In my last post I spoke about believing in God and in this post I am going to once again voice my concerns about the church of today. Now do not get these two confused. I know that all “good” Christians attend church, but maybe this is part of the problem.
As I grew up in the Church, I knew that there was this expectation to attend, be involved, contribute, and be a part of the overall health of the organization. I did not come to know this necessarily by example, but by teaching and implied expectations.
As I got older and had various run-ins with the Churches I was either involved in or worked for, and I began to have times when I drifted away from corporate worship. Now do not translate this as drifting away from God, as what my wife believes, but rather I drifted away from the people that I wanted to trust and feel safe around. Unfortunately, these unsafe-people were the ones (mostly collectively, sometimes individually) who let their church implied ethical desires over-rule their Christ-like desires within the church.
Implied ethic; for some, internal defenses just reached Defcon 1, while others know exactly what I am talking about. In every church, or every religious tradition for that matter, there are implied acceptable and unacceptable ways of acting, dressing, or conducting oneself. In general some examples of do not’s are: do not smoke, do not get drunk, do not cuss, do not commit adultery, and do not be caught in blatant sin. Some general do’s are: do shower, do look moderately presentable, do observe and preserve your church’s traditions, do provide for your family, do provide for the church, and do respect your religious leaders. In addition to these some particular’s of my religion are: do not use instruments in worship, do not question the validity of the Bible, do limit women’s roles in the church, and it is ok to look down on others if you are doing it in outwardly loving way.
While there are many conversations that can stem from my above slightly accusational list, what I want to concentrate on is the last one.
A few years ago I worked for a church and I was constantly frustrated how people would begin coming to our church and then slowly drift away to attend another church nearby. From this I would blame our programming, the worship, the sermon, the lack of community outreach, or the church leadership (including myself). To say the least I was miserable. However, after being detached from that situation for some time now I am beginning to understand that many of those within that church had come from a long line of leaders and teachers that loved only those similar to them-selves. So it was not that the church was not providing enough, it was their inability to love outsiders.
Churches are a dime a dozen in today’s society. I used to think this created a need for marketing, a good developed sales pitch, and relentless advertising until a church became the only one people thought of. This is the way of the world; promote, promote, promote. But it is not the way of Christ.
Christ did not promote himself. He did not put up billboards, pass out fliers, or advertise a free BBQ with child-care. Rather he loved people. Openly and honestly, he loved people. He served them by attending to the sick, teaching them about a better life, and being an example to his disciples.
Mark 6: 34-37
When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things. By this time it was late in the day, so his disciples came to him. “This is a remote place,” they said, “and it’s already very late. Send the people away so they can go to the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat.” But he answered, “You give them something to eat.”
The Church I currently attend has this wonderfully subservient ministry where they help people financially. I think that this is a great need based ministry as a largely lower-income area surrounds our Church. About a year ago our church saw this ministry growing beyond the capacity of one full-time minister and rather than hiring another, they asked church members to get involved. So now as classes takes place on Sunday mornings, a particular group meets and attempts to provide for the physical needs of our neighbors.
My wife tried to get me involved in this ministry, but something deep inside me resisted. It was only this evening that it dawned on me why.
When we read about Christ serving others, we read about it coming from himself and his abilities; though today we allow the Church to do this dirty work. We sit in our pews and put money in a collection plate (or use bill pay in my case), and entrust the church to divvy out what we tithe to God. So I have a suggestion, why don’t we do it OURSELVES?
Yes, we should contribute enough to have a place to worship and even pay for our full-time ministry staff (they really do have a tough job), but how much more personal, how much more loving, would it be for us to write a check to help keep someone else’s lights on? We are told to attend to one another’s needs. By pulling out that cash or using that personal check, our bank accounts take a hit and it finally becomes personal to us.
This personal connection is what our churches need today. It is what American culture is missing as we do not have a real understanding of community. We do not share and we do not serve unless it is in an appointed time and place. So what if, just what if, we began doing that sacrificially everyday?
Would the Church look different?
I think so.
Would people’s needs be met?
I think so.
Would we have the ability to connect with others?
I think so.
Would Christ-like love be displayed?
I think so.
With something so simple we could change the tradition of the Church and its ability to love.
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