Church Shopping Anyone?

My friend Joe Boggs has a good post, here, on the idea of the "vow of stability" in the Benedictine tradition contrasted with the phenomenon of church shopping, i.e., people jumping from one church to the next to find one that suits their "needs." I can see both sides of the issue, and I'm curious about your thoughts, but here is what I commented to him:

"Joe, that reminds me of Luther and Wesley who, although they revolutionized the churches they were a part of, never intended to leave them. Luther was forced out, and Wesley never actually did part with the Anglicans. It seems that a lot of the positive movements have been where people sought to stay but were forced out.

Still (and I'm curious about your thoughts), what to do when the very place where we're supposed to be in relationship and receive proper teaching and encouragement, ceases to be that place?

To wit: Barb and I have visited nearly 20 different churches since we've been here in Toledo. The reality is that there are maybe 2 or 3 that we might consider staying at if God hadn't called us here to do something different. Most of it is because the communities seem more focused on themselves than on others. But there's also the felt lack of depth in worship, fellowship, and teaching. We want to be someplace where it's obvious that God's Spirit is moving and has freedom to blow where He listeth. Sadly, our experience, and the experience of many is that there aren't many places like that.

That doesn't mean the church has to be big either. We were a part of two churches in K.C. (Trinity, a.k.a. Rainbow Blvd., and Jacob's Well) that fit the bill above. Trinity was ~100 and Jacob's Well was ~450. Lima Community Nazarene in Ohio reminds me of a large church (2200) that's trying hard to do the right thing and be outwardly focused.

All that to say, I believe there's a time to stay and a time to go. Probably people leave too quickly, but sometimes they may stay too long. Not everyone has the spiritual disposition to endure years of dryness and antipathy. And if on would argue that a person should work on their own spiritual life in spite of what's going on in their church, then that discounts the primarily relational character of the Christian faith--we're never meant to live it out in isolation and with no support.

I'll end with this: If we believe that the Church is as important as we say it is--for fellowship, encouragement, spiritual teaching, service, etc.--then we need to take into account what to do when a particular church fails to provide any or even all of them."

What are you thoughts?

Where Were You Born?

Most of you were probably born in a hospital. A few might have been born at home. Maybe one of you was born roadside in the backseat of a car. Probably none of you was born in an animal's food trough. But that's where the Son of God first rested His head on our earth.

As we talked about this last night at our weekly Bible study, I was moved by the brilliance of God's plan. Consider this:

• Mary and Joseph had to travel roughly 100 miles to reach Bethlehem from Nazareth. It was at least a 3 day journey. Had not Caesar called for a census, they most likely wouldn't have traveled to Bethlehem thus leaving the prophecy in Micah 5:2-5 unfulfilled.


• The Hebrew name Bethlehem literally means "House of Bread ." Jesus, who said of himself, "I am the Bread of Life," (John 6:48-51) is born in Bethlehem--the House of Bread.


• Because of the census, the inn of Bethlehem was full. Mary found herself giving birth to the Son of God in a barn, surrounded by animals many of which were destined to become sacrifices for the sins of the people or to provide food. Jesus, the final sacrifice for human sinfulness, and the Bread of Life itself, entered the world amongst the very animals which had served in His place for so long!

If you haven't ever done so, I'd encourage you to spend some time this year really digging into the accounts of the birth of Jesus. Centuries of God's history converged on that little town in Judea in a way that's beyond imagination. There's so much there that will build your faith in God's intervention through Jesus Christ on our behalf. You won't be disappointed.