I want the reason people leave our church to be: It’s too hard.
The sermons make me think too much.
Those people think that prayer is the answer to everything!
They expect me to actually STUDY the Bible!
They make me think about others too much.
Those people are too interested in me and in my life.
Those people hold me too accountable.
Their standards are too rigid.
These should also be the reasons people join our church.
I am blessed to belong to a little church which meets this description well and I thank God often.
Very appropriate and true. Good to see you writing by the way. Yesterday, our preacher preached a good one about getting out and sharing our church and the gospel the way we used to do. Kind of made me and another guy mad to tell the truth. We have always been a team going out visiting, and have not for literally months due to one excuse after another. Preacher had been kind of hinting around about it for a few weeks, but yesterday he just laid it right out. Did everything but call us by name. Did it on purpose, too. Because he know that if me and my friend get busy again, others will too. Kind of hurt my feelings at first, but I got over it when I realized he was 100 percent right. And I give the preacher great credit for his willingness to basically slap us around some. It was a rebuke for sure, and a well deserved one.
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Thank you Wally. Good to be writing, though I won’t be posting often.
Wow–your pastor doesn’t play around, does he? My husband and I look at each other and say,”Crunch!” when our pastor preaches something which is likely to “step on toes.” Which is virtually every week. I love this church, even though sometimes the toes he’s stepping on are mine.
I was just sitting in church and thinking about the lame reasons people have for church-hopping. And this list sprang to mind.
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That’s the funny thing Madelyn he is usually very circumspect! But he had sort of been hinting at us to get more motivated and we had sort of ignored him. And he knew we would not hold it against him like some others might. Bottom line is he was totally correct. Im rather proud of him over it.
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