I've noticed over the years that we humans have a tendency to think that there are certain changes that we can make which will make things better. In a somewhat general way, we recognize that changes need to be made. The problem that I have often seen is that, even though we may recognize that changes need to be made, we hesitate or rebel when it actually comes to us, as individuals, having to change to fit in line with what is needed.
Maybe an example is in order. I work in a church. I have yet to come across a church that doesn't want to be reaching out to young families and children. Everyone seems to recognize that there are a lot of benefits to it. So we'll create strategies and programs to do that very thing. Everyone is on board with it. It sounds great, and surely God will open the doors and the people will come flooding in, right?
But that's when we start to come across the struggle. Okay, so we want to reach new families, but what if they don't know how to follow an order of worship out of hymnbook? Are we going to discard the hymnbooks? Well, we don't like that because we grew up with a hymnbook, and let's face it, hymnbooks are the way that God intended for us to worship. (I hope you can get a sense of my somewhat sarcastic tone at work in that previous sentence.) We'd really like for young families to come and worship here, but shouldn't they learn how to use our hymnbook rather than us changing for them? Oh, and it would be great if the pastor could be really active with the youth. Only, don't take him away from our Bible study to allow him to interact with the kids. Maybe he can find time outside of what we expect and want of him.
I say most of that previous paragraph somewhat tongue in cheek. I recognize that there are those who will read that paragraph and will not like what I am intimating there. The point I want to make, however, is that we may all agree on what needs to be changed, but when it comes to the point of impacting what we like or expect, we often become the very ones who resist the change, and who therefore get in the way of the change actually happening.
Changing culture and society means that we not only identify the things that need to be changed, but that we also take a good look at ourselves and the role we play in maintaining the status quo. Sometimes we may discover that we are actually the ones getting in the way of the change that we really want to see happen. We may not like the impact that it has on us, and end up getting in our own way.
So what does this mean for us? It means that we need to take a good look at ourselves to see if we are willing to sacrifice something that may be desirable for ourselves for the good of the greater culture. In a congregational sense, maybe we sacrifice having the pastor lead the Bible study so that the families and kids know that they are valued by us and by God. Maybe we sacrifice the familiar feel of the hymnbook in our hands because we want to make it easier for those who are unfamiliar with our order of worship to follow along.
As we think about that, isn't that something along the lines of Jesus telling us that we should count the cost that we might incur before we jump on board with something? I believe that this is one thing that we often don't do, and then are surprised by it when the change we are working toward begins to affect us. If we were to sit down and think about the repercussions that will probably affect us, we can either be more ready for them, or discover if we think they are worth what we are trying to achieve. And then, if we decide that it is worth the price, we take up the sacrifice gladly out of love for our neighbor.
Maybe an example is in order. I work in a church. I have yet to come across a church that doesn't want to be reaching out to young families and children. Everyone seems to recognize that there are a lot of benefits to it. So we'll create strategies and programs to do that very thing. Everyone is on board with it. It sounds great, and surely God will open the doors and the people will come flooding in, right?
But that's when we start to come across the struggle. Okay, so we want to reach new families, but what if they don't know how to follow an order of worship out of hymnbook? Are we going to discard the hymnbooks? Well, we don't like that because we grew up with a hymnbook, and let's face it, hymnbooks are the way that God intended for us to worship. (I hope you can get a sense of my somewhat sarcastic tone at work in that previous sentence.) We'd really like for young families to come and worship here, but shouldn't they learn how to use our hymnbook rather than us changing for them? Oh, and it would be great if the pastor could be really active with the youth. Only, don't take him away from our Bible study to allow him to interact with the kids. Maybe he can find time outside of what we expect and want of him.
I say most of that previous paragraph somewhat tongue in cheek. I recognize that there are those who will read that paragraph and will not like what I am intimating there. The point I want to make, however, is that we may all agree on what needs to be changed, but when it comes to the point of impacting what we like or expect, we often become the very ones who resist the change, and who therefore get in the way of the change actually happening.
Changing culture and society means that we not only identify the things that need to be changed, but that we also take a good look at ourselves and the role we play in maintaining the status quo. Sometimes we may discover that we are actually the ones getting in the way of the change that we really want to see happen. We may not like the impact that it has on us, and end up getting in our own way.
So what does this mean for us? It means that we need to take a good look at ourselves to see if we are willing to sacrifice something that may be desirable for ourselves for the good of the greater culture. In a congregational sense, maybe we sacrifice having the pastor lead the Bible study so that the families and kids know that they are valued by us and by God. Maybe we sacrifice the familiar feel of the hymnbook in our hands because we want to make it easier for those who are unfamiliar with our order of worship to follow along.
As we think about that, isn't that something along the lines of Jesus telling us that we should count the cost that we might incur before we jump on board with something? I believe that this is one thing that we often don't do, and then are surprised by it when the change we are working toward begins to affect us. If we were to sit down and think about the repercussions that will probably affect us, we can either be more ready for them, or discover if we think they are worth what we are trying to achieve. And then, if we decide that it is worth the price, we take up the sacrifice gladly out of love for our neighbor.
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