Don't like church? You're not alone...

Deadwood In The Pews: The Trouble With Church

I've been in everything from mega churches in California to house churches in Japan. In other words, I'm no stranger to church.

But no matter where I go there is always one idiot who ruins the experience for me. They think they know more theology than the pastor or believe they would do a better job leading worship than the music minister. They are invariably unfriendly, judgmental, hypocritical, and more than a little bit smug. Every church I go to I find a fool like that and so I shop around trying to find one that won't let someone like that join their ranks. But he's always there. No matter what I do I can't shake him. Because that guy is me.

So I have to admit that I don't like church. I'd rather sleep in on Sunday mornings. I'd rather follow my own path. I'd rather excuse myself from public worship until I can "get right with the Lord." But I can't do that. Church is where I belong.

Prior to last October, I have to say that I felt very much like this man (Joe Carter, according to the signature at the end of the post). I had not only been in church forEVER (born and raised in a Southern Baptist Church), I had even been a minister's wife. And yet I was sick to DEATH of "church". Actually, I think I was really just completely weary of the stagnation and decay and lack of integrity among key leadership. It seemed like everywhere I went, every church I've been in, was just full of crappy people (who always seem to end up being the ones in charge) and I was tired of the game.

For a while I wanted to just stay home on Sundays; what was the point? But I came to the conclusion that my kids needed a really solid place to learn and grow and become active Christians. I hadn't left behind my faith in Christ at all; rather, it was as strong as it ever was, and I wanted my kids to have that foundation too. However, I wasn't sure I was going to be very useful anywhere in my obviously jaded and hardened state. I was going to be "deadwood" wherever I went... but at least my kids would be okay.

The article from Evangelical Outpost goes on to quote another article, however, that has really hit home with me today:

In a recent interview with Christianity Today (not available online), Eugene Peterson explains why the church is necessary:

But many Christians would look at this church and say it's dead, merely an institutional expression of faith.

What other church is there besides institutional? There's nobody who doesn't have problems with the church, because there's sin in the church. But there's no other place to be a Christian except the church. There's sin in the local bank. There's sin in the grocery stores. I really don't understand this naive criticism of the institution. I really don't get it.

Frederick von Hugel said the institution of the church is like the bark on the tree. There's no life in the bark. It's dead wood. But it protects the life of the tree within. And the tree grows and grows and grows and grows. If you take the bark off, it's prone to disease dehydration, death.

So, yes, the church is dead but it protects something alive. And when you try to have a church without bark, it doesn't last long. It disappears, gets sick, and it's prone to all kinds of disease, heresy, and narcissism.

In my writing, I hope to recover a sense of the reality of congregation -- what it is. It's a gift of the Holy Spirit. Why are we always idealizing what the Holy Spirit doesn't idealize? There's no idealization of the church in the Bible -- none. We've got two thousand years of history now. Why are we so dumb?

Why am I so dumb that I expect the church to be something its not? Why can't I recognize that the trouble with the church is that it accepts sinners like me? If they excluded the people who could ruin it, church might be a better place. But it would also be empty.

As Peterson says, there's no other place to be a Christian. I may not like church but it's where God wants me to be. And though I may be nothing more than deadwood in the pews, I'll still be there, doing my part to protect the life of the Church within.

And Joe, you might also find yourself being brought back to life (not possible in trees, but certainly possible with Christ) by your persistence.

That being said, there also comes a time when it's better NOT to prop up a dead or dying institution simply for the sake of keeping it alive. I realized the futility of beating my head against a brick wall and stopped doing it, and eventually God arranged things so I had a way out that didn't seem like I was "leaving mad." Then He removed that purpose almost immediately after I left the church, leaving me adrift. I knew, however, that I could not turn back to the security of what I had known. With God there's always a plan, you see, and it's usually not backtracking.

Anyway, sometimes God does want you to leave, but I don't think He wants you to remain moorless. The church I ended up in is most certainly flawed and full of sinful people; of that I am certain. However, it's where God wants me, and He's even arranged it so I would actually enjoy being there and developing new friendships with the other sinners like me.

I hope that, at some point, Joe begins to experience newness and freshness in his church, but really it isn't about him. It's about HIM (Jesus). And even in the desert, we're to praise Him and give thanks in all circumstances. It's in the dry times that we become more grateful when the water comes to refresh.