I was sitting at Starbucks typing away and doing some research when a party of four sat down next to me. It was crowded and the tables were close. The two couples chatted about general life stuff for the first ten minutes or so. Yes, I was eves-dropping. Like I said, they were sitting VERY close. The conversation then turned serious. One of the men needed to talk through some junk that was happening at their church. He began expressing concern about how the church was using their finances and how the pastoral staff was leading the congregation. The discussion continued and I had to leave. I didn’t hear how they handled their issues or if they came to any resolution. I’ve heard many church conversations before: the church hurt someone, ignored someone, back-stabbed another, didn’t meet the needs for a particular person, and so on. This little church debate in Starbucks got my mind spinning: What is the role of the church anyway?

I first went to church with a friend in high school. My parents were not church-goers so it was just me. I invited my dad to join me once and warned him about the weird hand raising that occurred during worship. I was worried he’d think I was part of some strange cult and yank me out of there. Thankfully, he wasn’t as weirded out as I thought he’d be. He stayed and eventually found his own hand-raising church.

Church can be weird. Church can be messy and ugly full of feelings of disgust and hate. Church can bring out the very best and the very worst in people. Church unites and divides. Church breaks us down and builds us up. Church can be very powerful yet ineffective; prideful yet humble. Church can alienate. Church can help someone feel like they are finally loved. Church is many things to many people.

What was the intention behind church? Did God create church? What was His vision?

“So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.

“Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.” Ephesians 4:11-16 (emphasis mine)

If I look into God’s Word and study His vision for fellowship and His church, I see a place where people are nurtured and loved in such a way that they radiate the light of Jesus. Church is not a denomination. Church is not a building. Church is not a set of rules that will get you into Heaven. Church is not an experience. Church is a place where people come together in all their mess united for Christ purposefully building one another up in love for the Kingdom.

There are ideologies out there that require rituals in order to gain Christ’s acceptance and church membership. Some churches create by-laws for by-laws that must be followed or you’re out. Some places of worship close their doors on those that are different, dirty, poor, addicted, royally messed up. This is not church.

Our churches are being led by worn-out underpaid servants who love so deeply they have a tendency to run themselves into the ground for the betterment of the congregation. The same people tend to volunteer week after week. Mercy and grace are needed and deserved, but rarely felt. We know deep down that our souls long for something like church, but we don’t know how to let go and get to that place. Walking into a building in which vulnerability is almost a requirement frightens us. But, it is so needed. We were created for connection.

Don’t give up on church. God knew we’d need each other, thus, He created the church. Let’s not forsake the art of gathering with one another to learn from each other, challenge one another, forgive first, give grace no matter what, be kind, and give rest. Let us create a space where vulnerability is celebrated and not scary; where love and grace are endless. Unity does not mean sameness. It means power in the differences. Let’s bring our differences to the one place they have the most value: church and build His kingdom on Earth as it is in Heaven. Amen.

Love & Blessings,
Meg