When I went to Central Assembly last November I felt I had come home. There were people who I had known for ten years. People who knew me and loved me when I first moved to Springfield. The service was so much more traditional than New Life. It took a little getting used to but it felt good to get back to my roots.
Tonight we went to a “home fellowship gathering.” This would seem the opposite of the 99 year old institution that is Central Assembly. And yet… once again, it felt like a homecoming.
How can this be? How can a small group of people turned off by organized religion give me the same feeling as a large traditional Assemblies of God church?
Because they are all family.
If I attend my sister’s wedding, that is a family celebration. If I share a cup of coffee with my Dad, that is a family celebration.
The church is like that. I don’t care how you dress it up. How fancy, how casual. How organized, how relaxed. It’s just good to be with family.
Amy - that is solid - and an excellent illustration. I enjoy weddings, but I am not sure if I would want to go to one week after week. Weddings also involve a whole lot of resources. It may be possible that some of our Sunday events consume more of the Body’s resources than they are worth? IS it possible that there could be a more effective and efficient way to invest our resources?
Comment by rob horton — April 29, 2006 @ 5:52 am
Amen. I don’t know how I would make it through life without my church family. They are a gift.
Comment by Debbie — April 29, 2006 @ 8:38 am
Maybe a wedding wasn’t the best illustration. Because I wouldn’t want to go to a wedding each week either. I was looking for extremes.
I agree, a lot of resources are wasted each Sunday morning. But I also believe that a large organized group can pool their resouces and accomplish things that smaller groups can’t.
I have been in elaborate sanctuaries that made me uncomfortable. I felt the money could have gone towards so many better things.
But this post isn’t about resources or worship preferences. It’s about me recognizing Christ in others. Being able to walk into a gathering of ‘believers’ anywhere in this world and know that I am, ‘home.’
Comment by Amy — April 29, 2006 @ 10:07 am
I so much miss so many people that I have met over the years, only to ‘lose’ to changes in life and localities…Yet when we are finally in the Kingdom for good, Heaven/Heaven on Earth, then we will have all the ‘time’ in the world (pun intended) to re-connect with all those wonderful people that we have enjoyed in our lives, and to meet all the wonderful people that we desire to meet. This is that blessed hope, not only to be with Jesus (the greatest thing), but to also be with all of His people (the next greatest thing!). Kudos.
Comment by danno — April 29, 2006 @ 10:30 am
Amy, read this post by Andrew Jones. He is one of my favorite thinkers in the emerging church, and I think that you both are close to something that is more accurate about what church really is than the people who say you have to be in church on Sunday to be in church.
tallskinnykiwi.typepad.com/tallskinnykiwi/2006/04/...
Comment by Will — April 29, 2006 @ 11:39 am
Amy - I should have just said Amen - but I have issues - thus I took an opportunity to raise a different point. I did enjoy your posting. I also see that we need to be open to opportunities to pool resources and collaborate - and I believe this is where organizations fit in. There are some solid ones that make some great things possible.
Comment by rob horton — April 29, 2006 @ 7:11 pm
@ Will: Thanks for the link. I look forward to reading it.
@ Rob: That’s OK, everyone has issues.
Thanks for adding your comments.
Comment by Amy — April 29, 2006 @ 8:08 pm
Amy- it was so good for me to spend time with you last night. How sweet. I enjoy you so much and am super happy to have you back in my life. I totally love reading your thoughts too. But don’t spend too much time on line because you have to allow some time to write your novel and books. You have talent and many giftings in this area. I am very much looking forward to knowing you better.
Comment by jules — April 29, 2006 @ 10:20 pm
Thanks Julie! I loved seeing you again too. Having these unexplainable multi-year gaps in our friendship is just silly. I look forward to getting to know you again. So much has happened to both of us since we last shared leftover enchiladas.
Comment by Amy — April 30, 2006 @ 9:31 pm