Which Church?

And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches. Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to fall, and I am not indignant? 2 Corinthians 11:28-29 Any idea how many "churches" meet in your building each Sunday? There can be quite a collection of groups with different expectations and needs, and rare is the preacher who doesn't at least occasionally feel the pressure of trying to feed all of them with the same fodder. Happily, HSS is a great sauce for both milk and meat. HSS? Holy Spirit Sauce, of course! Don't get your sermon without your HSS, or it will be dry and tasteless and it'll spoil before you know it! It's a good thing you can bring it with you anywhere, because you don't always find it when you get there, do you? Anyway, there are always at least three groups in every meeting I can recall. There are shades and variations, and some folks belong to more than one, but I think you'll find yourself in one of these on any given Sunday. If I missed you, let me know, because I also care for "all the churches", especially those meeting with me! First off, there's the First Church of the Devoted. They come early and stay late. They notice who's missing, they encourage their pastor and one another. They are intensely interested in the success of the ministry, so they bring their all to the altar. They are the heirs of the Twelve, always in on the action, and though they are Leaders in the congregation, they are also the most fully Led. And they are generally outnumbered by our second group, the Distracted: "What's that she's wearing? Can you stand that cologne? Wonder what's for lunch? What's going on now?" Teens and toddlers. Moms and Dads. Grands and their treasures. Widows and the never-wed. Honestly, most of us can fit in this group from time to time, thinking about any- and every-thing except what we should be, but a good many people never leave it. Like the multitudes around Jesus, they are mostly there to see and be seen and usually missing or misunderstanding what's going on, the Fussing and the Fussed At. But the ones that break our hearts, that are the main focus of most of our prayers and preparations are the members of the Last Chance Church of the Desperate - the sick, the lonely, the broken, the needy, the Dying and the Dead, hoping for relief even against their expectations. Will they find it? Can they be led to it? It IS God's will, and our hope! And when Jesus heard it, he said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.” Mark 2:17 Devoted, Distracted, or Desperate, the Saviour is calling us all. Come take your place in His church, and meet with the One who makes the difference for me.

Caught Dead...Again?

...Everyone to whom much was given, of him much will be required... Luke 12:48b Remember the tale I told about my mother's husband? He's got a nice outfit ready, chosen by my sisters, if my mom "goes" before he does, so that she won't be buried in "something she wouldn't be caught dead in." While she's not in any particular danger of "going" for a while yet, he's all set. Until she decides to revise it. Good luck with that, Papa John! There are quite a few things I don't want to be caught dead in, and I think you'll find some of them in your own list. Don't have a list? Might be a good time to make one so you aren't caught...by surprise. Let's put Selfishness on the top of that list. The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried, and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side. Luke 16:22-23 Personally, I've never been in much danger of being "rich", at least by American standards, so for a long time I just kind of assumed that the rich man was getting what he deserved. If you follow up that little train of logic, it wrecks on the premise that poor folks are somehow better or more godly than rich ones. For most of us, it isn't a character issue, just lack of opportunity. You could make the case that Jesus doesn't really say why the rich man ended up where he did, but I think He gave us a pretty big hint. I suspect that maybe letting a man - a fellow countryman, maybe even a kinsman - starve to death on his front porch while he was feasting inside might have just a little bit to do with it. Trust me, you don't want to be caught dead like that! If he had even deigned to think about the beggar in the yard, it was probably along the lines of "If I help him, it will just encourage other deadbeats to show up, and I don't have the resources to feed ALL the poor." Thing is, the promises of God's blessings were directly tied to generosity (Deuteronomy15). There always have been, and I suppose always will be until the Lord establishes the new Heaven and earth, folks who try to take advantage. We have learned to not give cash, but a sack of groceries to a soul in need will never go amiss. God has been overwhelmingly generous to us, and as His representatives He expects us to be the same to others. Risky, sure, but He's got us covered. But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil. Luke 6:35