September 28, 2006
Vision Come, Vision Go...
The feature cover story in the October 2006 issue of Guideposts is written by Kay Warren. Kay is the wife of Rick Warren, pastor of Saddleback Church in California. I found a couple of quotes in the article intriguing. Kay says, “We were announcing a new focus for the church – serving the dispossessed, including people with AIDS at home and abroad.” And later she says, “I even persuaded Rick to make AIDS one of the church’s priorities.” Certainly AIDS is a worthy cause and I know the Lord opens the eyes of the church to new mission fields. However, from a Biblical perspective, I find it fascinating that anyone would think that the focus for the church and the church’s priorities are subject to change. It seems to me if the church is looking for a new focus, it should consider re-focusing on Christ.
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Gail;
----AIDS plays better on stage than holding the hand of someone who's simply struggling through life. There have been a few spells in my life when I have deeply questioned what I should be to be genuine in the Lord. Since I had previously given up on the boiler-plate answers offered by those "trained in the Word" ministers, counselors, etc., I dug into the Word myself. I always came out with the answer that sincerity in the Lord is evidenced by the way one treats the neighbors. Your neighbor, of course, is whoever is in the immediate vacinity at any given time.
----The New Testament mentions in passing a few times the need to support those who labor directly in the Word, but Paul's main discussion and address concerning organized collection within the congregation was for the support of those who were struggling in Jerusalem. The bulk of the New Testament deals with such themes as how Christians are to relate to one another, sensitivity toward one another, and help for one another. Yet from the pulpit flows all the speel about being a picture on the job, giving your money to the church, show up for all the church projects, and convincing your neighbors to do the same.
----I know a sister in the Lord who is not able to successfully provide a full living for herself. She does not qualify for public assistance, and her family's help is insufficient. The men in her church have tired of all the help she needs (Rom 12:11). And as she asks me more and more to fill in little voids here and there I wonder why there is not more preaching from the pulpit about the very real situations of the very real needy right here among us right now. It irritates me that our religion must reach out to "show biz needs" to be genuine while our dear sisters at home are, "annoying, lazy, and should take care of themselves." Yetch, yetch, gag, gag. You can have that idea, but it makes me sick.
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