Brandon C. Jones's Blog, page 11

Can’t Hardly Wait: What makes you eager?

In the realm of sports the word “fan” is short for “fanatic.” While some fans may be casual, others fit the term rather well. Their wardrobe is full of clothing to support their beloved team. Their hard-earned money is spent on tickets, trinkets, and even road trips. Their conversations with friends revolve around team strategy and there seems to be no offseason for such things.
One thing most every sports fan can relate to is eagerness. During the World Cup this summer, I was so eager for the next game to be played by our national team that the gaps between games, which were only a few days, felt like weeks. During March Madness, I am always eager for the brackets to come out. I sometimes fantasize that my team will go deep into the tournament, tracking every game in the entire tournament until my team loses, then I often lack interest in what happens after that. If I have a special trip planned, I get so eager to go that it is difficult to sleep the night before or focus on tasks on the days leading up to it.
Maybe sporting events never get you eager, but surely there is something that does, and when it does you get hooked, right? In our region the opening weekend for pheasant season and deer season draws much eagerness leading up to it. The annual grand march before prom seems to be a highlight of the year for many people. In your area I would imagine there are similar times that call for eagerness in addition to the ones we share as a nation or as a faith, such as Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter.
Eagerness for exciting and fun things is not bad, but few Christians seem eager for worship, discipleship, and mission: the very bedrocks of church life together. Messages about salvation, songs about forgiveness, prayers that ascend beyond our rooftops into heaven appear old hat and mundane every Sunday. Finding eagerness for people to reach out to their fellow members and to the community at large by doing good works can also be difficult. Amid such passiveness we must be reminded to be eager for our faith, which is nothing new. Paul focuses on eagerness in the book of Titus.
The Book of Titus is a short letter from Paul that encourages his child in the faith, Titus, to lead God’s church in Crete well, including all its groups from the old to the young. Paul tells Titus to be firm in his rebuke of people who are rebellious and divisive among the church, but even more firmly committed to raising up and teaching people who will be eager to do what is good. The heart of the letter reminds Titus of God’s role in such a big task:
“For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say ‘No’ to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good” – Titus 2:11-14.
Being eager to do good, at least the way Paul describes it in his letter to Titus, includes living in submission to Christ by focusing on holiness, gentleness, and self-control. Such behavior is an example to believers and unbelievers alike.
After stressing the importance of doing good twice already, Paul concludes his letter with this thought: “Our people must learn to devote themselves to doing what is good, in order to provide for urgent needs and not live unproductive lives” (Titus 3:14). Where there is an eagerness to do good among God’s people they meet urgent needs in their community and their lives bear visible fruit. Paul’s same words imply that whenever churches and individual Christians lack an eagerness to do good, urgent needs in their communities will go unmet and the lives of individual Christians will be as dry and barren as a forest in the dead of winter.
God’s grace is more than sufficient for us to be eager to do good in his name, so let us put aside the sin that holds us down and get to it. According to Paul, being eager to do good is one of the best ways to wait for Christ’s return.

