June 23, 2006
How'd That Happen?
Three years ago a shift in leadership power at one of our local congregations resulted in the resignation of all of their elders and deacons. “I really don’t know how it all happened,” said Kellie. “The church was going through a difficult time and the next thing I knew the minister appointed himself Trustee and other men became elders and deacons. I guess they just appointed each other.”
Even though at one time Kellie held a position as an elected official in her church, she stopped attending almost a year ago. “Our Bylaws require yearly elections, but it’s been close to three years since we’ve held an election for elders and deacons. Between church politics and disregard for the Bylaws I just feel I can’t worship there anymore.” Wow, flexible Bylaws…what will they think of next?!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comment:
Gail;
----I saw subtle hair-line fractures shooting through the character of the American people when I was in High School. One of these was the idea that, unless you are an expert, your opinion belongs on the margin. The advances in technology have served to grow that tiny crack into a giant rift that now separates the controlled from the controller in everything from politics, through your own child rearing, right into most of our local churches.
----The rift is real and practical in some areas of life. Under the hood of any new car is stashed an assemblage of confusion that has reduced the back-yard mechanic's abilities to mere oil-changes. But God's church and its fellowship is not like that. It is no more technical today than it was two-thousand years ago. Still, it is experiencing another wave of personal agenda hi-jacking its culture and ways from those who had last hi-jacked them decades or centuries ago.
----Why in God's church? Because the common person does not extend himself to be a Borean, and the one who does study the Bible deeply has done so, generally, for career and position rather than relationship and safeguard. All of the biases of that study lean towards acquisition and maintenance of church control. In the midst of this sense of intellectual helplessness from today's highly technical life, truly the opportunistic bullies of the end times are delivering our churches to the land of Laodicea.
Post a Comment