So what's the point? Are we fighting a losing battle?
Ok, a little background...
I work in a fairly large church in a less than ideal area of town (if you're white, can pay for your own meals and consider poor neighborhoods dangerous). Formally a shining beacon of wealth to the city, now, maybe a little more reflective of our surroundings, our church underwent a shift in direction a few years back.
To serve the community.
Kinda makes me wonder what the hell we thought we were doing in the first place, but anyway...
Under some serious vision we start caring for our community, making a difference, being real. But in recent months, setback after setback after setback...
The visionary minister dies, ok he leaves his vision in a few people which is great so we carry on with a new minister, equally noble in his quest, thankfully, although he has a massive task trying to hold everything together. But why did the former minister have to be taken away in the middle of such groundbreaking work in our area?
Then all the people who are a little frightened by the big issues start leaving, along with their generosity because they doubt that anyone else in the world could carry on the work that has begun.
So we are becoming a poor church, serving a poor community, continually losing money, resources through theft, and staff as a result of us losing money. Leaving the new minister with the added sucky task of continually bearing the bad news, I really feel for him (But it must be said he is doing a sterling job and it is an honour to try keeping the ship afloat alongside him)...
I know God is in these people, I can see it, but how much longer can we keep up the fight? How much longer can we keep the vision? How long until everyone gives up on this poor community that I have grown to love for its honesty and its 'realness' and will to dig up the fake, and tackle the truth. How long until we go back to wealthy 'white' suburban fake, make-me-feel-nice-about-myself-and-ignore-the-need-around-me churches?
Dear God I pray that we may never lose that vision...
there is a story told about a guy who goes to a city and God says: "aaaah, screw it, these okes are kak, I'm gona burn thier city to the ground" there was a bloke there who said to God: "Eish, that's a bit harsh don't you think?" and then there was this whole conversation between them and in the end it came down to a sparring match between the two of them where this oke keeps saying: "if there were just a few good people there, would you burn it down?" and he keeps getting lower and lower in the number of good people that need to be in the city to keep from burning it. the end of the story is that God says there only need to a hand full of people to keep from burning it.
ReplyDeleteNow, obviously this is a story (well, obvious to me at least) but i can't help but get the feeling that there's this idea that it only takes a few good people to keep something afloat. I suppose I'm saying: keep positive, but I say this in the face of being one of the 'ship-jumpers'. even if it's not through choice. but maybe another way of looking at it is to say: "What about MY spiritual growth? am I still growing in this place? Do I still hold the vision?" when the answer becomes no, then we need to seriously look at what's going on, but ultimately we are responsible to keep true ourselves first, then to worry about others.
Essentially, what does the gospel of jesus mean to me, and am i living it?