Weak Assumptions

When my wife and I first moved to the Chicago area as proud parents of our firstborn son, we both noticed something strange when we went out to eat as a family—our service often stunk. Everything seemed to take longer to happen, and sometimes we felt invisible. Being new to the area, at first I figured that this was the Chicago way. I had seen the Untouchables movie a time or two, but once we got a babysitter and just the two of us went out, our service was fantastic. The Chicago way was not one of all-around bad service. Rather, we were first-time parents who did not know that wait-staff often do not try as hard serving families with kids as they would other types of diners.
Of course, not every waiter or waitress operates this way all the time. I can think of several instances when our family received excellent service. After sharing my observation to friends who used to wait tables, I heard about a vicious cycle afoot at restaurants. The wait staff assumes certain people (in my case, families with small children) will tip poorly no matter how hard the wait staff tries, so they will not waste any extra effort to provide these people with excellent service. From my point of view, if I receive lackluster service, I am tempted to tip accordingly. Another family with small children tipping poorly reinforces the wait-staff's assumption, so the next time someone else of my type dines in the restaurant, the vicious cycle will repeat itself.
Assumptions stink. Assumptions keep us locked into our old habits, whether they are helpful or not. Assumptions bar us from being surprised by people. Assumptions keep things the way they have always been. Assumptions need no defenses or votes to stay put. Assumptions supposedly strengthen us, so we never have to feel overwhelmed, vulnerable, or change anything we do. Just like assumptions can form a vicious cycle in restaurants, their poison can seep into our churches as well.
One of Paul’s most personal letters within the New Testament is what we call 2 Corinthians. Paul comes off quite defensive throughout the letter, often giving his qualifications for ministry, stating his good character repeatedly, and answering the charges of his opponents in Corinth. Paul even names his critics in Corinth “super-apostles” (2 Cor 10:5). These critics went out of their way to pick apart Paul’s background, behavior, and motivations. They claimed Paul was not a good speaker. They said Paul broke promises he made and should not be trusted. They told people Paul came off boldly in his letters, but in person he was timid and quiet like a shady person with something to hide instead of a true representative of Christ. They questioned whether Paul really loved the church at Corinth or if he was just hoodwinking them for money.
In 2 Corinthians, Paul makes several points to defend himself, but the main purpose of the letter is to recruit the church’s help in raising funds for fellow believers struggling in Jerusalem. He also lets them know about his long-term plans to broaden the spread of the gospel of Jesus Christ to unreached peoples west of Corinth, but before making those positive points he spends a long time answering his critics. His letter could have been much shorter without all the assumptions at play among some church members: Assumptions that Paul was not the person they thought he was, that the marks of godliness and speaking on behalf of Christ are all flashy and showy, that God is never at work through weakness.
That last assumption is one of the key themes of both 1 and 2 Corinthians: God works through weakness. On this side of the kingdom God’s people are most like Christ when they are most vulnerable. We ought to open ourselves up to others by loving them, being generous, taking risks, and never assuming. Once we do so we may find people criticizing us for being timid and weak, because we are trying new things and risking failure and rejection. But, as Christ himself reminded Paul, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Cor 12:9a). Paul responded to this reminder by saying, “Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Cor 12:9b-10).

Stop assuming assumptions make you strong, because they never do. Only Christ’s grace can do that.

Landscapes

The past few days our small-town family drove to the Twin Cities. As our van headed east on the highway the towns became bigger and closer together. Crossing the James River marks a change in landscapes with more greenery, more trees, and more water on the other side. By the time we reached the suburbs we found ourselves in the midst of buildings, roads, businesses, homes, and traffic.
Part of me feels right at home with the crowds. I actually enjoyed driving in rush hour through downtown Minneapolis with the stop and go of all the people making their way back home. We rode a train to a baseball game, visited the Mall of America (a site that attracts more people every year than Walt Disney World), and spent some time sightseeing too. When we forgot a sundry item, it was just a minute drive to go to the store and get it at 10 o’clock at night. Something that is near impossible in Herreid, South Dakota.
Yet, for all the wonders city life has to offer, I found myself missing the landscapes of home. The rolling prairies, farm fields, prairie dogs, and pheasants were nowhere to be found while we were in the cities. Driving back west the towns became smaller and farther apart. Eventually, we passed more livestock and wildlife than we did cars. We even saw the sunflowers blooming as they do this time of year. The sky grew longer as the sun made its daily descent over the plains.
Skyscrapers, stadiums, and shopping malls tell the world that humans make their landscapes, or at least the ones that are worth bragging about. But the greatest site on our trip was a natural waterfall that people just happened to build a city nearby. Life on the prairie reminds me that our landscapes make us. It is no wonder people settle here, call it home, and come back to it whenever they can.

To be sure, God is found in the cities. I see him in the face of every stranger I pass, although I easily forget that when I am in as much of a hurry as they all seem to be all the time. But God is here too, and as a thunderstorm enveloped our town shortly after our return he made his presence known. I was glad I was back to see it.

