[Part 1]
Welcome to the second post in my Round Man, Square Church series. or “Mike’s pity party” as I sometimes call it in my head.
If you haven’t already, please read part 1 of the series to get the context for this post.
Us VS Them
Today I want to share my struggle with an “Us Vs. Them” mentality that seems to have taken root in my church. Now, I would not be surprised if this manifested itself as Christian Vs. Non-Christian, just because that is so cliche. Sadly, however, it is focused on our internal church “groups” and ministries.
As with any church building, we have physical resources that are available for whatever purpose we set them to: computers, printers, classrooms, sound and video equipment, candles, tablecloths… you name it.
My struggle lies in the fact that most conversation I see around these things is NOT in the form of “How can we free up this resource for ministry and the purposes of the Spirit?” Or even “How can we optimize the use of this resource?” Instead, the conversation tends towards “How do we protect this resource and set limits?”
I have no problem with that last question coming into the conversation. As good stewards of God provided resources, I think it is our duty. However, when it becomes the dominating focus around our “stuff”, then I think we have seriously missed a mark.
As this series continues and hopefully more people share their own experiences, I want you to know that I realize all churches have their problems. We are all people. We all make mistakes. We all need Christ.
But if we all make mistakes, we should learn from them. And if we all need Christ, then Christians in His holy church need to lead the way by letting go of all the “stuff” and grabbing hold of Him.
My church is having a hard time letting go. And as evidenced by the nature of this series, I guess I am too.
[Click here to read on to part 3]
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2 comments on "Round Man, Square Church - Part 2"
1
Letting go and letting Jesus be who He says He is, the King of Glory and our friend, is extremely hard. Especially when the majority of us have been led under the assumption that we must always “DO” instead of just simply “BE”.
I myself struggled a great deal when The Lord began to show me who the church is and that I wasn’t going to hell for not going to church on Sunday mornings.
But there is that human nature that rises up in us that want’s to take control of everything, including our own salvation. But that simply can’t be. Jesus has done it, it’s finished. We need to understand that fundamental truth in order to move on and grow up as sons of God.
2
So true, Kyle. For me, as with many things in my faith, it’s a real struggle to practically live in to what I know is true.
I don’t want to just be idle, but I also want my actions to reflect Christ. Too often that turns into “doing good things” instead of sitting at the feet of my Lord and going where He leads.
Or trying to fix the brokenness that’s outside of me instead of letting Him heal the brokenness IN me.