Interest in and Intercede for one another

        “Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.” (Philippians 2:4)

         How to “S.T.I.R. up one another”? We aim to “Seek God”, and “Take action” in obedience. The action involves taking an Interest in and Intercede for one another.

        Remember, it’s “Interest and Intercede”, not “Investigate and Interrogate”.  

        Imagine if you were disengaged from the church community, and you received a call from your small group leader to remind you gathering is this week, and he asked where you have been. The intention maybe noble, but the action is certainly unwise.   

        It’s often said that “I don’t care what you know, until I know that you care.”  

        Therefore when you call, call out of care and take an interest in the other person’s life, such as:

  •        “God brought you to mind today, and I was wondering how I can pray for you, how have you been?”     
  •        “Spring break is coming up, with the kids off from school and stuck at home, how do you manage?”
  •        “The vaccine plan is moving ahead, will you be getting the shots?”

        Care for others from their own interests, not your own. That way we can truly know how to genuinely intercede for them.  If we start with our own interests, we’re only moving our agenda. Start from their interests, we express care and concern.  

        Let us practice wise counsel from James: “Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry” (James 1:19).

        Learn to listen to others – to their physical, emotional and spiritual needs. Slow down on the temptation to give advice immediately/reactively. Most certainly, don’t jump into judgement and becoming angry when others seem uninterested in your care. If you just act in obedience and love, not expecting anything in return, you never know how the seeds you sow may bear fruit!

      慰問代禱

       「各人不要單顧自己的事，也要顧別人的事。」（腓立比書 2：4）

         如何「彼此相顧」？我們的目標是「尋求神」並且順服地以「行動回應」。這行動就是慰問代禱。  

         請記住，要慰問，不要問話；要代禱，不要追查。

         想像一下，如果你已經疏離了教會，而你卻收到小組組長的電話，提醒你本週的聚會，並且查問你去了哪裡……動機固然是不錯的，但手法卻是不智。

        人們常說：「我不在乎你知道什麼，直到我知道你在乎我。」

        因此，當你打電話時，請由心出發，真正地關心別人的生命，例如：

        •「今天神讓我想起你，你近況如何，我如何能為你代禱？」

        •「春假快到了，孩子們都不用上學待在家裡，你應付得來嗎？」

        •「疫苗計劃正在進行中，你會接受接種嗎？」

       我們關顧別人時以別人的需要出發，我們才能真正知道如何切實地為他們代禱。若只着眼於自己的需要，我們就是按着自己的日程表辦事。從他們的需要着手，就能表逹我們的掛念和關注。 讓我們實踐雅各書的教訓：「但你們各人要快快地聽，慢慢地說，慢慢地動怒」（雅各書1:19）。   

       學習耹聽別人 - 了解他們身體、情感和靈性上的需要，控制自己不要過快或即時提供建議。當你對別人的關懷不被欣賞時，不要輕易發怒或下定結論。假若你的行動是以順服和愛心出發，不期望任何回報，那麼你播下的種子會如何結出果實就非你所能預料!

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