So much has happened that I haven’t blogged about that I will. But, I really want to blog about this past weekend month. This past month was just what I needed. It happened at just the right time and just the place. It filled my heart.
After over a year, Jason and I went back to a church. It was to a church that we did not think we would be going back to – a Southern Baptist Church. But, we went anyway. After much prayer and discussion, we went back to one. And I am glad we did.
COVID-19 WREAKS HAVOC ON CHURCH
You see for the last couple of years I have been on lockdown because of COVID-19. As I ventured out and began to trust my home church, I realized that my trust had been misplaced. I realized that the trust I had come to in my pastor was misplaced. He was out for his self-interest, self-aggrandizing, and self-proclamation. He had lost sight of the truth of the gospel. It was the first time I realized a pastor I truly trusted with my deepest secrets lost all my trust.
But, as I looked around, it was not just my pastor I lost trust in, it was my denomination. Everywhere I looked around I was was seeing Southern Baptist Churches falling to the world. They were falling into Trumpism and falling into what seemed to be a never ending cycle of isolationism and worshipping what was in the world instead of worshipping the Kingmaker.
NEW MOVE, NEW CHURCH?
As my husband and I moved to a new city, we moved with hope and extreme faith that God had brought us here for a time to serve. We knew that God would not bring us down here for a sense of desolation. As we got here, we began looking for a church. The first discussion would be which side of the river would be look on. We decided that we would stay on the Alabama side in hopes that when we bought a house it would be in Alabama.
As we began looking at churches and looking into their pastors, our hearts began to sink. As we past one, their pastor made no qualms on the front of their church who he was supporting. I stalked his Facebook page and he was more interested in spreading conspiracy theories than he was the Gospel. Next. We moved to the next church and it was one thing after another. We tried churches and we just didn’t find a home.
But, we finally did. It took us a long time to find a place to find a home. A church where we can be at peace and truly worship the Lord. We can learn from God. We can learn from the Lord. Our church has brought down the racial walls. Our church has brought down the divisional walls. We have core values and key doctrines and ordinances that we adhere to like, baptism and the Lord’s Supper. And we love one another. We love our community. Our church looks for ways to serve the community.
TRUMPISM?
Trumpism brought a conservative court that allowed states to choose what to do with abortion. Many states already had laws on the books outlawing abortion. But what do the churches do with that? Do churches just celebrate this or do they prepare to serve these mothers? It was exciting to see that with this landmark ruling, our church is looking for ways to go above and beyond with other churches in the area to care for the mothers in the community. They don’t want to abandon mothers and young children.
The question is, are you going to be a church of service or a church of complaint? Watching a number of churches online and visiting churches I realize that many churches are the latter. I am happy to report that we are finally home in a church of service. A church that wants to serve God above anything else and to PREACH the WORD of God. It has taken a long time. A very long time, but I am happy that I walk out of that church convicted and not happy and go lucky.
For once, I am happy.