Return From Down South

I’ve just returned from a trip down south to visit our friends in Bethel and Trohilo Nicaragua. Every time I visit with these folks I am so blessed and I inevitably return with my “cup overflowing”. I am also painfully reminded of how spoiled the church in the United States has become. I realize that’s not a flattering way to talk about brothers and sisters in the Lord, but it’s true. While we were in Nicaragua, the entire village closed down to go to a fresh water spring for a baptismal. The students were excused from school and the day was spent in fellowship in a very public place. Directly adjacent to the area where the outdoor worship service was held was an open bar. But the fact that non-church people were present had no bearing on the folks willingness to sing and praise the Lord. They weren't Pharisaical about their faith either, but showed genuine love for the people there. Following the church service, the people mingled together, making new friends and inviting those who were not a part of the church to join them for food. As I watched all this occur, I was struck with the difference in the way most of us do “church”. And that’s the problem… we do “church” instead of be the “Church”. Think about it… How many times have we moved our worship service outside during the heat of summer to minister to those who don’t come to church? Unfortunately, I think we would rather stay inside in the air conditioning of our  “sanctuaries” than go outside and tell others about God’s love. If it’s hot outside, we’d rather not go thru all the hard work of moving sound systems and speakers, would we? And what about sharing the love of Christ thru acts of benevolence or feeding the homeless, hungry people in the city? I have to say that we’re really good at having “pot-luck” suppers and “covered dish” lunches, but those are usually for the “members”. It’s a lot easier for us to stay inside our “white-washed” walls and talk about how much better we are than those who are on the outside. But Jesus wasn’t like that… He was outside, with the people, ministering to the needs of those who wouldn’t be welcomed in most temples of the day. I think we need to put down our “how-to booklets” for church growth and slick sales programming for raising funds and get back to what Christ intended for the church. As I recall, the church in Acts was started with an outdoor service when Peter preached in the street after the coming of the Holy Spirit. That day, 3000 were added to the church… and I don’t think there were cushioned pews and high-tech sound systems in place either. That kind of stuff has a place, but we can’t allow the lack there of to prevent us from doing what God has commissioned us to do… GO SHARE THE GOOD NEWS. 

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