Our Savior Lutheran Church
  • Home
  • Worship
    • Watch Live Online
    • Watch On Demand
  • Connect
    • Kids >
      • Sunday Kids Connect
    • Youth >
      • Confirmation
      • LCMS Youth Gathering
    • Adults >
      • Life Groups
      • Bible Studies
      • Men
      • Women
      • Young Adults
      • Young at Heart 55+
    • Find Care >
      • Prayer
      • Marriage
      • Parenting
      • Aging Well
      • Mental Wellness
      • Coaching
      • Justice
    • Get Baptized
    • Become a Member
    • Faith Milestones
    • Parenting
  • Serve
    • In Our Church
    • In Our Community
    • In Our World
  • Preschool
    • Registration
    • Preschool News
  • Resources
    • Events
    • Calendar
    • Coaching
    • Podcasts
    • Right Now Media
    • Churchcenter App
    • Pastor Tim's Blog
    • Church Business
    • Employment
    • Links & Files
  • Give

Pastor Tim's Blog

connecting faith with everyday life

I See You

10/8/2019

 
When I look out from the platform on Sunday morning, I see you. I see you as a person, not a product. Since Jesus is our mutual older brother, I see you as a sibling. I see you as someone dearly loved by God. I see you as someone who I get to love. I also see you as someone longing to make a difference in someone else’s life. I see you.
 
You know what I don’t see? I don’t get to see the investment of time, prayer, and relationship you make into the lives of others the remaining 167 hours of the week. It might be in your marriage, your family, your workplace, your school, your neighborhood or community, or your Life Group. Maybe you don’t see that either. . . or, at least don’t intentionally think about it, often. But, let’s be honest – most of you spend a whole lot more time living like Jesus with other people than you do with me at church.
 
Let’s face it. You and I wouldn’t be engaged in a growing relationship with Jesus if someone didn’t invite and invest in us. For me, it was David Bell.

David always gave me a high-five at church (even when I go home, I get one!). He found me every Sunday after worship and made sure to ask me how my week was going. He seemed genuinely interested in my lame job at Pizza Hut. . . and yet, more interested in whether or not I was going to join him and a group of 6 other guys at Coney Island for brunch after the service. He led a short devotion or bible study with us. He dropped in on my concerts and games. He convinced me to go to summer camp. He remembered my birthday. He gave me some of the best college advice, ever (change your major at least 3 times before you lock into your career). Dave did this every week for 6 years. That’s 312 times between junior high and my first year of college. And... us 7 guys got to meet his now wife before he even knew he was in love with her! When it comes to our relationships, that's what consistency over time begins to look like. Even when he or I were out of town or not at church, he’d make a point to call me on Sunday afternoon. Needless to say, Dave invited and invested in me as a person before he spoke a word to me about Jesus.
 
I knew that Dave loved and cared for me before he taught and challenged me to grow.
 
And, isn’t that just how Jesus works, too? Jesus asks Peter how fishing is going. “Not so well”, Peter replies. Jesus tells Peter to put his net back into the water. (You can imagine Peter thinking, “really” in my 7-year old’s sassy tone of voice.) Of course, Peter does it and we know the next words out of Jesus’ mouth were, “follow me”.
 
You see, Jesus engaged Peter in a way that Peter understood: “how’s was fishing last night?”. He listened. Jesus invited Peter to follow him. And for the next three years, Jesus invested everything He had in Peter. Jesus taught Peter everything He knew. . . showed him everything He did. . . Jesus encouraged Peter, corrected Peter, and stuck with Peter – even when Peter didn’t stick with Jesus. Jesus invited and invested in Peter as a person before he spoke a word to him about Himself.
 
We all need someone to invite and invest in us… and someone to invite into our lives and invest in for the long-haul. It’s how God designed us to be. It’s who Jesus saved us to become.
 
So, here are three ways you can get started inviting and investing in someone else:
 
  1. Acknowledge who you have already invited into your life. Maybe it’s a child or grandchild. Perhaps it’s a long-time friend. Maybe it’s someone else’s child or grandchild. Most likely, it’s someone if you think about it who you have known for a while. And, perhaps you never thought you influence the way they think, talk, feel, and live. Think about those people and write down their names.
  2. Invite them into things you already do. List everything you do on a regular basis. Grocery shopping. Meals. Walks. Runs. Working Out. Commuting. Doing yardwork. Cleaning the gutters. Invite them to join you in these seemingly “basic” tasks. You’ll be surprised the impact you make simply walking around Fred Meyer while you listen to how their day is going for few minutes. 
  3. Affirm your relationship. Say, “I’m so glad you’re part of my life.” Or, if you’re not one for words like that, you can say, “It means a lot for us to be friends”. Ask that person how you can pray for them.
 
We see people more outside of church than at church. And the best way to see people is how Jesus sees people – harassed and helpless like sheep without a shepherd. Translation: Jesus sees people longing to make a difference in someone’s life because He, the Good Shepherd made the biggest difference in yours.

Invite. Invest. I can’t wait to see you on Sunday.
 
Love you more than you know.
Tim

Comments are closed.
    Connect with
    ​Pastor Tim

    Meet Pastor Tim

    Tim Bayer has served as Our Savior's Lead Pastor since September 2019. He also serves as an Adjunct Instructor at Concordia University - Irvine, a National Leadership Facilitator and Resource, and with the Northwest District of the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod.

    Tim studied sociology, psychology, and theology prior to earning his M.Div at Concordia Seminary - St. Louis. He also is a candidate for an Ed.D (ABD) in Transformational Leadership.

    He is married to Beth and they have three children. Together, they enjoy exploring the outdoors, experiencing culture, and pizza and movie nights.

    Archives

    May 2025
    April 2025
    March 2025
    February 2025
    January 2025
    December 2024
    November 2024
    October 2024
    September 2024
    June 2024
    May 2024
    April 2024
    March 2024
    February 2024
    December 2023
    November 2023
    October 2023
    August 2023
    July 2023
    June 2023
    May 2023
    April 2023
    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019

    Categories

    All
    Celebrations
    Community
    Culture
    Faith
    Future
    Leadership
    Milestones
    Neighboring
    Serving
    Stories
    Story
    Theology

    RSS Feed

OUR CHURCH

Service Times & Location
Mission & Values
Staff
Resources
Contact Us

GET INVOLVED

Connect
Serve
Grow
Give

OUR SCHOOLS

OSLC Preschool
Concordia Christian Academy (K-12)
© 2025  |  Our Savior Lutheran Church  |  253.531.2112
4519 112th St E, Tacoma, WA 98446
Office Hours: Mon-Fri 8:30-3:00
Sunday Services: 9:00 & 10:30am
Site Services by Well Water Design + Weebly
Privacy Policy
  • Home
  • Worship
    • Watch Live Online
    • Watch On Demand
  • Connect
    • Kids >
      • Sunday Kids Connect
    • Youth >
      • Confirmation
      • LCMS Youth Gathering
    • Adults >
      • Life Groups
      • Bible Studies
      • Men
      • Women
      • Young Adults
      • Young at Heart 55+
    • Find Care >
      • Prayer
      • Marriage
      • Parenting
      • Aging Well
      • Mental Wellness
      • Coaching
      • Justice
    • Get Baptized
    • Become a Member
    • Faith Milestones
    • Parenting
  • Serve
    • In Our Church
    • In Our Community
    • In Our World
  • Preschool
    • Registration
    • Preschool News
  • Resources
    • Events
    • Calendar
    • Coaching
    • Podcasts
    • Right Now Media
    • Churchcenter App
    • Pastor Tim's Blog
    • Church Business
    • Employment
    • Links & Files
  • Give