Celebration and Its Discontents: Why churches must provide space for lament

As a child I grew up singing much about joy while with my church, which has continued on today. One of the chorus books we use each week has an overabundance of happy songs. Such songs are good because being God’s people calls rightly calls for celebration. But being a Christian in a fallen world marred by sin and its ugly consequences sometimes calls for God’s people to live as exiles who groan for the world to change, even in our worship. During those times I find it difficult to sing only happy, go-lucky songs. Where is the lament?
The church I was a member of while growing up allowed little space for lament. We detached ourselves from the rhythms of fasting and feasting in the traditional church calendar. We rarely used the songbook handed down to us in the Psalter, which is full of celebration and lament. We never spoke a liturgy of confession in public worship or practiced the discipline of confession among each other. Even some funerals would be called celebrations of life. The greater culture of my former tradition not only shut out lament, but along with it any hint of addiction, depression, or illness. Leaders were not to air any problems they may have had, no matter what pressures they were under, and such an unstated posture extended to the members themselves. The message I would hear growing up shifted slightly from Jesus asking for our burdens to Jesus removing them altogether. The Christian life was to be burden-free, or you just were not doing it correctly.
Becoming an adult I learned that Jesus never promises his people trouble-free living, and when this fallen world collides with my faith there is much cause for lament. Churches must provide space and permission not only for celebration, but also for lament.
The Old Testament includes much lament. Out of the several psalms that were written by poets with heavy hearts, Martin Lloyd-Jones focuses his book Spiritual Depression on Psalm 42-43 (they were originally composed as a single psalm) in which the psalmist laments at his soul being downcast and disturbed. Jeremiah wrote a short book called “funeral songs,” which is entitled Lamentations in our Bibles. In that book Jeremiah voices for all of God’s people distraught weeping and the lack of comfort in the wake of Jerusalem’s destruction. A wise preacher, likely Solomon, wrote the book of Ecclesiastes. Throughout the book he reflects on how meaningless life in our fallen world can be: pleasure, money, wisdom, and even youth cannot straighten out what has been made crooked.
In all of these examples the authors express not only profound sorrow and grief for today, but also hope in God’s future deliverance. A day will come when the psalmist will enjoy praising God again. God’s people will one day be restored; Jerusalem too. God’s future judgment will finally give meaning to what appears meaningless in the present.
As Christians we need not despair without hope, but we also do not have to pretend that our faith in Christ must magically solve all of life’s problems this side of God’s kingdom. For faith, at least as one New Testament author defines it, “is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for” (Heb 11:1-2). These are the same ancients who lamented much in this life, while placing their faith and their hope in the next one.

Celebrate your hearts out while in worship, but do give space for lament. The two go hand in hand.

Greedy is as greedy does

This weekend I had the privilege of traveling several hours with two farmers. During our trip I learned what silage was, and I was amazed at how many gallons rainwater pours onto a field. But one thing, or word, that really stood out during our trip was “greed.” I do not hear that word much. I speak it even less.
I realized this weekend that I forgot about the trappings, temptations, and motivations at play among a lot of my neighbors whose work and pay are almost directly tied to each other. I heard stories about a man who felt his own grandson was getting too good of a deal by leasing his grandfather’s farmland, so the elderly grandfather farmed it himself this year and died while working alone in a silo. Some people would call that tragic. My friend summed it up to greed, which is a tragedy all its own. He told another story of a conference put on by a ranching supply company, complete with frills like guided fishing excursions for no extra charge. But no one with him wanted to fish that day. They concluded that they would not make any more money fishing, so they might as well go back home and work. Previously, I had heard other stories about insurance or tax fraud (sometimes both) that take place routinely among some farmers. The person who told me about such things never outright said the word “greed.” But greedy is as greedy does.
I wonder what Jesus’ parable of the rich fool would sound like today. Luke sets up the story with a greedy question. Two brothers were fighting over who should get more stuff after their father died. They demanded Jesus to settle things for them, but he said this instead:
“‘Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.’ And he told them this parable: ‘The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest. He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’ Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain. And I’ll say to myself, ‘You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink, and be merry.’ But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’ This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.’ Then Jesus said to his disciples: ‘Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothes’” (Luke 12:15b-23).
In 2014 a financial planner would likely commend what this man did with his excess, given the uncertainties of any given year. But the rich man in Jesus' story was poor with God. Jesus does not say explicitly why, but John Chrysostom, who ministered to a wealthy metropolitan community in the fourth century, said that the rich man’s sin was his failure to see all the room for his surplus food in the mouths of the needy around him.
When we look at the abundance of our possessions in America, can we honestly say we guarded ourselves against greed? I cannot. I relate easily to the quarreling brothers and the rich fool. On the other hand, I find it difficult to relate to Jesus’ disciples who were told not to worry about their lives, even what they would eat or wear. Greed is most powerful where it is seldom thought about and rarely spoken.

Greed also feeds on our fears, so a little later Jesus tells his disciples, “Do not be afraid little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will never fail, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Luke 12:32-34). John Chrysostom was right. Jesus tells us exactly how we can be rich with God if we want to be.

