Turning Shame into Love - Day 179 Month 6-28 Week 26-4
Today's Reading (Bible in 1 year)
Judges 18:14-19:21, Psalm 145, Jeremiah 50:28-46, Acts 13:26-43
Turning Shame into Love
I live in a rural community where I suspect the population within a 15 kilometre radius is only two to three thousand people. Yet within that area there are a remarkable number of churches. There are four Baptist churches from the Atlantic Baptist denomination, one Fellowship Baptist church, two Pentecostal churches, one Vineyard church, one Roman Catholic church, one United Church, one Anglican church, and one house church that I am aware of. In addition, there is a Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon) congregation and a Jehovah's Witness Kingdom Hall. That's twelve churches with broadly similar Christian beliefs and two others with different beliefs, yet all are communities that care about people.
Where we live, very few people can get by without a vehicle. In a rural community, even buying groceries requires a drive. At the same time, we have people who are homeless, people who struggle to put food on the table, and people who live alone with very few visitors.
For the past four years, I have worked at the local hardware store and have met many people from the community. Anyone working in retail or as a helper in the trades typically earns minimum wage or only slightly more. Currently, minimum wage is $17.00 per hour, while the living wage in the Annapolis Valley is estimated to be $26.20 per hour. That's almost a ten dollar per hour gap.
When Sylvia and I first moved here, we visited a number of local churches. To be honest, our experience was often disappointing. At one church, everyone who recognized me from the hardware store came over to greet me while Sylvia sat beside me and was largely ignored. At another church, we stayed for the business meeting after the service because we felt it would reveal what mattered most to the congregation. Unfortunately, much of the discussion centred around financial pressures and the challenge of finding a pastor willing to serve three churches.
Again and again, we found churches struggling in different ways. I understand why. Many people are deeply connected to these buildings because their parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents worshipped there and invested their lives into those congregations and buildings. Yet the church is not a building. If some congregations truly desired a thriving ministry, they might need to consider sharing facilities, merging congregations, or meeting in rented spaces rather than maintaining buildings that are becoming difficult to sustain.
What we were looking for was simple. We wanted a church that treated everyone equally, including women and those who may be different. We wanted a church where we could worship God in a healthy environment, learn the truths of Scripture, and be encouraged to love God, love our neighbours, and love the world. We wanted a church that cared for the hungry, the lonely, and the overlooked. We wanted a church that genuinely desired to help people find Jesus.
Eventually, we found that church.
It's 38 kilometres away.
As a follower of Jesus, I am ashamed. Ashamed because so many churches have become inwardly focused. Sometimes we fail to love our neighbours. Sometimes we fail to love our fellow worshippers. Occasionally, we even fail to love our pastors.
Recently, through the church we attend, one of our friends told us about a minister who had been transferred to Annapolis Royal. He shared many of the convictions that Sylvia and I hold, and we thought it would be worthwhile to meet him. The meeting was refreshing. He serves in a denomination we likely would never have considered attending, and in truth, we probably will not become members of his church. But that's exactly what made the conversation so meaningful. We were reminded that we are all part of the greater church founded by Jesus. It’s the same church we are reading about in Acts.
We later met again with this minister and a family from his congregation who share our desire to reach out and love the people in our community. I believe something meaningful may grow from these conversations, though it is still too early to say exactly what.
What excites me most is that one of our discussions centred on churches working together to address some of the greatest needs in our community.
Sylvia and I want to be part of that.
If churches can move beyond their individual walls and unite around the common goal of loving their neighbours, we can make a real difference.
Let's turn shame into honour, isolation into cooperation and most importantly, let's love our neighbours.
Have a great day!
Steve
You can subscribe to this blog and receive an email each day or week. Just visit the following link. https://follow.it/my-faith-view-from-here-daily-readings-and-thoughts?leanpub
Comments
Post a Comment