Hello, My Name Is Church

Hello my name is church,

I'm sure you've heard a lot about me or maybe you haven’t. I have no shortage of critics. Perhaps you have heard that I am...

Boring
Shallow
Cheap
A waste of time

Maybe you've heard that I am full of:

Hypocrites
Clowns
Greedy people
The self-righteous

Maybe you have visited me before and discovered:

Outdated music
Passionless singing
Dry preaching
and maybe even, rude people

Maybe you needed me and my help and I was:

Too busy
Too "righteous"
Too broke
Too blind

You may have you joined me and found I was:

Distant
Demanding
Dull
Preoccupied

 Maybe you tried to serve in me but were caught off guard by:

Business meetings
Committees
Demanding people
Bureaucracy

Maybe you left and were surprised that nobody:

Called
Cared
Noticed
Invited you back

Perhaps your experience has driven you to:

Speak negatively of me
Swear to never come back to me
Proclaim that no one needs me
Believe you're better off without me

If this is true, I have something to say to you:

I'm sorry
I was wrong
I blew it
I made a huge mistake

But PLEASE remember, I never said my name was:

Perfect
Flawless
Complete
Arrived

My name is church. I welcome the:

Hypocrite
Dry
Self-righteous
Shallow

I welcome the

Sincere
Passionate
Forgiving
Selfless

I cannot shut my doors to the people who make you:

Angry
Uncomfortable
Impatient
Self-conscious

So allow me to remind you that because of Jesus Christ we worship and serve together as followers who are:

Broken
Healed
Travelers
Redeemed

In order for us to all worship in the same room Jesus Christ was:

Shamed
Beaten
Killed
RESURRECTED!

Which is far worse than being:

Bored
Uncomfortable
Embarrassed
Ignored

So why not come back to church and let all of these messed up and yet REDEEMED people:

Get to know you
Sharpen you
Strengthen you
Live life with you

I can't promise you that the people will be great. This is church. It's not:

Heaven
Paradise
Perfect
The Celestial city

Again, my name is church.

God created me
God wants you here
We want you here
The world needs your witness here
You belong here

I miss you.

I love you.

I'm sorry.

Can't wait to see you.

I am excited about what God is doing in me and through me. Let’s experience it together as the CHURCH.