June 3, 2026
Dear Church of the Open Bible,
Summer is coming. I know it feels like a West Coast winter, but summer is coming. And one of the things I look forward to the most about summer is a pace that allows for relationship. Whether it’s chats around a fire in the evening or picnics at a playground, the summer often provides quality time to invite and get to know others.
This is such an important aspect of the Lord’s command to make disciples (Matt 28:19). One of the best descriptions of what discipleship should look like is found in 1 Thessalonians 2. I love how Paul describes how he and his other evangelists discipled young believers in Thessalonica. They were gentle towards them like a nursing mother (2:7). They were clear with them like an encouraging father (2:11-12). But these intimate relationships stem from a reality found in 2:8.
So, being affectionately desirous of you, we were ready to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you had become very dear to us. - 1 Thessalonians 2:8
What is it that Paul and his friends shared with the Thessalonians? They shared the gospel of God, which is necessary. But they also shared “[their] own selves.” They shared their lives. They opened their schedules, their homes, their resources, and shared life with them as well.
This summer is an opportunity for us to share our lives with others. To intentionally connect with those who don’t know the Lord or are young in their faith, and begin the process of living out the gospel with them. This is the opposite approach to fear-based, wagon-circling, that so much of society encourages these days. God has been so generous to us through sharing the life of His Son! May we respond with the same generosity.
In Him,
Pastor Jeremy