I was talking with a man who will remain nameless a few months ago. Suffice it to say that he is a close family member. We were discussing church.
This man is not a person to mince words or hold his opinions back, and when I asked him how church was that Sunday, he answered, "Not good."
"Not good?" I answered. He is a very dedicated Christian, probably one of most devout Christians I've ever known. He and his wife never, and I mean NEVER, miss a Sunday worship meeting.
"Not good," he continued. "I have no idea how the preacher can stand up there for thirty minutes and say absolutely nothing, but he managed to do it Sunday. I enjoyed the music, but overall, leaving church this past weekend I didn't feel inspired, didn't feel like I had worshiped God, didn't really walk out of there with anything, actually."
"Is this a common thing?" I asked.
"Yep," he said. "Pretty much every Sunday."
My wife, who was with us, jumped in. "So why do you and your wife continue to go to that church? Why do you go? Why do you waste your time there?"
He got very serious. He paused for a second and the words came out very slowly, but powerfully: "Because someone there might need to see me. Someone there might have had a terrible week and is on life support spiritually. Someone there may need encouragement. Someone there may need to know that there are other Christians around. That's why."
He continued. "I'm old. I've heard plenty of sermons and studied the Bible a great deal. I don't think my faith would decrease if I never heard another sermon. That's not my role in the church anymore. I'm there because other people need me."
What an amazing attitude.
In our consumer-driven society, church has become all about me. What I can get. What I like. What I don't like. What is in it for me. What is in it for my family. And if it doesn't happen to meet every one of my expectations, wants, and needs it is a waste of time. How many of us have THAT attitude instead of this man's attitude?
How many of us don't particularly like Sunday morning church services? Probably quite a few. That's okay. There are times I don't like them either. Sometimes I really love them, and sometimes I wish I were anywhere but there . . . . and I'm the preacher.
But how many of us have the maturity to say, "I'm not part of a church to consume, to get. I'm part of a church because other Christians need my witness. Other Christians need my example. Other Christians need my encouragement. Other Christians need my discipleship."
How many of us look at the Sunday morning meeting and say, "I'll bet there are young people there who are floundering around in their walk with Christ, and they need me to help guide them?"
How many of us, this weekend, will remove all of the consumerism that's been drilled into us as Americans and will approach church with an entirely different attitude? How many of us will get out of bed, turn off the tv, skip the soccer game, skip the shopping trip, not because of an inspiring Sunday morning service but because you know that someone there needs your presence there?
When we begin to view our involvement in a church like that, we know we are maturing in Christ.
We need more people like this man in our churches.
Now, I'm not giving a free pass to ministers. Ministers should be the hardest working men on the planet, because what happens when we preach and teach has an effect for all eternity. I'm not giving them a pass. Messages SHOULD be inspiring. Worship services SHOULD be encouraging.
But we need more people who are not looking to consume to fill our seats on Sunday morning. We need more people who are there to be examples, to be leaders, to be mentors, to be ENCOURAGERS to other believers on Sunday morning. This is a forgotten reason you should go to church this Sunday.
Someone there might need to see you there. And it's as plain and simple as that.
This man is not a person to mince words or hold his opinions back, and when I asked him how church was that Sunday, he answered, "Not good."
"Not good?" I answered. He is a very dedicated Christian, probably one of most devout Christians I've ever known. He and his wife never, and I mean NEVER, miss a Sunday worship meeting.
"Not good," he continued. "I have no idea how the preacher can stand up there for thirty minutes and say absolutely nothing, but he managed to do it Sunday. I enjoyed the music, but overall, leaving church this past weekend I didn't feel inspired, didn't feel like I had worshiped God, didn't really walk out of there with anything, actually."
"Is this a common thing?" I asked.
"Yep," he said. "Pretty much every Sunday."
My wife, who was with us, jumped in. "So why do you and your wife continue to go to that church? Why do you go? Why do you waste your time there?"
He got very serious. He paused for a second and the words came out very slowly, but powerfully: "Because someone there might need to see me. Someone there might have had a terrible week and is on life support spiritually. Someone there may need encouragement. Someone there may need to know that there are other Christians around. That's why."
He continued. "I'm old. I've heard plenty of sermons and studied the Bible a great deal. I don't think my faith would decrease if I never heard another sermon. That's not my role in the church anymore. I'm there because other people need me."
What an amazing attitude.
In our consumer-driven society, church has become all about me. What I can get. What I like. What I don't like. What is in it for me. What is in it for my family. And if it doesn't happen to meet every one of my expectations, wants, and needs it is a waste of time. How many of us have THAT attitude instead of this man's attitude?
How many of us don't particularly like Sunday morning church services? Probably quite a few. That's okay. There are times I don't like them either. Sometimes I really love them, and sometimes I wish I were anywhere but there . . . . and I'm the preacher.
But how many of us have the maturity to say, "I'm not part of a church to consume, to get. I'm part of a church because other Christians need my witness. Other Christians need my example. Other Christians need my encouragement. Other Christians need my discipleship."
How many of us look at the Sunday morning meeting and say, "I'll bet there are young people there who are floundering around in their walk with Christ, and they need me to help guide them?"
How many of us, this weekend, will remove all of the consumerism that's been drilled into us as Americans and will approach church with an entirely different attitude? How many of us will get out of bed, turn off the tv, skip the soccer game, skip the shopping trip, not because of an inspiring Sunday morning service but because you know that someone there needs your presence there?
When we begin to view our involvement in a church like that, we know we are maturing in Christ.
We need more people like this man in our churches.
Now, I'm not giving a free pass to ministers. Ministers should be the hardest working men on the planet, because what happens when we preach and teach has an effect for all eternity. I'm not giving them a pass. Messages SHOULD be inspiring. Worship services SHOULD be encouraging.
But we need more people who are not looking to consume to fill our seats on Sunday morning. We need more people who are there to be examples, to be leaders, to be mentors, to be ENCOURAGERS to other believers on Sunday morning. This is a forgotten reason you should go to church this Sunday.
Someone there might need to see you there. And it's as plain and simple as that.
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