Pastor’s Pen
Something Beautiful
“Spread love everywhere you go; to show love for God and our neighbor we need not do great things. It is how much love we put in doing that makes our offering something beautiful to God.” ~ Mother Teresa
Now you are the body of Christ and
individually members of it. I Corinthians 12:27
The question frequently posed to pastors and lay persons is, “Why Church?” Or, more specifically, why should we gather togther as a church?
The Rev. Dr. Melanie Rosa at Lakewood United Methodist Church in Lakewood, Colorado has preached several sermons on “why we do church, anyway.” Out of her series on this topic, I agree with four areas that Homiletics journal highlights: Community, Real People, Money and Mentors.
First, so many pastors and church families get hung up on the numbers game. Both groups worry about survival and growth based on attendance. While we certainly want our churches to flourish, survival and growth - apart from greater spiritual concerns - should not be the primary goal of attendance and other involvement in congregational life. We also need to remember that everyone benefits from participation in church life. A faith community provides instruction, support, feedback and accountability. It brings order to our lives. “Attending worship is an important way of putting the events of our lives in helpful perspective” says Dr. Rosa. We need church because it satisfies our need for community.
Second, the reason many individuals give as to why we do not need the church is because of hypocrisy. The church is full of hypocrites. Exactly! The Body of Christ is made up of “real people” who are not perfect. And we need each other to help each other through our human failures towards perfection. We need to move together from judging to loving and forgiving.
Third, many people feel all the church does is ask for money. Yes, the church is always asking for money, and giving it is for our spiritual well-being. Giving out of what we have has as much to do with the first great commandment as with the second one. We give a small portion of what is God’s back to God. And it also provides us with an opportunity to give generously to others for our own good.
Lastly, people need to be part of a church for spiritual guidance and mentoring. The lay people, paid staff, including the pastor, provide for these needs. We are all ministers in God’s family, and mentor each other in many ways.
Remember, the church is the Body of Christ!
“Spread love everywhere you go; to show love for God and our neighbor we need not do great things. It is how much love we put in doing that makes our offering something beautiful to God.” ~ Mother Teresa
Now you are the body of Christ and
individually members of it. I Corinthians 12:27
The question frequently posed to pastors and lay persons is, “Why Church?” Or, more specifically, why should we gather togther as a church?
The Rev. Dr. Melanie Rosa at Lakewood United Methodist Church in Lakewood, Colorado has preached several sermons on “why we do church, anyway.” Out of her series on this topic, I agree with four areas that Homiletics journal highlights: Community, Real People, Money and Mentors.
First, so many pastors and church families get hung up on the numbers game. Both groups worry about survival and growth based on attendance. While we certainly want our churches to flourish, survival and growth - apart from greater spiritual concerns - should not be the primary goal of attendance and other involvement in congregational life. We also need to remember that everyone benefits from participation in church life. A faith community provides instruction, support, feedback and accountability. It brings order to our lives. “Attending worship is an important way of putting the events of our lives in helpful perspective” says Dr. Rosa. We need church because it satisfies our need for community.
Second, the reason many individuals give as to why we do not need the church is because of hypocrisy. The church is full of hypocrites. Exactly! The Body of Christ is made up of “real people” who are not perfect. And we need each other to help each other through our human failures towards perfection. We need to move together from judging to loving and forgiving.
Third, many people feel all the church does is ask for money. Yes, the church is always asking for money, and giving it is for our spiritual well-being. Giving out of what we have has as much to do with the first great commandment as with the second one. We give a small portion of what is God’s back to God. And it also provides us with an opportunity to give generously to others for our own good.
Lastly, people need to be part of a church for spiritual guidance and mentoring. The lay people, paid staff, including the pastor, provide for these needs. We are all ministers in God’s family, and mentor each other in many ways.
Remember, the church is the Body of Christ!