Reasons for Tears

I once overheard a conversation between two believers; one newer and one older.  The newer of the two was complaining to the older that no one from church ever came to visit them.  The older just laughed and said no one ever came to visit them either.  They continued to complain abit and then moved on.  I remember being a bit dumbfounded by that.  They did not live very far apart from each – why would they not visit each other?

 

Here’s a verse for you, from Acts chapter two, verse 42:  “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”

 

One does not have to look very hard within the pages of the New Testament to see how close the members of the early church were with each other.  Matter of fact, they seemed to do a lot together and I strongly suspect that included more than just “churchy stuff”.  So, I ask a question:  what the hairy heck happened?!

How many believers end up walking away from not only their local church but “the Church” – their very faith - because they now find themselves alienated?  Before they were saved, people came and went all the time.  They could go visit people they had some common ground with and welcomed.  People just dropped in to do nothing more than just hang out for a while.  Then they get “saved” and find themselves alone.  No one comes to visit and if they go to visit someone else – within the faith – it is usually this awkward moment as everybody tries to pretend they are perfect.  The only relief they find from their isolation is to sneak out and be part of the world around them – leaving their God at home as if He were some unwelcomed pet dog!

This should not be!

We are losing them!  They are walking out into the wolf pack and being consumed by it!  They are dying and taking the lost with them!  What horror have we wrought on this world?  What have we done, Church, what have we done?  We are doing Satan’s work for him!

Quit being so damned formal all the time!  Stop trying to hide who you are and what you like from other believers.  So what if you like bad Sci-Fi movies rather than the newest Christian flick?  So what if you would rather listen to Lynard Skynard or Pitbull over traditional gospel tunes?  You may just find that the very people you are trying so hard to be perfect in front of are just like you are – not perfect – and possibly even interesting.

(credit where due: a line of this must be credited to Patricia Kennedy)