Church
Recently I was having lunch with a member of our congregation and we were discussing how to make God relevant to our community. One of the things that we talked about was using movies either in a sermon or a class to promote discussion and deal with issues, questions, and concerns that the member in the pew deals with and may need deeper understanding to cope.
After the discussion and moving on to other matters, our conversation was interrupted by a lady at an adjoining table. She said, “Would you like some unsolicited advice?” We said, “Yes!” Her take on the conversation was that “watching” movies at church would not be something that she would be interested in. If we wanted to have a movie night, then that might work, but when she goes to church she doesn’t want to see movies. Of course, she did not understand what we had been talking about, but we smiled and accepted her take on the conversation.
Then one of us asked her where she went to church. To our surprise she said that she didn’t go. I found that interesting, but understood. Then I asked her if she would be interested in coming to our church services. She said, “No, your church is too liberal.”
This is where I was totally confused. She was giving us advice about how to do church and didn’t even go herself. She would not go to a “liberal” church, but would rather stay at home. She would rather “forsake” the assemble of God’s family than to go to a church she considered wrong.
How the devil tricks us. I am not defending our church on whether we are liberal or conservative, but on the thinking of this lady. She is robbed of fellowship with God’s people. She is losing a blessing of worshipping God with his children. She chooses to stay home instead of worship and then when someone encourages her to worship, the church never fits.
May God forgive our thinking.
After the discussion and moving on to other matters, our conversation was interrupted by a lady at an adjoining table. She said, “Would you like some unsolicited advice?” We said, “Yes!” Her take on the conversation was that “watching” movies at church would not be something that she would be interested in. If we wanted to have a movie night, then that might work, but when she goes to church she doesn’t want to see movies. Of course, she did not understand what we had been talking about, but we smiled and accepted her take on the conversation.
Then one of us asked her where she went to church. To our surprise she said that she didn’t go. I found that interesting, but understood. Then I asked her if she would be interested in coming to our church services. She said, “No, your church is too liberal.”
This is where I was totally confused. She was giving us advice about how to do church and didn’t even go herself. She would not go to a “liberal” church, but would rather stay at home. She would rather “forsake” the assemble of God’s family than to go to a church she considered wrong.
How the devil tricks us. I am not defending our church on whether we are liberal or conservative, but on the thinking of this lady. She is robbed of fellowship with God’s people. She is losing a blessing of worshipping God with his children. She chooses to stay home instead of worship and then when someone encourages her to worship, the church never fits.
May God forgive our thinking.
posted by Sid Dye at
6:14 PM
2 Comments:
Cafeteria style religion at its best. Although it could have been "church" that got her there. Who knows what the reason, but you're right. She is missing out on lots of great fellowship and love.
Maybe the church could leave the building and go and show her what God's people can do. Maybe she just needs to see God's people working.
Just a thought but maybe she needs some EPIC faith in her life. We could all use some EPIC faith in our lives.
E - Experiential, P - Participatory, I - Image Rich, C - Connective. EPIC.
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