The State of the Church

(Author's note: I struggled with this post more than any other I have written to date. I will not devote any space as to what inspired and motivated me to write this, but I trust that it was genuine. It certainly raised my concern for the church as a whole and I came to some inescapable conclusions. ~ JP)

Church, frankly speaking, no longer plays the pivotal role in the lives of people that it once did.

As time goes by both church and the worship experience get pushed further into the background as lives get busier and other things compete for our attention.

Part of the problem is external.

When I was young school activities and organized community sporting events were never scheduled on Sunday let alone during the same hours that worship services were taking place.

Today, parents are forced to make a choice.

As more and more of these events take place on Sunday, the church experience is given an ever diminishing priority.

The problem is further compounded by the internal choices some churches continue to make.

Some dilute the message in order to make it more palatable.

Some choose not to display crosses or other religious symbols because they do not wish to make people feel uncomfortable.

Their end goal thus becomes one of delivering a message that merely makes members feel good about themselves and presents God as having few if any expectations of them.

As these churches grow larger, the message becomes even more watered down and expectations decrease.

As such, the cycle becomes more dangerous and more difficult to correct.

I personally know of one person who joined such a church.

What was his motivation? Sadly, he felt joining this particular church would be a good way for him to make new business contacts.

As these types of churches gain in popularity one would be hard pressed to find any real and meaningful differences between them.

Beyond this there are those outside the church who openly attack it.

For some of them, merely tearing the church down is not enough.

What they desire above all else is to see it fall.

Still others see church as an obstacle.

To them it is something that stands in the way of getting what the world has to offer.

Church requires time, money, effort and a host of other resources they do not wish to relinquish.

If you have read this far you are probably saying to yourself that this does not sound very uplifting.

You are correct. So far, it is not.

As difficult as this is, I am concerned that something is looming on the horizon.

I do not know what it is nor do I wish to indulge in speculation.

One thing of which I am certain is that when it happens we will receive very little warning if any.

Furthermore, any man made warning signals currently in place may prove to be of little value.

I am reminded of a warning from the book of Revelation that I find rather ominous.

Revelation 3:15-16 (NKJV) - I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot,I will vomit you out of My mouth.

There is still a chance.

This warning is also accompanied by words of hope for the faithful.

Revelation 3:20 (NKJV) - Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.

In the final analysis the choices are ours to make and there still remains time for us to make the right ones.


Blessings,
Jim Pokorny
The Other Brother Jim
http://otherbrotherjim.blogspot.com

The More Things Change...

As I am about to turn yet another year older I find myself reflecting on change.

When I was a child television was black and white and there were only a few local channels.

Telephones required lines.

There were no computers, laptops, tablets or even calculators.

Man had not yet set foot on the moon as the space program was still in its infancy.

Now, half a century later the world is a much different place.

Television is not only in color and high definition but there are literally hundreds of channels to choose from.

With the advent of cell phones, land lines are decreasing in number.

In fact, phone booths which allowed us to make telephone calls when away from home have all but disappeared.

There have been several manned missions to the moon and we now have unmanned craft on Mars while still others orbit Earth and explore the solar system and beyond.

There are even people living and working in space for extended periods of time.

Computers have entered the workplace and it is almost impossible for businesses to succeed without them.

People are using their laptops, tablets and even their cell phones to stay connected and to access information wherever they happen to be.

Change was inevitable and I am amazed at the number that has taken place in my lifetime.

Along with these changes unintended consequences have arisen as well.

Although some television services offer hundreds of channels only a small percentage of the programs are actually worth watching.

People are using their cell phones to call, email and text so frequently that the amount of actual personal interaction between people is diminishing.

As far as space exploration is concerned, there is now a cloud of debris and space junk orbiting Earth and NASA has to monitor it constantly in order to minimize the risk it poses to today's missions.

Though it is impossible to do business without computers, identity theft is a very real threat which the headlines bear out more frequently.

With laptops, tablets and other such devices we are now bombarded with so much information that only a fraction of it is really useful.

Personally, I make use of these technological changes and would be hard pressed to do without them.

But, if one is completely honest, one must admit that the unintended consequences that came about with them have certainly complicated things.

Isn't it comforting to know that when it comes to that which is most important there has been no change at all?

In fact, there never will be.

Hebrews 13:8 (NET) - Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever!

In a world that changes at an ever increasing pace and assaults our senses with new and more difficult challenges to overcome, it is comforting to know that Jesus Christ remains a source of constant love, strength and stability.


Blessings,
Jim Pokorny
The Other Brother Jim
http://otherbrotherjim.blogspot.com