The Upload
Posted on Feb 28, 2014 by
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:
I pray that you have had a blessed week.
Well, here we already are at the end of the season of Epiphany. For the past ten weeks, we have been celebrating the birth and life of Christ, and now the celebrating is about to come to an end as we prepare to begin the Season of Lent. Yes, next Wednesday is Ash Wednesday, and so for the next 40 days we will enter into a season in which we are called to take a look at our lives and determine what things are keeping us from living as God has called us to live. We are challenged in the Season of Lent to find those things in our lives that turn us away from God and God’s ways and repent, which means we are called to turn back to God and his ways. Many think of Lent as a sad time, but personally, I like Lent and I find it to be very life-giving.
It is during the Season of Lent that I often rediscover my love for the church and all that the church was created to be. It is during the Season of Lent that I focus on those things that God has called the church to do. During Lent, I find myself focusing once again on the needs of the world. I find myself asking, how can I make a difference in this world for those who need help? You see, that is the role of the church in this world. The church exists for the sole purpose of challenging the status quo that oppresses the many for the sake of a few. William Temple, the Archbishop of Canterbury in mid-20th Century England, once said, “The church is the only organization on earth that exists for those who are not its members.”
For some of us, that might be hard to hear, because when we think of the church we think of it as “my church” or “our church,” but the truth is Jesus created the church not for those inside the church. No, the community of faith does not exist for itself. The church exists for the sole purpose of serving the world. We exist to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, heal the sick, and find ways to free those who are oppressed.
So often, it seems to me that those of us in the church spend an abundance of time worrying about ourselves and our needs instead of focusing on the needs of the world. Here at Salem, we spend much of our time talking about and focusing on our buildings, our finances, our Sunday School program, Confirmation, our fellowship activities, our worship services, and the list goes on. These are things that really only affect us. They are our needs, and they are important, but what about all of those around us that are homeless today? What about those children that go home from school every day knowing they will be hungry the rest of the day? What about the single mom who can’t afford to fix her car, but if she doesn’t fix it, she won’t be able to get to work? What about that immigrant who was born in this country but whose parents came here without proper documentation? What about the gay, lesbian, or transgendered person who has been told they are not welcome in the church because they are different from the rest of us? Why isn’t the church, our church, more focused on these issues?
As we come into the Season of Lent, I pray that each of us finds it in our hearts to repent. I pray each of us finds a way to turn back to God and God’s ways so that God’s church might once again focus on finding ways to challenge the status quo that oppresses the many for the sake of a few.
Have a blessed week.
Shalom,
Pastor Dave