Big Thanks to The Naked Pastor

My head was spinning this afternoon after I got back home from the church office. I was reflecting a number of issues from church on Sunday and from conversations that I had in the office and looking ahead to the Council meeting tonight ....

It was one of those, throw the towel in weekends and hope that the bleeding stops.

Now, it was not a throw the towel in, I am quitting the church aspect. It was more of a. "I am done fighting on a few hills and I am going to just let the chips fall where they may ......."

Well, I had 30 minutes before we get ready for swimming, church notes and council and I decided to read a few blogs before the night gets rolling .... here is a blog that I read .......

One of the most difficult things to know when you are involved in a church is that it is not an institution primarily. That is what it is called when it is organized, instituted, businessed, and controlled. The truth is that it is basically a group of people in relationship with one another and with the spirit of Jesus. This is essentially it. Not only does this take the pressure off of me having to perform on Sunday mornings and present a production. It also takes the pressure off of people having to shop around until they find the best show in town.

Of course, this is rarely remembered. Especially when numbers are low, my mind stretches toward imagining new and fantastic ways of attracting people. And if the Sunday morning just doesn’t do it for me, I’m tempted to look over the fence for greener grass. Not much different than any relationship actually. When someone comes to me to discuss a difficulty they’re having in a relationship, and they say something like, “The romance is gone!” I usually say something like, “Well, that’s good. Now the necessary work begins!” But that’s when most bail. Honeymoons are getting shorter.

I’m not sour-graping or resentful about this. I’m just as human as the next guy. If we have a down day I’m just as inclined to want to throw in the towel. Until I remember that these are my friends. It’s them I’d be bailing on. What’s this “church” thing that always gets me so frustrated and depressed? It’s nothing but a label. It’s a label used to try to describe something. When I obsess over the label, that’s when I lose sight. The label is not the thing. The word is not the reality. The reality is the mutual love we have for one another. That’s where it begins, and where it ends.

The posts spoke to me and the bolded line (my emphasis) jumped out at me. I am getting back into the ring and I am asking for the towel to not be thrown in.

The issues on the burner and the battles on the hill are worth "dying" for and the reason that they are worth dying for is the following ....

The ministries that we are discussing involve friends that I love. Families that I care for and we are a community. We need each other. There are things that we need/must do to make our community more of a family and thus the steps must be taken .... whether we have resources or not.

I am off to take Jacob swimming, drop Bethany and Isaiah off at the school so they can go to church notes. While Jacob is swimming, I am going to listen to some music and walk (thanks to an ipod giving to me) and brainstorm for tonights meeting.