And now for something completely different: An interview

Last month my friend Conor Scholes invited me to share some about myself on my blog with five questions of his choosing, so here we go:

What motivated you to start blogging?

I started my first blog in 2005. At that time there was a budding international network of biblical and theological blogs, most of which have all but disappeared by now. I started my own blog to get to know other bloggers better and contribute to the global discussion going on in real time, which was new to all of us back then. I closed my first blog in 2009. It was mostly personal stuff that should not have interested anyone in the first place with an occasional lengthy piece about my doctoral research.

I started up this blog shortly after answering the call to serve as a pastor. At first I thought I would share things throughout the week and perhaps include some material from my sermon preparation. What it quickly became instead is a weekly post on a biblical or theological theme with few links, fewer pictures, and no rants about whatever forgettable topic is making people angry online for that day. This is not the best approach for gaining mass readership, but it is a sustainable way of blogging for me.

What is your biggest challenge right now?

To balance contentment, patience, and growth. In my young adulthood I was always reaching for the next stage and planning the next move. Now that I am finally settled, I often find myself restless, especially during the winters we get on the northern plains that seem to take up half the year. My restlessness can make me impatient with the people I serve as pastor, tying my love for them to what I perceive as their performance in the church or the lack thereof. It is an unfair approach to people and poisonous to Christian ministry.

If you could have a conversation with one person, who would it be?

My Dad. Ever since he died in early 2012 I have thought of countless things I would want to ask him.

What is your biggest goal for the next year?

Our family has two big goals: adding a child to our family through adoption and raising enough funds to visit Kenya, where my wife grew up and my in-laws still live. If you would like to help financially with our second goal, please check out http://www.gofundme.com/bnmjones.

If you could share one thing with your readers, what would it be?

Thanks. There are hundreds of helpful resources online, too many to keep up with, so I appreciate the time you take to consider what I write.

On Gardening and the Godly

Jesus also said, “This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. All by itself the soil produces grain—first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come” – Mark 4:26-29.
This is the third summer we have grown a garden in our backyard. We have learned in our space that zucchini and squash grow with ease, peppers struggle, and some tasty things will spring up each year all on their own, such as wild dill and green onions. The Bible, ancient book that it is, contains so many references to farming and gardening that come to mind each gardening season as we till, plant, weed, and harvest.


TillingAfter a long winter it is helpful to break up the soil to allow what we plant to thrive. As I take my tool and plunge it into the earth there is much resistance to my churning and uprooting, just as there is in my heart when I want to cling to the sin that darkens it.
PlantingEach plant, no matter how big it gets in the summer, begins with a small seed. The seed, though, must be destroyed in the ground in order for the plant to spring forth. I am amazed at how planting, watering, and waiting will let growth do its work. If we leave for a couple days the plants look twice as big when we return, as if by magic. Seeds naturally sprout into plants that grow. When growth does not come, something prevents it. Birds may come and steal the seed. Weeds may come and choke a budding sprout. The sun may scorch a fledgling plant without sufficient water. Likewise, growth as a Christian is supposed to be natural, unless there are barriers that keep faith from taking root and springing up.
WeedingWhen we set up conditions for our plants to grow, weeds like to come in there too and freeload. Some weeds would soak up all the resources if we let them remain. Most weeds grow faster than our plants and reproduce quickly. Other weeds are imitators. This year we had a weed that grew up alongside one of our tomato plants. We did not catch it for weeks because it looked just like the real thing. It reminded my wife that as Christians we are called to be “little Christs” who grow up beside him, mimicking him, and striving to look and act just like he does.
Harvesting
Harvesting requires patience and sweat. Our first summer we harvested too quickly, stunting the growth our crops would have enjoyed by remaining on the vine a little longer. No wonder Jesus calls himself the vine and we his branches. We have since learned to be patient and wait while the plant nurtures its crop, and once the harvest is ready there is much labor to be shared among all members of our household—even the little ones. Our backs bend repeatedly and sweat drips down from our brows as we drag pounds of food back to the house from the garden. It takes help to harvest and it always seems like the laborers are few. But the rewards are more than worth all the effort.

Testing Anxiety: When is it okay to be nervous?

