Is She Talking About Us???

I have been reading a book recently (I've already shared much of it with the MPC family over the last few weeks) and it has got me thinking about our attitudes toward church. Are we taking too much for granted? Are we running a risk of becoming attached to forms and trappings of Pentecost, with no real consideration for the power that we are capable of accessing in the Holy Ghost?

There is a phrase our world uses when speaking about one who talks about themselves so much and brags on their own abilities to a point that they convince themselves that it is the truth! Blinded by their own words, the world says, "they are believing their own press!"

We saw this during the US invasion of Iraq as their minister of public information was practically declaring Iraqi victory while American tanks filed into the background of his interview! He was convincing himself with his words, but benefitting NOBODY ELSE!

The apostle Paul spoke of some who possess some 'form of godliness' but deny the power. Is it possible that being attached to a 'form' of church can 'deny' us the power that should be resident in our services?? Do we sometimes get so busy doing the things that make US appear holy and right to the point that HE appears to be irrelevant? We never want to become one of those congregations who sing fast songs until somebody runs... who screams while preaching until someone gets to their feet... whose pastor pushes the right buttons to elicit a response to his message, while GOD'S MESSAGE gets lost in the shuffle.

We have no problem trumpeting the assertion that WE HAVE TRUTH... WE HAVE THE ANSWERS... but in a world as crazy and as answerless as ours, why are we not seeing greater results? Could it be a lack of effort on our part?? Do we really believe it like we say it??

I think that, for the most part, we live without giving proper thought to the conditions of our world, our neighbors, our community. Some of us probably do not even know the names of everyone who lives within a stone's throw of our homes!! If this is indeed the truth, how much stock and value do we really place on what we have?

In her book, Teaching a Stone to Talk, Annie Dillard describes the church like this: "On the whole, I do not find Christians, outside of the catacombs, sufficiently sensible of conditions. Does anyone have the foggiest idea what sort of power we so blithely invoke? Or, as I suspect, does no one believe a word of it? The churches are children playing on the floor with their chemistry sets, mixing up a batch of TNT to kill a Sunday morning."

I want to be able to see the needs around me. I need to understand the 'Help' that I have access to through prayer! I want to believe my own press and go do something about it!!! I don't ever want to be so busy 'killing a Sunday Morning' that I forget how to offer life to a lost soul!