Treasure Hunting is Risky Business
10/8/2009
Treasure Hunting is Risky Business The late John Wimber used to say that faith is spelled R-I-S-K. It is my conclusion that he was right. You see, it is easy to say that we believe in the power of God in concept. We can say all the right things and have all the right theology but if we never put our faith into action, it is just a bunch of true information that equips us better to argue with other Christians. This past Saturday I went with a group from Five Rivers Vineyard to try an outreach tool called a “Treasure Hunt”. The concept of treasure hunting was developed by Kevin Dedmon from Bethel Church in Redding, California. Basically what you do on a treasure hunt is spend some time asking God to give you thoughts, images or promptings of things like places, names, the way a person appears and what they might need prayer for. You write these things down on your “Treasure Map” and then go out to look for people to minister to based on the clues that God gave you. As you might imagine, doing a “Treasure Hunt” requires some risk. What if you didn’t hear God right? What if people think that you are nuts? What if you offend someone? All of these possibilities can cross your mind when you go out on a “Treasure Hunt”. The key to activating your faith however is taking the risk in spite of your doubts. I often feel like the father in Mark 9:24 when he was talking to Jesus about his faith and said “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!” Sometimes faith isn’t just knowing that everything will go well. Sometimes faith means not being sure if everything will turn out right but going forward anyhow. That’s what we did last Saturday. All of our lists had Wal Mart on them so we figured that would be a good place to start hunting for “Treasure”. As we started on our “Treasure Hunt” we found several people who fit some of the descriptions on our list. Everyone seemed quite happy to allow us to pray for them but nothing spectacular was happening at first. Finally we saw a woman who matched a word on our list that said “red hair”. The woman appeared to be some kind of manager and she was walking with another woman who also appeared to be a manager. Two of the ladies on our team stopped the woman, introduced themselves and explained the “Treasure Hunt”. We were excited to find that one of the names on our list (Chuck) matched the name of the woman’s father. She explained that he was having surgery that day! Right there in Wal Mart we were able to share God’s love with that woman and also pray for her father. God had truly set up the moment. We were able to bless several other people that day but if she was the only one, it would have been worth it. I think everyone’s faith grew and it was because we were willing to take a risk. Risk is what makes faith practical and not just conceptual. Practical faith is what keeps us passionate. God still loves us when we don’t take risks but we can’t really get to know and love God if we don’t allow ourselves to take risks for Him. If you would like to learn more about “Treasure Hunting” check out Kevin Dedmon’s book “The Ultimate Treasure Hunt” in our bookstore or come with us on our next hunt. We will meet the first Saturday of each month in the fellowship hall at 10am.