Tuesday night I became something I had never been before, a bad golfing partner. I was not bad in the sense of breaking the law or acting like a buffoon by telling off-color jokes all night. My golfing was bad, historically bad. Out of a possible worst score of 90 strokes on nine holes, I got 74. My partner would have fared just as well by bringing a toddler, turtle, or grumpy cat along with him for the night. He, however, was in good spirits. And although we were in a competition, it was a friendly one.
I am not usually a great golfer, but Tuesday I played worse than usual because I had no confidence. In years past I had golfed with people who never knew what their ball would do when hit from the tee. Tuesday night I was that guy, and I had no idea what happened. Sure, there were some problems with my mechanics, but I was also terribly nervous. Anxiety got the best of me.
I feel silly admitting this, because we were not playing for money or great prestige. But performing in sports, even in the most modest of competitions, always makes me nervous. I sense people watching me and fear their mockery. The last time I played a sport with any meaning attached to it was in Michigan when our church was part of a town softball league. Every game I was nervous, which helps some people perform better, but not me.
Even if it hurts my performance, I like occasional opportunities to feel nervous. They remind me how connected my body is to my mind. In daily life I rarely sense that others watch what I do and hardly ever fear what they think about me. But in a competition I worry about what people think of me as a person, as if my self-worth is tied to how well or how poorly I play.
My worry is a lie. I know my value as a person has nothing to do with how well I strike a ball. I know the people I am with are not judging me as a person, but there is a gap between what I know and what I feel. I feel unsure and shaky. And while I sometimes like to feel anxious, just to be reminded what it is like, I would hate being nervous all the time. I have met some people who struggle through life that way.
Psalm 139 is our church’s Scripture reading passage for this week. David begins it by saying that God has searched him and known him. No matter where David goes, God is there. No matter what stage of life David occupies, God is with him, and David finds much comfort in God’s presence. David ends this psalm by saying, “Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting” (Ps 139:23-24).
David does not say what makes him anxious, but verses 19-22 point to political enemies who stand against God and his people. The source of David’s anxiety was obviously more legitimate than a friendly sporting event. But even so, David’s prayer to God is not that his anxiety would magically disappear. Instead, it is for God to test and know David’s anxious thoughts and see if any of them are offensive. If so, may God lead David into an everlasting way. And if not? David never says, but his psalm implies that some anxious thoughts are worthwhile. Not every anxious thought offends God. Jesus’ prayer in the garden just before Judas betrayed him reveals as much.
Anxious thoughts offend God when they keep us from doing what God has called us to do. Think of how God dealt with Moses in Exodus chapter 3 when God summoned him to free his people from slavery in Egypt. Moses had good reasons to be anxious about going back to Egypt since he fled from there as a fugitive. Once there, he was to convince his own people, who hated him, to follow him out of Egypt after persuading Pharaoh to let all of his slave labor go for free. Moses’ anxiety was well placed. But God does not only summon his people to do things that come easy and carefree. Sometimes, his call will make us nervous, and that is okay, for it is hard to control how we react in our feelings. What offends God is how we respond with our behavior, especially when we refuse to do what he has called us to do. Nervousness is not a compelling defense in God’s court. God responded to Moses by telling him that he would be with him and help him. And he did.
There are many aspects of the Christian life that can cause anxiety: Praying out loud with people in groups, sharing testimonies in front of the congregation, joining a small group or Sunday School, witnessing to neighbors, and so on. It is hard to overcome anxious thoughts, especially if you have convinced yourself you will be terrible at it and rejected by all who see you try. Consider praying David’s prayer the next time God’s call makes you nervous. Ask God to test and know your anxious thoughts and see if they are offensive. If so, ask him to lead you in the way everlasting. David calls it the “everlasting way” and not the “easy way” for good reason. 

