“Don’t give me a church building, give me a street.”
Those famous words were spoken by our host at the beginning of this past month. This past month was manistry month which means all 9 of us guys were on one team. We have now completed month 6 of the race and had the opportunity to work with Kingdom Sports Ministry in Ocean View, South Africa. We’ve had the opportunity to play soccer, volleyball and basketball with a solid group of kids, walk the streets and do street ministry and also prayer walk each morning throughout the Ocean View Community. Our squad leader, Sam, stepped in and led our team this month which meant no team leading this month after leading for 5 months. The Lord used this month to teach new things about what it looks like to follow. Will be back to team leading now heading into month 7 in Botswana.
Our host for the month, Bradley Barnes, used to be a professional soccer player but is now using his love for soccer and the Lord to minister to the young folks in Ghost Town, Ocean View. I’ve never met someone who was filled with the Spirit more than Barnes. The Lord has blessed him with an enormous amount of wisdom and life experience.
I still remember the first day that we met Barnes and the words he spoke over us. Something that’s stuck with me since then is the phrase, “Don’t give me a building, give me a street.” Automatically I start thinking about what we as Christians consider church in America. If you would’ve asked me 10 years ago what church looks like I would’ve told you a place where people meet on Sunday mornings, Sunday nights and Wednesday nights. I’m afraid that if this question was posed to many Christians in the United States, I’d get a similar answer.
What is church?
It’s not a building.
Is “church” meant to only happen three times a week? Sunday mornings/nights and Wednesday nights?
Church is about meeting people where they’re at and walking alongside them through the triumphs and the struggles. Church is about being the hands and feet of Jesus everywhere we go. Church is sitting down with a group of Rastafarians who are drinking alcohol and smoking pot and talking with them. That’s what Jesus did. Church is playing soccer with 15 kids while they argue amongst each other then sitting them down and talking with them about how to work together as a team/unit.
Church isn’t confined to a building. Church isn’t a place where Christians meet on Sundays and Wednesdays. Church is walking the streets and doing life with people. Doing life doesn’t mean throwing the Bible at people but just sitting and talking. Let people see Jesus by the way we act. Our lives should reflect that of Christ’s.
Street ministry was unbelievable. We had the opportunity to hang out with the Rastafarians one night. Barnes had told us that these guys were the main drug dealers around Ocean View and many people stayed away from them. We decided to do night ministry and after we prayed for the Spirit to lead us somewhere, Joe sensed the Spirit leading us to hang out with the Rastas. Normally these guys wouldn’t let anyone just walk up to them unless someone needed to buy drugs. As we walked up and spoke with these men I could sense the Spirit was present and moving in our midst. For those two hours there was not one drug deal made. We were complete strangers to these guys but they welcomed us like brothers. The conversation went from name exchange to cutting up about some of us being professional wrestlers to wanting to spend more time together before we headed off to Botswana.
The next afternoon we were walking back to our house from wifi and the Rastas called us over and wanted to talk and set up a soccer match: USA vs South Africa. They never allow anybody to enter their territory while they are in the process of dealing drugs but in two days we had been welcomed like brothers and now had been motioned to come hang out. The Lord used us to minister to these men just through conversations about life and a soccer match. This is church.
We did have a USA vs South Africa soccer game. The Rastas beat us 7-6 but for that hour they dropped what they were doing to play soccer. Most of them could’ve made some good money selling drugs during that hour but the Lord used that soccer match to put a stop to that even if it was just one hour.
The love of the Lord breaks down the walls of the buildings that we consider “church.”
What is church?
We are. Go. Make disciples.
I challenge you to keep your eyes open to what the Lord has for you and ask Him where He’s leading you. He’s not calling us to keep this hope to ourselves.
I pray that our generation and those to come will cry out, “Lord, I don’t want a building. I want the streets.”
