You're invited

I think we all can recognize the special feeling when you're invited to be a part of something. When someone takes a moment to simply extend an invitation to another. "I'd love if you could come to my party." "Would you like to come over and have dinner?" "A bunch of people are getting together to watch the game. Do you want to come too?" There's just something about being invited. Regardless of if you were able you just can't help but think, "Wow. They wanted to spend time with me." At some point we've all experienced that feeling and been blessed because of it.

There is a flip side to an invitation. It takes someone to be the inviter and often that's a challenge because it means being vulnerable. For example, have you ever invited someone to critique work you've done? You are opening the door to being really encouraged or potentially hurt. There are many other fears people might have. What if they don't want to spend time with me? What if they aren't interested in the activity?

Eventhough we know how good it feels to be invited it's often hard to think that someone else would love that same opportunity that you found such a blessing. I often have to stop and think about how many times God invites us to have a relationship with him and spend time with him. He gives us the freedom to reject that invitation yet he continues to invite us over and over again. If he does that with us then it helps me understand the importance of becoming an inviting person means.