Anne Jackson at flowerdust.net asks, “What is something you feel you can’t say in church, or around other Christians?”
I had a conversation with a friend recently about how he would never share certain personal problems with his pastor because he doesn’t want him to know about that side of him. He’s afraid that it would change the way his pastor views him - he’s viewed as a leader in his church and doesn’t want that to change.
I could understand his point but it made me sad. I was left wondering how many people in my church would say something like that about me? The conversation also caused me to ponder how Christians perceive the church today? I know my friend’s heart, but it was almost like he viewed church as a place of social, rather than spiritual, significance. And what message is the church teaching that Christians don’t feel comfortable sharing their lives with those in their congregations?
I don’t think real community can begin to happen in the church until a safe place has been established where people can do life together — share all that stuff that’s behind the mask of happiness that we all wear in typical social settings. We all have doubts about our faith, anxieties about parenting, frustrations about work, concerns about unrealized dreams … the list is endless. As Christians we know that we live in the broken world, but when we gather we often acts as though everything is terrific. Whether it’s in the context of a small group or one-on-one with an accountability partner, we all need to find that place where we can do life with other Christians.
How about you? Can you be honest with others at church? Check out what others have had to say over at Anne’s blog.
I had a conversation with a friend recently about how he would never share certain personal problems with his pastor because he doesn’t want him to know about that side of him. He’s afraid that it would change the way his pastor views him - he’s viewed as a leader in his church and doesn’t want that to change.
I could understand his point but it made me sad. I was left wondering how many people in my church would say something like that about me? The conversation also caused me to ponder how Christians perceive the church today? I know my friend’s heart, but it was almost like he viewed church as a place of social, rather than spiritual, significance. And what message is the church teaching that Christians don’t feel comfortable sharing their lives with those in their congregations?
I don’t think real community can begin to happen in the church until a safe place has been established where people can do life together — share all that stuff that’s behind the mask of happiness that we all wear in typical social settings. We all have doubts about our faith, anxieties about parenting, frustrations about work, concerns about unrealized dreams … the list is endless. As Christians we know that we live in the broken world, but when we gather we often acts as though everything is terrific. Whether it’s in the context of a small group or one-on-one with an accountability partner, we all need to find that place where we can do life with other Christians.
How about you? Can you be honest with others at church? Check out what others have had to say over at Anne’s blog.
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