Church part 3
First of all I want to thank each and every person who contributed to this conversation. One of the reasons I love being part of the Body of Christ and a citizen of this country is that both allow us to have our own opinions and our own beliefs. What an awesome thing! So thank you for expressing those rights.
I am a bit dis-heartened that some of the responders took such strong offense to my thoughts and that others felt the need to be downright mean. I went back and reread my original posts and I'm sorry if I wrote in a way to make those people get so up-in-arms.
That said, I want to emphasize the point that I wasn't in any way downplaying the attendance of meetings or the benefits of those meetings. That was best said when Dave wrote, "...what Sam or Kyle...is trying to put out on the table is concerns 'why' of 'going to church' not just the 'whether'. And also the 'what'-what is church anyway?" I love the fact that the weekly meetings are a recharger and a refresher for so many. But to quote Andrew in his deleted comment, "If you find God in a building on Sunday mornings, Awesome! Keep attending, but in the meantime starting looking for God other places, because He is there." What truth there is in that! I would never suggest you deny the workings of God just b/c you don't find it in the same places I do. I'm not that kind of person. But I would challenge you to remember that Jesus didn't only share that time of refreshment once a week, but all the time. Our lives should reflect that if we are truly living out a pursuit of our Savior. And remember, it's not the church's responsibility to spoon feed you. Don't blame others for your lack of community outside the walls of your steeple-holder. No, I'm not a Mom so I don't have a frame of reference for where mom's are at, but don't cry you can't get out and meet people b/c of your kids, lots of other moms do it everyday.
Amy, you are so right. There's no way I can assume where Jesus would go if He were here today. I'd like to think I have an idea, but no one can be sure of a rhetorical thing like that, or of the mindset of our almighty God if He were here. Thank you for calling me on that.
I am excited for the energy this topic has created. I think we are living in an era of change that is a good thing. Church as we have known it is in a state of decline and/or upheaval. If you doubt this, take a step inside 3 out of 4 denominational churches and you'll see and hear it. That which has been tradition and habit is becoming stale and ineffective. I am not saying to walk away from your church if it is one of those 3; nor am I saying to relax if you attend the 1. Rather, what I encourage you to do is take a look at your weekly meetings in a pure and God-seeking way. Ask Him what He would have you do outside the building to actually "build" the kingdom and "reach" the lost. No matter where you attend meetings, the sinners aren't storming your doors or congregating in your sanctuaries. Find out where they are doing those things and meet with them there. That is the Jesus-minded missional work we are called to.
I am a bit dis-heartened that some of the responders took such strong offense to my thoughts and that others felt the need to be downright mean. I went back and reread my original posts and I'm sorry if I wrote in a way to make those people get so up-in-arms.
That said, I want to emphasize the point that I wasn't in any way downplaying the attendance of meetings or the benefits of those meetings. That was best said when Dave wrote, "...what Sam or Kyle...is trying to put out on the table is concerns 'why' of 'going to church' not just the 'whether'. And also the 'what'-what is church anyway?" I love the fact that the weekly meetings are a recharger and a refresher for so many. But to quote Andrew in his deleted comment, "If you find God in a building on Sunday mornings, Awesome! Keep attending, but in the meantime starting looking for God other places, because He is there." What truth there is in that! I would never suggest you deny the workings of God just b/c you don't find it in the same places I do. I'm not that kind of person. But I would challenge you to remember that Jesus didn't only share that time of refreshment once a week, but all the time. Our lives should reflect that if we are truly living out a pursuit of our Savior. And remember, it's not the church's responsibility to spoon feed you. Don't blame others for your lack of community outside the walls of your steeple-holder. No, I'm not a Mom so I don't have a frame of reference for where mom's are at, but don't cry you can't get out and meet people b/c of your kids, lots of other moms do it everyday.
Amy, you are so right. There's no way I can assume where Jesus would go if He were here today. I'd like to think I have an idea, but no one can be sure of a rhetorical thing like that, or of the mindset of our almighty God if He were here. Thank you for calling me on that.
I am excited for the energy this topic has created. I think we are living in an era of change that is a good thing. Church as we have known it is in a state of decline and/or upheaval. If you doubt this, take a step inside 3 out of 4 denominational churches and you'll see and hear it. That which has been tradition and habit is becoming stale and ineffective. I am not saying to walk away from your church if it is one of those 3; nor am I saying to relax if you attend the 1. Rather, what I encourage you to do is take a look at your weekly meetings in a pure and God-seeking way. Ask Him what He would have you do outside the building to actually "build" the kingdom and "reach" the lost. No matter where you attend meetings, the sinners aren't storming your doors or congregating in your sanctuaries. Find out where they are doing those things and meet with them there. That is the Jesus-minded missional work we are called to.
posted by Sam at 1:51 PM
2 Comments:
great topic and some interesting discussion
Hey Sam, you know, I wasn't even thinking of you when I wrote that blog entry..haha...your discussion made me think of the things I recently read and that was part of the theme. So, THANK YOU..I mean that!
~Amy
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