Had a good discussion over the weekend with our Catholic friend's mother and mother-in-law. The mom was asking what I was (but was not satisfied when I just said Christian). When she found out that we don't attend somewhere Sunday mornings, she flipped out. I really think she spoke out of love and concern. She was saying that especially for the kids, we needed to attend somewhere, so that they will go in the future and to just pick a place! The sad part is, she attended and her kids, now grown, are a mess, so so much for her theory. Statistics show that people in the church have just as high incidents of divorce and all the other lists of "sins" as people out of the attendance routine.
I'm not sure they heard what I was saying, but I am not judging or condemning people who attend. I know that attending can be life giving and we need to be in community. I also know that the CEO has called us to something different. I explained that I don't think we are in the fullness of that right now and I'm not sure what IT even is or will look like. I too have concerns, especially for our children. We have lots of Christian friends, but I do miss worshiping together, praying together, learning and sharing our hearts and reaching out to others together.
I know there is a lot of religion in me that the Lover is still weeding out... but we have to get to the place where Princess and DJ and Jessie... can feel at home and be themselves while coming to know and love the Lover together. The great thing about the Izzy ministry was that there was a neutral ground- not a church apparatus and not a home, but a place where we could hurt together, love together and share. I know that it is hard for people of different cultures to hang out in my home. I can sense it, as much as I want them to feel at ease. Likewise, there is a cultural divide when I go to their homes. I know that the Lover wants to break through these walls.
I often question myself and us in this period of wandering, but everytime I go to the Lover about it, I feel that He asks us to trust Him. Until He tells us a path, that is all we can do- just trust He is guiding us, leading us, changing us and that He will bring us into the community that He is drawing up.
6 comments:
If I may ask, what do you do in place of attending?
right now- listening, waiting, seeking the Lover for what He has for us. Not sure what form it will be. Today for example, I heard a couple of good sermons- one from DJ who's in a convalescent home with 2 broken legs (got hit by a car)- told me about his "Damascus road" experience (except he didn't call it that). Then Big Buddy went off about being who God calls us to be where He places us.
Worship has been weird- like coming to tears in awe of the Lover over a nature show, or in reading the word, or in talking to others and seeing the Lover's work in their lives through their words.
In place of attending?
I think the answer is within Isaiah's words.
In the 58th chapter, the godly people (church people) "seek him out and seem eager to know him, as if they were a people who do right by keeping god's commands...and are eager for god to come near."
Then they whine, "we've fasted and humbled ourselves, yet you don't notice."
God says, "Did I ask you to humble yourself for only A DAY? Is this not what I ask: loose the chains of injustice, share your food, provide shelter & clothing, etc"
(big paraphrase)
Not that we have the CEO all figured out. But somehow we're seeking out what it means to remedy injustice as opposed to attending a social club.
Or at least, that's my take.
Love your thoughts agent team. I think there's going to be (and already is) a mighty tidal wave in this country - a reformation of the American church. Where we read Isaiah 58 as TRUE - where lives and hearts matter more than meetings or praise bands. But its going to take a lot of the Spirit's power to turn this battle ship around!
I wonder about neutral territory. Parks? Pubs? Ice cream shops? Pool halls? Anywhere that cultures intersect. I think "church gatherings" should focus or at least start around these areas. Paul seemed to think so when we made his way in the town centers and marketplaces.
I think crossing cultures is a matter of discipleship - we are one in Christ after all. But when it comes to service and evangelism and justice, we shouldn't expect the world of the world! :) Go to them, or find a comfortable meeting place - and just be yourselves. That's my current theory anyway.
I understand and appreciate your desire to spend time in the presence of God, to worship in all things. I go to church. I struggle with it. I always have. I am not in a place to "be" where" you are. I am learning with a group of people, about my own religious crap. My husband is passionate about community. He wants to eat with people, feed people, share what we have with people, build together, repair each others homes, etc. We do all of that and it still does not feel like enough. We want to do the Lover's will for our lives. We are supposed to be here, now.
The best experience I ever had in a church was a home church. Guitar, scripture and communion. Grassroots adoration, expressing the word through the words of other believers and the understanding imparted from the Lover to each part of the whole, prayer for more, and children repeating the same lead of the parents, with sharing at the end. That was church.( plus homemade communion body and blood). For three months solid, I felt full, then I decided to move into the corporate setting with a night "service" and was blown away. God knew if I had not started in a home, I could not have received what He had for me. So here, now 9 years later, I am in deeper, yet not there. You are in the field of your calling. Every farmer must mind the seasons. Bless you for your obediance. May His face be revealed to you as you seek. May barriers be broken and a release of the spiritual common denominator of Christ be on your family line. Peace & Happy Easter. Not the Veggie tales kind.
Tangerine- Thank you for sharing your perspective and for your blessings and encouragement. That mean a lot to us. Some days seem so right and others leave me wondering and questioning- which can be a healthy thing. I am not near as sure of things as I used to be, which causes me to seek His face all the more.
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