The Church in America is fractured and in need of more than duct tape to put it back together. As we travel the country and visit various churches and get involved with different ministries and Christian organizations, we are "impressed" by the fact that Christians are anything but unified in their views, goals and understanding of what Jesus paid such a high price for. A while back, I found a piece of paper during my constant attempt to rid the Passion Play grounds of things people throw on the ground instead of into a trash receptacle. The paper read, "DO EVERYTHING IN THE AWARENESS THAT YOU ARE IN THE PRESENCE OF GOD, AND WITH THE KNOWLEDGE THAT SOMEONE IS MAKING LIFELONG DECISIONS SIMPLY BY WATCHING YOU".
It's humbling to think that when we call ourselves Christians we are putting a target on our back and that what we do, how we speak, what we look like, where we spend our money and our time, and EVERYTHING about our life is done in plain view of EVERYONE, including God, and we can have a tremendous impact and influence on our salvation and theirs. As we go about our day, interact with others and try to be Christlike, it behooves each of us to continually evaluate our life and what others see when they look at us and watch us do life. Our time at the Passion Play has been enlightening. We have been in the entertainment business, served thousands in various ways, ministered and been ministered to. We have seen people who were happy, grateful, polite, considerate, compassionate, contrite and humble but we have also seen people who were angry, critical, impolite, rude, insulting and downright nasty. And all of them professed to be Christians. Some of our own staff and volunteers, including me, had moments when we fell into the second category of people and have needed to step back and reconsider what we are doing here and what our role is in God's grand plan.
It's been a long season, one fraught with a wide range of experiences and emotions. Our eyes have been opened, again, to the difficulties inherent in such a ministry, various leadership styles, "old-timers" and "newbies", ownership issues and personality conflicts. But through it all we have learned that we came here because God called us to be here, our loyalty is first and foremost to follow Jesus, be Spirit-led and to ultimately to be more like Jesus in words, thoughts and deeds. Help all of us Lord to be part of the super gluing, not just the duct taping, of Your Church and Your Kingdom on earth. Help us to finish strong, and look forward with JOY to where You call us next.
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