Sunburns and Summons: An Unlikely Pair

Since I was adopted as a baby my genetic heritage is a mystery, other than what’s obvious. I’m Caucasian with blonde hair and blue eyes. And whatever my genes may be, I am pale and prone to sunburns. I am often careful when going out in the sun. Last Friday’s holiday was no exception, or so I thought.
After applying sunblock at home I spent quite some time in the frigid waters of Lake Oahe all the way up to my neck. I then basked in the sun at the beach all afternoon, and after a couple hours out of the water I could feel that my skin had taken in too much sun. I put on a shirt, but it was too little too late. By the evening my chest and shoulders had turned from pale white to dark red. My skin felt like it was on fire. I was sweaty. I was cold and shivering. I had no energy and was miserable. Overnight I did not fare any better as I tossed and turned from constant discomfort. The next day went slightly better as long as no one touched me, and I put off my daily morning shower to the evening. The day after that I went without a shower at all. Thanks to deodorant I don’t think anyone noticed. After a few more days life returned mostly to normal. My tomato red chest became more of a splotchy pink. And then my daily routine gradually came back, showers and all.
Enduring my first major sunburn since I was a kid made me think of the sheer power of the sun. I was only shirtless at the beach for a few hours, but days later its effects were still with me. Exposure to sunshine disrupted how I felt, how I slept, how I went through my daily routines, what I wore, what I did, and where I went. It changed everything, but only for a few days.
While dealing with my sunburn, my studies in the Bible took me to God’s summoning of Samuel in 1 Samuel chapter 3. God’s call woke young Samuel up at night and confused him terribly, because he was not sure whose voice it was. Once he finally realized it was God talking and told God that he was listening Samuel was scared to share what God had told him. Eli, Samuel’s mentor, convinced Samuel to share with him God’s message, but it was not a pleasant one for Eli. God’s message was that God was supplanting Eli and Eli’s family with Samuel. This was terrible news for Eli and troubling news for Samuel. Samuel was only a boy serving under a mentor, but now God wants him to be a prophet?
Like a sunburn God’s summoning has a way of disrupting everything. It changes who we are. It changes our daily routines. It changes where we go. It changes our relationships. And it does so quickly. Sadly, God’s summons can also fade quickly, even before we carry out what God told us to do. That person we felt compelled to pray for and visit is still alone. That gift of generosity we were supposed to bless someone with stayed right in our bank account until we spent it to splurge on ourselves. That word of encouragement we thought of to brighten someone’s day was never spoken. That inspired decision to help fix someone’s house at our own cost came and went, and every time we drive by we shake our heads. That conversation with our neighbor about God’s grace never took place; we talked about the weather and how much it stinks.

When God summoned us to his service we wrestled with it for a while. But gradually our daily routine returned. Our whereabouts never changed. We slept easy again. Meanwhile, the needs God revealed to us remain unmet. No one likes to be burned.

