What Would You DO for Jesus?

{Note: Scroll down for Thursday Thirteen.}

Before she traveled with Women of Faith, and before she looked like this: Sheila Walsh was a major player in 1980's Contemporary Christian music. In fact, the Sheila Walsh that I first "knew," and listened to, on my stereo looked like this:

She was "edgy" and really had quite a unique "rock" sound. I had the opportunity to hear Sheila in concert on more than one occasion during my college years. In fact, here are DH and I at a music festival (in 1985 or 86) where Sheila played:

Dontcha' LOVE the hair???

Anyway, she ministered to me in a big way. I loved her songs. I loved her humble attitude. I loved her Scottish accent. I loved her stories.

Today, something she said in one of those concerts back then came back to me.

DH and I have been talking about some current criticism in Christian circles about how different churches reach out to those who aren't connected with a church. This would include things like having coffee available at the service, perhaps meeting in a space that is not "churchy", using large screens for projection, or any other thing that someone considers "out of the ordinary". Some Christians have decided that some of these things are "wrong".

In my personal opinion, just about anything we can do (within moral reason) to make church positive, relevant and meaningful for those who are disconnected, is a good thing. So, I tend to dismiss this thinking as harsh and filled with judgment. I mean, who cares if a church serves gourmet coffee? If it helps someone be able to relax as they listen to a sermon, is that a bad thing? And so what if the church encourages people to come in their shorts vs. getting dressed to the nines?

Back to Sheila...

One of the last times I saw her in concert, she was talking about facing criticism for the way she dressed for her concerts back then. And she replied in her sweet Scottish voice: "I'd paint my hair green and stand on my head if it'd help people to love Jesus."

I guess we all have to ask ourselves just how "far we are we are willing to go" to reach out to others.

Sheila's message that day was so much more than green hair or headstands. It was her personal conviction to reach people in a way they understood. She knew then that, for some people, it required becoming more "like them" in order to point the way to a different path. And she knew that nothing else was going to help them connect than what they "knew" and "understood".

So, I am pondering the question again more than 20 years later....because I still think it's worth reflection: "What would I be willing to DO to help someone love Jesus?" AND "What should the church be willing to do?"