Finally at home

I am finally back home. This week was exciting and exhausting at the same time. I enjoyed my opportunity to get to know some of the pastors and helping discern their call. At the same time, I now have to try to get caught up with my work and sometimes that is a challenge. I wanted to continue to share what our ordinands had to answer especially about church.

The scriptural basis of my thoughts about the importance of church come from Romans 12 and 1 Corinthians 12. Paul talks about the importance of seeing that community and everyone working together provides the church with the opportunity to follow through what Jesus commanded. Paul uses especially in 1 Corinthians the image of the parts of the body. That for the body to work requires that everyone contribute their gifts to the whole. Too often churches neglect to see their individual responsibility to be part of a greater whole or what I call the gestalt of God. When we work together, we are able to accomplish more for God. Scripture, both Hebrew scriptures and Christian scriptures, speak to the fact the God not only redeems each of us but also redeems everyone and all of creation.

There are two Greek terms that speak to church. One is ecclesia which speaks to the gathering of people to learn and praise God. The other term is kioninia (not sure of the spelling) which speaks of the community coming together to care and support one another. Church is both. For me, church is to be a place to worship God and a place to provide for one another. DIY Christians are not effective nor are what God intends. Watching services on television or listening on radio can be informative and moving but that is not church. And God wants us to be present to one another and to the world through community.

I continue to pray that everyone begins to realize that we are not in this alone and "it is not about my will but God's Will." Church when it is worshipping and caring for one another is vital in keeping perspective. Unfortunately sometimes church becomes an in group that demands everyone do what the in-group wants and not pay much attention to what is contained in Scripture or in prayer. Than church becomes like a dysfunctional family and can do more harm than good.