and Kind – this is my own personal agenda I have formulated, and I share it with you. It started some time ago when I decided to reach out and communicate more often with my kids. Then it expanded to my brother in Atlanta, Georgia. From there it has started including cousins, friends, and neighbors. Now, classmates are included. The idea is to get out of the apathy of not praying for and communicating with people, and become a positive communicator of the good things in life in general and of the goodness of God. Everybody is involved in different things and at different levels of interest, so it starts with the very basic BLOCK – just being loving, outgoing, caring, and kind. In days gone by people did this a lot. People would get together and just talk, just visit with one another and share life’s experiences, ideas, goals, activities, etc. With our electronic entertainment driven society, that does not happen as much, so we tend to lose touch with even our family members. Ironically, it is through the electronics, utilized properly, we can now have enhanced widespread communication. It used to be over a party line with high long-distance charges. Today there is no excuse for not communicating with people in a positive way. We are at fault to allow our busy-ness to stifle or stop communication. It would be great if we had a revolution of praying for one another and just basic being loving, outgoing, caring, and kind, with basic manners added to that. In a society skeptical of hyped religion, and highly emotional “life-choice issues” this would serve as a foundation for effectively sharing the goodness of God and the gospel of Jesus Christ. The only people Jesus really “attacked” was religious legalizers whose condemnation of others kept themselves and others out of the kingdom of God. People want free expression? Fine. Jesus gave free expression of the uncompromised truth to all, but it was in such a way that those who were hungry for truth received it, and those who were hell-bent on having it their way solidly refused it. Even in Jesus’ “attack” on the legalizers, he maintained being loving, outgoing, caring, and kind to all in an impartial way. Love does not compromise the truth. It just presents it in such a way by the power and wisdom of the Spirit of God, that it can be received by anyone who is receptive. Those who hate the truth will hate the bearer of truth. That’s on them. But as for every believer and follower of Jesus, the challenge is to be a BLOCK church, starting with family and the neighbor next door, to reach the nations of the world with the love and good news of Jesus. As we are changed, we can be instruments to help change the world around us in a positive way. But, it starts in our own life and on our own BLOCK.