I am ruined for church as usual.
I can not stand Christians who just want to repeat the past instead of creating the future.
I am ruined.
I want no part of comfortable, complacent church.
I want no part of stoic, musty, stale church where comfort is king and eyes are fixed on the past.
I am ruined.
What ruins you?
3 comments:
I'm game.
I cannot stand there are so many people who do not know the love of God.
I cannot stand that there is much complacency and little sense of urgency to reach out to those outside our comfort zone.
I cannot stand that we waste resources on inconsequential matters instead of keeping our eye on what is important.
I cannot stand that we let people stay in their safe and secure world instead of challenging them to actively show God's love outside of the church walls to the local community and beyond.
These are a few things for which I cannot stand. The question is...how will God use me through the things for which I cannot stand?
Sonya,
Your question is the one question (I think) that stops well-intentioned Christians from taking their next step: the question of how.
Bill Hybels calls this one's "holy discontent" and it is this discontent that fuels the passion for finding a way through the "How?" and into the "Wow!" of God's work in the world.
I would suggest continuing to read scripture diligently and praying for wisdom and insight about your "holy discontent". I truly believe that God will give you the insight necessary to find a way to be used for God's glory through "the things for which you cannot stand."
When I started studying Christian clowning - I found that they were considered the "Divine interrupters" - they were the only ones allowed to poke fun at the priests/rulers of the Middle Ages, as well as "interrupt" pompous proceedings. Because of that power - they could question poor decisions being made, illuminate points and sometimes even re-direct reasoning. I loved that, because so many times I have wanted to stand up in lackluster committee meetings, boring church gatherings and just say, "people wake up, look at what's happening, we're missing the point, we can be better!" So I became a Christian clown. NOW, I have progressed to not having to have on the clown nose - just speaking my mind and working towards making things better. Sometimes, that makes me not as popular, but oh well - some people probably SHOULD be afraid of clowns!
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