The Church Is Full of Flawed People - Part II

Yes, the church is full of flawed people, but someone wise said, "God loves us too much to leave us the way we are."* When God entered my life, I was a new creation, but that didn't mean I quit making mistakes. Throughout my life, I've found myself having to adjust my 'want to' or habits because sometimes they pull me certain directions that keep me from growing or living the best way possible. And every person's path is unique. I want to repeat that because what I am going to share applies to my journey with the Lord. Every person's path is unique.

Years ago when I was in my twenties, God impressed on my mind that I needed to quit watching my ONE soap opera. But Lord, it's only one! Some people watch soaps all day long! But the prompting didn't go away. That was hard, especially when God didn't give my mother the same prompting, and she had TWO favorite soap operas. : ) But He wasn't talking to her about her soap operas. He was talking to me about my soap opera, and I quit watching it. And my precious, godly Mother continued to watch her two soaps for the rest of her life. Different paths.

A while back, I was reading a book I really enjoyed, although it had some steamy scenes I would skim over, but I felt a nudge to put it down. I was close to the end of this book, and I tried to tell myself that little voice was just my own mind feeling guilty about enjoying something. But the thought entered my head, What if it wasn't? Is finishing this book more important than following God's leading? I shut the book and turned it back in to the library without finishing it. It felt similar to exercising a little will power turning down a calorie-laden dessert, which I should've done more often in my life. [obviously, Donna]

This past year, more and more of my time in the evening has been filled with watching a long list of my favorite TV shows. And I felt the nudge again last Saturday-- the day before the season finale of Downton Abbey! I thought, No, Lord, not this one! Surely, that thought was a figment of my imagination or some twisted guilty instinct that rears up when I start enjoying something too much. I wasn't too happy about it, but I didn't watch it, nor the other four shows I faithfully watched on Sunday nights.

And I whined to several Christian friends, hoping they would tell me this was all in my head, giving me permission to go ahead and watch the shows. But they didn't. In fact, one of them asked me if my TV watching was hindering my walk with the Lord somehow. Oh, you mean like hours and hours of escapism? I pat myself on the back that I don't watch TV during the day, but other than Saturday night, I had my list of favorites, even DVRing the ones that overlapped. I can easily replace 'living my life' with living vicariously through books or social media or TV shows, and God knows that about me and has to remind me every so often to let go and start living for reals. [No, movies haven't affected me at all]. 

Unplugged

Something happens, though, when I follow God's leading. It feels like the spiritual pipes become unplugged. God may very well allow me to watch these shows again, because it's not necessarily the shows that are bad (although sometimes it is), but rather how they're affecting my thoughts or stealing time away from writing or connecting with people or the maintenance of life or simply living life or most importantly... Him.

God may prompt us to stop going somewhere or loosen up on relationships that are affecting us negatively or changing bad habits. But we mustn't look at other people's lives and try to pattern ourselves after them. God works differently in every life, and the model for each of us is Christ.

A dear friend invited me to attend Community Bible Study, which is open to anyone. The study is in-depth, and it was no accident that my lesson this morning was on Romans 12:2 - "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is-- his good, pleasing and perfect will." God's timing is amazing.

Yes, the church is full of flawed people, but we go to church to heal and grow and be transformed, to connect with others who are attempting to do the same. Forgive us if the church has made you feel otherwise.


*I first heard that statement in my Sunday School class, and I looked it up to give credit to who first said it, but I found it quoted on many websites with no attribution. But it speaks much truth, and thank you to whoever wrote it. 

The Church Is Full of Flawed People!

I've heard people say that they don't attend church because it's full of hypocrites. Sadly, that's true, but  here's a news flash. The church is full of sinners, flawed people who struggle with relationships, addictions, obesity, over judging, prejudice, guilt, shame, narcissism, impatience, approval-seeking, procrastination, misunderstanding, pride, lack of confidence, insecurity, fear, distrust, denial, selfishness-- oops, sorry. That was just my list of sins I was reading off.

But what those on the outside looking in don't realize, and actually they're on the outside just looking at the outside of the Church, is that a relationship with God isn't based on our performance or pedigree or goodness or number of nice things we've done for others, which tilts the scale in our favor. None of us would ever reach God that way. The world works that way, but not God, and that's sometimes hard for us to understand.

A relationship with God is based on what He's done for us through His Son Jesus. There's this pesky thing called sin we all have to deal with in this life. God and sin don't mix, but He made a way for sinful man to be right with Him through having His Son Jesus take the penalty for our sins through his sacrificial death. If we've put our trust in Christ (who's alive, btw), his rightness/righteousness allows us to connect with God.

If it had been up to us to work up this plan of redemption, we would've made it less messy, more convenient, works-based, hard-to-attain-but-easy-to-live-out rather than the opposite.

The Church, and I'm referring to those who have a relationship with God through Jesus, has its history of failures. For too long, the church gave off the appearance that only people who had it all together attended, people who didn't blatantly sin or make big mistakes like the rest of the world did. Many of us faithfully put on our masks most Sunday mornings, pretending all was right in our world. And that was what we focused on... our world... those things and people we felt most comfortable around. The messy world outside was far away. If they wanted to know Christ, they had to come to us. Pass the offering plate, and let someone else evangelize.

But then we didn't know how to talk to the divorcee who was broken and desperately needing support and love. We just smiled and kept things on the surface where the difficult parts of life could easily be ignored and passed by. We didn't know how to deal with people who struggled with addictions or those who faced losing their homes after they lost their jobs. And what about the gay community? Too many in the Church hope that issue stays in some other town so we don't have to deal with it. But it's here, and God loves and values them just as much as He does us.

What many of us sort of forgot along the way of playing church, is that the Church is exactly where God wants all of these struggling people. And since too many of us haven't been faithful enough to go to them, He's pulling the blinders off of his precious children for us to see that all of these struggles are already in the Church. They were simply hiding behind masks of expectations and pride. Lord, help us.

We are all flawed. 

We are all in desperate need for redemption. The only difference is that some of us flawed folks recognize that our only hope is accepting God's grace through Jesus Christ.

That, my friend, is the true Church, warts and all.