Expanding Your Mind: A blog by Whitney Kelley

It’s no secret that Bent Tree Bible Fellowship is expanding its facility in Carrollton, Texas. When we discuss it, it’s typically in terms of the building itself – the facility, the expanded missions or the expanded capabilities.

It just dawned on me that it also has to do with expanding our minds – expanding my mind. As our church grows bigger, it isn’t about having a bigger role, or being worried that I will become a small fish in a big “C” (for Church!). No, it’s about my mindset. It’s about looking at every encounter as an opportunity to represent not just Bent Tree, but the Kingdom. It’s about expanding my frame of reference, expanding my idea of “mission field.”

A chance conversation with someone I’ve never met can potentially become a witnessing opportunity. For instance, I had a series of phone calls earlier with someone in another state about a matter not even remotely related to Bent Tree, but the two of us had been introduced through a Bent Tree acquaintance. The topic and tenor of the conversation were not pleasant (medical talk never is), and I had to choose how to respond to this person’s attitude. Indignant, I thought to myself that I had every right to match her attitude and put her in her place. Or I could reply graciously and calmly. Thankfully, I remembered I might be the only Christian she encountered that day; what a shame it would be if I used that opportunity to do what I had the right to do, instead of doing what is right. By the fourth phone call, her demeanor had completely changed from accusatory and insensitive to gracious, helpful and hospitable.

Of course, I have no idea what transpired on her end of the phone before, during or after the calls that precipitated her foul mood. And it doesn’t matter. My responsibility was to expand my mind and see a mission field to demonstrate patience, kindness, tolerance and forgiveness, and to exude peace in the midst of a storm.

Did I do a good job? I have no idea. Did I make an impact on her day? I may never know. Did I end my day with a new paradigm on the meaning of expanding our church and what that means for me as an individual? Yes. Just as our church is expanding its facilities, so must I recognize that, as I grow in my Christian walk, I need to continue to survey the fertile ground around me and look for territory that may require some tilling and cultivating before a foundation of friendship can be poured. An expanded vision equals an expanded view.

Whitney Kelley is the director of account services at A. Larry Ross Communications, a Dallas-based media relations firm specializing in cross-over communications between faith and culture. She and her family are also members of Bent Tree Bible Fellowship in Carrollton, Texas, and serve in leadership roles in various ministries at the church.