PASTOR’S THOUGHTS
I recently was speaking to someone about the reason he does not attend church or
seemingly want anything to do with God. He explained that he was raised in the church,
his father was a pastor even! He witnessed the shenanigans that went on in the church.
The back biting, the politics, (what… politics?). He saw his father hurt by the congregation
he served. He saw the way some members were hurt by gossip. He saw people become
disenchanted with the church when a decision was made that went against his or her
opinion. Yes opinion! And frankly, as an adult, making decisions for himself, he didn’t
want anything to do with the church. Maybe you know someone who has expressed these
same views? Had experiences like his. Maybe you know someone who was very involved
with the church, hurt by someone or something or some decision, and then decided to
never return again?
Let me share a bit here. I LOVED my church in the community in which we raised
our children. A member there for over 20 years, very active, a volunteer, and then hired by
the church to lead the youth and eventually the children. I spent many hours caring for the
youth, children and parents entrusted to my care. And then, things changed, as all things
do. And suddenly this church I loved, was my second home, became uninhabitable. And I
left my position there and was hired by another church. It wasn’t the same.
You know the children’s song: “we are the church; you are the church we are the
church together”… And that is true. PEOPLE, …. Please hear this… PEOPLE are the church.
And people can be squirrely.
But the foundation of the church is GOD. We don’t come to church to worship each
other. We come to worship God. To learn about Jesus and to call upon the Holy Spirit to be
part of our everyday lives. Our everyday lives in which we encounter many PEOPLE! We
need God to help us maneuver through the challenges of encountering people!
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So, if you are hurt by the “church” or know someone who has been hurt by the
“church” please remember and explain that the church is a group of people and not God.
God exists above and beyond the church. And God will never hurt you. We read this in
Acts 20:32 that the purpose of attending church is to receive God’s message of grace and:
“that (God) is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all who are
sanctified.” We come to worship God who made us, this planet, and all creation and who
loves us beyond our ability to understand.
Peace to All, Amy
Rev. Amy Shipley
Bennett’s Corners Community UMC