Visiting Where You Belong

I grew up in one house. From 1980 to 2013 the Joneses resided on Glenwood Street in the city of Overland Park, Kansas. The front yard was hilly and almost always shaded by a tall oak tree. The back yard was more spacious with enough room for a maple tree, which was perfect for climbing, and plenty of other little trees scattered all around. The house itself was a split-level with a furnished basement, two-car garage, five bedrooms, and two-and-a-half bathrooms. The outside shingles were a light green color offset by white trim. The house also had two working fireplaces, which were used frequently during the winter.
Even after I moved out of that house I knew that whenever I returned to Kansas City I did not need to stay overnight at a friend’s place or some motel. I would just stay at home. But when my Dad died a couple years ago that all changed. Within a year the house was put up for sale, and now another family lives there.
When passing through Kansas City this summer I couldn’t help but drive down Glenwood Street as I had thousands of times before. But this time instead of pulling into the driveway of my old home, I had to park on the street and just stare at it from a distance. The house itself mostly looked the same. It hadn’t changed much since I helped my Mom move her stuff out of it a year prior. I was the one who changed. My life changed. I lost my home; the only home I ever knew. Through all the changes in my young life, my home was constant. It was always there. It was familiar. It was the place where I belonged. But that’s gone. I am now just another visitor, driving past it on my way to somewhere else. I was headed to Springfield, Missouri for a little vacation.
The next Sunday morning we were still in Springfield, so we took our family and drove to worship with a church we had never visited before. The neighborhood was calm and residential. The facilities were ample. The music was heartfelt and fitting. The sermon was insightful and challenging. We worshipped with the church for about 90 minutes, and then we left. We were clearly visitors who were not at home. We did not know any of the people there. We had no stake in who they were or what they did. We just came, participated a little, and left.
While on vacation that participation level is quite alright. My family doesn’t live in Springfield, so everywhere I went I was a visitor. However the dual experiences of visiting what ought to be home, whether an old house or a different church raised the question: Why would anyone choose to remain a visitor in one of the few places they can call home?
Visiting a church at worship, even every Sunday, counts for something. As God’s people we are to gather with the redeemed each week and offer songs, prayers, and the proclamation of the word together. But is that all there is to being a part of Christ’s church? According to the New Testament there ought to be more. It likens being a member of a church to being a member of a new family, or, in Paul’s words, being a member of a physical body. Could you imagine having one of your feet be a “regular attendee” of your body for just one hour every few weeks a year? When the Bible describes what it means to be part of a church, it is impossible to meet God’s expectations just by attending worship services, no matter how many years you do it in the same place.
Consider the following list (adapted from Carl F. George):1. “Be at peace with each other.” (Mark 9:50)2. “Wash one another’s feet.” (John 13:14)3. “Love one another.” (John 13:34)4. “Love one another.” (John 13:34)5. “Love one another.” (John 13:35)6. “Love one another.” (John 15:12)7. “Love one another.” (John 15:17)8. “Be devoted to one another in brotherly love.” (Romans 12:10)9. “Honor one another above yourselves.” (Romans 12:10)10. “Live in harmony with one another.” (Romans 12:16)11. “Love one another.” (Romans 13:8)12. “Stop passing judgment on one another.” (Romans 14:13)13. “Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you.” (Romans 15:7)14. “Instruct one another.” (Romans 15:14)15. “Greet one another with a holy kiss.” (Romans 16:16)16. “When you come together to eat, wait for each other.” (I Cor. 11:33)17. “Have equal concern for each other.” (I Corinthians 12:25)18. “Greet one another with a holy kiss.” (I Corinthians 16:20)19. “Greet one another with a holy kiss.” (II Corinthians 13:12)20. “Serve one another in love.” (Galatians 5:13)21. “If you keep on biting and devouring each other…you will be destroyed by each other.” (Galatians 5:15)22. “Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.” (Galatians 5:26)23. “Carry each other’s burdens.” (Galatians 6:2)24. “Be patient, bearing with one another in love.” (Ephesians 4:2)25. “Be kind and compassionate to one another.” (Ephesians 4:32)26. “Forgiving each other.” (Ephesians 4:32)27. “Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs.” (Ephesians 5:19)28. “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” (Ephesians 5:21)29. “In humility consider others better than yourselves.” (Philippians 2:3)30. “Do not lie to each other.” (Colossians 3:9)31. “Bear with each other.” (Colossians 3:13)32. “Forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another.” (Colossians 3:13)33. “Teach [one another].” (Colossians 3:16)34. “Admonish one another.” (Colossians 3:16)35. “Make your love increase and overflow for each other.” (I Thessalonians 3:12)36. “Love each other.” (I Thessalonians 4:9)37. “Encourage each other.”(I Thessalonians 4:18)38. “Encourage each other.” I Thessalonians 5:11)39. “Build each other up.” (I Thessalonians 5:11)40. “Encourage one another daily.” (Hebrews 3:13)41. “Spur one another on toward love and good deeds.” (Hebrews 10:24)42. “Encourage one another.” (Hebrews 10:25)43. “Do not slander one another.” (James 4:11)44. “Don’t grumble against each other.” (James 5:9)45. “Confess your sins to each other.” (James 5:16)46. “Pray for each other.” (James 5:16)47. “Love one another deeply, from the heart.” (I Peter 3:8)48. “Live in harmony with one another.” (I Peter 3:8)49. “Love each other deeply.” (I Peter 4:8)50. “Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.” (I Peter 4:9)51. “Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others.” (I Peter 4:10)52. “Clothe yourselves with humility toward one another.”(I Peter 5:5)53. “Greet one another with a kiss of love.” (I Peter 5:14)54. “Love one another.” (I John 3:11)55. “Love one another.” (I John 3:23)56. “Love one another.” (I John 4:7)57. “Love one another.” (I John 4:11)58. “Love one another.” (I John 4:12)59. “Love one another.” (II John 5)
These are all acts of love that members of close-knit families do for each other. If you are a part of a church, I invite you to reconsider what your membership means. Are there opportunities for worship? Join in worship. Are there opportunities to gather for prayer? Join in prayer. Are there opportunities to gather for teaching? Join in the discussion. Are there opportunities to gather for discipleship? Join a group. Are there opportunities to get to know your fellow church family members? Join the fun. And that’s just a start.

I know there are many reasons why people hesitate to become more involved with their own churches, but in light of what the Bible describes, perhaps those reasons ought to be reconsidered. A church is a family. A church is a home. It stinks having to drive up and become a stranger to your own home. I would not wish that on anyone.