Church Attendance Could Be Hazardous

I was born and bred in North Carolina.   The North Carolina of my youth was a state where tobacco was a big part of the economy.     I believe that it was in the 1960’s when the United States surgeon general and Congress took the lead to put on all cigarette packages that “smoking could be hazardous to your health”.     I  can recall some pastors using that warning in a positive way to encourage worship attendance claiming that worship attendance was not hazardous to your health and that even infrequent worship-goers did not have to worry about the roof falling in when they walked through the church doors.  

Now, it seems that worship attendance has become hazardous to your health.   In the last few weeks, I have heard of new incidents where shooters have entered places of worship in the United States and beyond killing or  injuring worshippers.    These are in the aftermath of similar events in recent years in places like Charleston, SC and Sutherland Springs, Texas.   I lament the fact that a place that should be a sanctuary in every sense of the word becomes a place of violence.  

I have heard the calls on social media for new gun control measures and increasing mental health assessments.   I have also heard those who argue against such measures.  I appreciate the effort that law enforcement officials are making to assist  church leaders to increase security measures.  I went several months ago to a seminar by our local police department for church leaders seeking to educate them on some inexpensive and expensive ways they can make their houses of worship more secure.

The purpose of this blog entry is to not to advocate for or against such measures though I am sure that there are folks reading this would like for that not be the case.   The purpose of this blog entry is advocate for  this important truth:  when we  truly love, we always make ourselves vulnerable for the potential of hurt or harm.     When we love enough to welcome someone into our place of worship, into our life, or into our heart, there is always the possibility that we might get hurt.    

Therefore, I will continue week after week to face the possibility that attending worship might be hazardous to my health  seeking to follow the One who opened his arms wide in love to hang on a cross.   Have a joy-filled week.-   Pastor Randy Wall

Prayer:    Loving God, we grieve those who in days present and days past have suffered harm in places of worship.    Give the body of Christ, the Church, the courage to open their arms and hearts wide with your love to all who come their way;  through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.  

The Church is Closing

One of the sad developments in the area where I live is that there have been several churches closing in recent months.   While it might be common in your area to see churches close, it is not common where I live here in the Bible belt.   None of these churches are new church starts.   A matter of fact, all of these churches have been around for many years and are United Methodist Churches.      I suspect that there are other churches in our area that have closed that are not United Methodist Churches.  

While I grew up in a time when it appeared that “everybody” went to church (or so I thought), such is not the case anymore.   I read recently that worship attendance in churches is at an all time low.    A recent CNN report states that the majority of Americans label themselves as “irreligious”.    If these reports are true, perhaps we should not be surprised that churches are closing

In Matthew 16: 17-19 we read these words of Jesus about Peter and the church:

¹⁷ Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. ¹⁸ And I tell you that you are Peter,^[a] and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades^[b] will not overcome it. ¹⁹ I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be^[c] bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be^[d] loosed in heaven.

Note that these words of Jesus say “my church”.  It does not say “your church”.   I believe that the Church of Christ Jesus will always last and always endure.  I am afraid that the same cannot be said about any church that we seek to make into our own image instead of the image of Christ Jesus.  It is easy for us to point fingers and  blame others that churches are closing.   We can blame that fact on changing demographics or lament the eroding morals of our country.   Some would want to blame religious leaders and the “young people” of our community who choose not to involve themselves in a church.   Before we are quick to point fingers as the reason that churches are closing, perhaps we need to ask ourselves this question:     What have I done or not done that has led to the state of the churches in my community today?

I remember a visit I made to a home when I was new in pastoral ministry.   The man received me into his home and began to give a long list of things that were wrong with the church.   I listened intently to his list of complaints.   Even though that encounter has now been over 40 years ago, I still remember my reply.  It was this:   “Sir, much that you say is true.   Come join us at the church and lets change that together.”    That man did not accept my challenge or invitation.  Will you?   Have a joy-filled week.-   Pastor Randy Wall

Prayer:   O God, I pray for leaders of the churches in my community and  the world.  Help them to be faithful to your calling and be a Light for you;  through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen. 

They Sure Did Cry

Even though it has been almost 25 years ago since I lived there, I still miss living in the North Carolina mountains. I particularly miss the people that I had the priviledge to know and serve in that beautiful part of the world.  One of those people is Wylene Graybeal.   She was filled with stories of the people and events of those mountain villages and towns.   One day, she told me a story about one of her school teachers who got the idea that she wanted to test the Bible knowledge of her students.  As she called the roll in class that school morning,  she asked the students to not say “here” or “present”, but to recite a Bible verse.   One student recited that passage that begins “God so loved the world…”   Another student recited the first words of Psalm 23 which say “The Lord is my shepherd…”.     When they came to Ernest, he recited John 11:35 which is known as the shortest verse in the Bible.  “Jesus wept.”     As the name of the next student was called,  he apparently had limited knowledge of the Bible for when the teacher called his name he exclaimed “He sure did.”

“Jesus wept.”    He certainly did.   While that verse in John’s gospel is perhaps best known because it is the shortest verse of the Bible,   I believe that there is much that is said in those two words.     The fact that Jesus wept shows the humanity of Jesus.  The fact that Jesus cries shows that truly he was God and man, divine and human.  I recall watching an old western on television many years ago.   Like some of the old westerns in years past, it had this underlying theme from some of the characters that native Americans were “animals” and “savages”.   There was a scene near the end of the episode where one of the native American characters is experiencing the loss of their family members.   As tears stream down the cheeks of this native American character, the hero of the western exclaims,  “You call this man an animal or savage.   No, his tears show that he is as human as you and I.      There is not a human alive who has not cried or shed tears.   The tears of Jesus show that truly he knew the fullness of the human experience.  

