Saw a lady in church yesterday. I don't know her. There's lots of people I don't know now. We're getting bigger and have 2 services. Anyway, from the moment this lady walked in, she was crying. Not a sniffle type, sorta disturbed with something cry, but a deep hurt cry that was written on her face. Been there, done that. There have been several times where I couldn't hold it together even walking in the door. My heart broke for her. Continuing with my MO that I am blunt, but not bold, I just sat in my own seat and prayed for her. I was going to go see her, so I looked back, and our pastor's wife was giving her a hug. "Good." I thought. "She's being ministered to." Later at prayer, she had a TON of people praying for her. Even better.
I continued to watch her throughout the service, checking to see if she needed someone. Then, another woman went to her and handed a note with her phone number on it. I read her lips, "Call me whenever you need to." I continued to pray for her. Find peace. Listen to the message. Hear God speaking in the music. Communion. Oh my goodness! The bread and wine. Your burden is HIS burden. I wondered if it helped. I know sometimes in my own pain my cynicism can put up an impenetrable wall. I don't want to sing. I don't want to hear about God helping others when clearly I am in need. I don't want to see the happy plastic faces going on with their lives. Sadly, you know you are in that state, and you can't get past it. All you can do is crawl mentally and physically into church, and hope that you snap out of it. That someone, anyone, will help.
And then today my friend Kelly posted a short article about 2 kinds of sermons, the Gospel message and the self-help message. How so often the sermons are about "fix this about you", or "that about you", or "this about the world", when clearly the Word that should be going out sometimes is plain and simple that God loved you so much He DIED for you. No matter how much we wail about our circumstances, it doesn't change that. It NEVER changes that. Sure, we can see all of our failures as we check off the "how to get better, be better at life" suggestions, but seeing our one simple failure and then realizing that we need a Savior fixes it all. IT ALL.
Hebrews 10 is rolling around in my head. Yesterday was a visual, tangible example. Communion. By the blood. Cleanse us from our conscience. Don't give up meeting together. The woman came to church with a hurt heart. Had she not, she would not have experienced the love of Christ for her. She doesn't know me. I prayed for her. She may not know the people that stood with her. They prayed for her. The other woman with the phone number she may not know either. I am sure she prayed for her. Don't give up meeting together.
What's church for anyway? I answered my own question. It's about God showing up to meet together. With us. However He finds us. Together.
