The Church

Words to Ponder… The Church…The Morrow Mirror…August 11, 2013

Those of us who have grown up in the church have heard it said, "a church is a hospital for the broken" "a place filled with sinners trying to get it right".  You do not have to be around a church very long to realize it is not a place of perfect people, but rather a place for imperfect people who want to be better human beings and to make a difference for the Kingdom of God.

The truth is that whenever you get a group of people together they will disagree about something. Sometimes the 'something' is important and sometimes it is not as important as perceived; at least not as far as the big picture goes.  

There really is no perfect organization, not even the church. Since the beginning of the church, discouraged individuals have walked away for reasons that have nothing to do with doctrine or the teachings of the church. In all groups people sometimes leave because they don't get their way. A person once told me she was leaving because the children made to much noise. I prayed for the person leaving and praised God for the children. On another occasion I was told I needed to fire a staff member. I refused and the person left.

Years ago a person told me someone said something that upset him so he stopped coming to church. It had been 15 years since this person had been in the church. So I wonder how long should we hold a grudge. A better question might be how long do we use the actions of another to justify our sins (the sin of unforgiveness or the sin of turning our back on God). Yes we are imperfect people but by God's grace we have hope that no one can take from us.

The unchurched will often say they don't want anything to do with church people because we are just a bunch of hypocrites. Well I believe every church is filled with a bunch of sinners who are trying to love God and their neighbors and it is not always easy, but we keep on trying by God's grace.

Words to Ponder...In Christian Love, your pastor and friend in Christ Dr. Ed Judy