Jesus wept.  He sure did.   That passage also shows the truth that God weeps with us and for us.   That passage in John 11 is a part of the story of the raising of Lazarus from the dead.  As God and man, Jesus knew the “rest of the story” that in a matter of minutes Lazarus would be raised from the dead.  Yet, in that moment he cries with his friends, Mary and Martha,  knowing their sorrow over the loss of their beloved brother, Lazarus.  What comfort to know that in the midst of our grief, loss, trouble, trial, and heartache that the God we know in Christ Jesus weeps with us and for us.  May that truth bring hope and comfort for us when sadness comes our way.    Have a joy-filled week.-   Pastor Randy Wall

Prayer:   Living and loving God, we give you thanks that because Christ Jesus lived among us that you understand the full human experience.   We pray for those this day who know heartache and trouble.   Help them to know the truth that you are with them and that you understand;; through Christ our Lord.   Amen. 

A Thank You That Might Be Too Late

A few weeks ago, I was in the Raleigh Durham area.   Though I only travel there now from time to time,  40 years ago I lived there.    I was in seminary at the time at Duke and served part time as pastor of two United Methodist Churches in the Raleigh Durham area.   While I was there,  I took a pilgrimmage to some of the places that were a big part of my life then.   As the sun set, I rode  by the church parsonage that I called home for 4 years.   While  fields and woods used to surround the house,  it is now surrounded by a housing development that has been built by Del Webb in recent years.   I rode up the road from the house where I used to live and turned into the parking lot of Andrews Chapel United Methodist Church where I served as pastor.  As I stood there taking a picture of the church,  I remembered events that happened while I was pastor there:  the day the dog came in the open front door and watched me as I preached after he had sniffed the money in the offering plates… the church dinners and auctions we had in the fellowship house next door… the day that a crane put a steeple on  the “steeple-less” church roof… the Sunday when my oldest daughter, Heather, was baptized.  

As I stood that Friday evening in the church parking lot, I looked at the house across the street where the O’Neal family used to live.    There was Rufus, Lora, Dora, Vera, Margaret, and Lester.   None of them had ever married.   Vera was one of my favorites of the family largely because she and I shared the same birthday.   She was also one of my favorites because she was a servant.   Every week, she would see that the church was cleaned for church activities and that the heat or air conditioning was turned on as needed.   Vera never got any pay for what she did for the church and I suspect that this pastor probably only showed her his appreciation only now and then. 

I shared the story of Vera because it is a story that can be repeated over and over again in churches large and small across this land and across our world.    The work of Christ and His Church goes on not so much because of the skills of its pastors, but  because of a core of volunteers and servants like Vera.   They do what they do on Sunday and every day of the week in Sunday School classes, church dinners, and behind the scenes because of their love for the Lord and their love for His Church.    

 

Vera died many years ago.   She has gone on to her just reward.   I can’t thank her anymore for what she did for Andrews Chapel Church and for the Lord, but I can say thank you to you and people like you who serve the Lord behind the scenes and without pay every day.   Thanks be to God for you.   Have a joy-filled week.-  Pastor Randy Wall

Prayer:   O God,  we give thanks that you are working still in our world today as you use people  like us as instruments  to do your work and will.   Thanks be to God for those who serve in ways known and unknown simply because they love you and love their church;  through Jesus Christ our Lord.   Amen. 

Max, Coach K, and Jim

A few weeks ago, I watched like many of you the “March madness” men’s basketball games.  It was good to see as one of the television commentators Jim Spanarkel.   When I received my graduate degree from Duke, Jim received his undergraduate degree from Duke where he played on the men’s basketball team.   While we did not know each other, I would see him on campus from time to time.  Seeing Jim Spanarkel on television reminded me of a true story.  

Most of you know the name of Duke University men’s basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski.   You probably know that he is the winningest Division I coach in history and has many championships and other accolades to his name.  But most of you probably do not know the name Max Crowder.   Former Duke University basketball player Jim Spanarkel called him “Clam Crowder”.  Max Crowder died back in 1992 of lung cancer.   Before his death, he was the Duke University athletic trainer at Duke from the days of Vic Bubas to Coach K.    

While you may or may not  have heard the name Max Crowder, you probably do not know that for many years Max actually lived on the Duke University campus next to Cameron Indoor Stadium on the third floor of Card Gym in a room overlooking the tennis courts.  It  was the home and private sanctuary for Max Crowder though  few Duke students or staff ever visited him in that place.    Max Crowder not only worked for Duke, but he lived at Duke.  

I share that story to make a point and it is this.  One of the best known psalms to Christians and non-Christians  alike is Psalm 23.  Some call it the “Shepherd Psalm”.     In the  last verse, Psalm 23: 6, the psalmist declares:  

Surely your goodness and love will follow me
    all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the Lord
    forever.

I did not personally Max Crowder.  I have no knowledge whether he was a person of faith or not.   What I do know is that he was a man who devoted his life to Duke University and its athletic program.       He lived at Duke University, and he lived for Duke University.     “And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever” does  not mean to me that the psalmist believed that he would spend all his days living in the “house of the Lord”.  No, what it means  is personified in the example of Max Crowder.   As Max Crowder lived at Duke University and lived for Duke University, so I want to live my life in the Good Shepherd and for the Good Shepherd, Jesus Christ.   How about you?  Have a joy-filled week.-  Pastor Randy Wall

Prayer:   O God, give me a passion to live in you and live for you.   Remind me that life is not living unless it is found in you; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.