You Are Going to Church Because You Are Afraid Of What Will Happen If You Don't

Ok, now that I have your attention, what is the truth about your relationship with the church? Are you going because you're afraid of what will happen if you don't? Are you going because you feel you really have to go as a christian? These are healthy questions to ask yourself.

I think there are a great many Christians today, what percent I don't know, who simply go to church because they think it's what they are supposed to do. One of my pastors, who passed away last year, actually spoke with a few pastors of some very large churches over the years. She was someone who studied the scriptures night and day and really knew them cold. She would explain how the grace of God is able to save to the uttermost and that all sin had been declared paid in full at the cross of Christ. She would explain that they truly were free and that there was nothing that could condemn them now. They would argue for a bit and then say, "I can not refute the truth that you are speaking, however if I were to tell my congregation this I wouldn't have but maybe 10% left by next Sunday."

Hold back the utmost truth because people won't come back? How would they make the payments on their gigantic mortgage for their church if no one came back? The truth will make you free and the truth of the gospel is often held back because people fear true freedom. How would you control someone if you gave them absolute freedom?

I remember years ago hearing Karl Marx's statement "Die Religion ... ist das Opium des Volkes." Ok, so I didn't really hear it in German however I did hear the english translation which was

"religion is the opiate of the masses."

I remember how much I hated him for saying that because as a young christian I really thought he hated God and was attacking Him. I think now he was more focused on things that repressed society. Now, I actually agree with him quite a bit. I find now that religion is often more or less an illusion that we create and serve. Have you ever wondered about the statement Jesus made when he said "the children of the darkness are wiser than the children of the light?"

Let's look at Marx's statement in context.

"Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions. It is the opium of the people. The abolition of religion as the illusory happiness of the people is the demand for their real happiness. To call on them to give up their illusions about their condition is to call on them to give up a condition that requires illusions. The criticism of religion is, therefore, in embryo, the criticism of that vale of tears of which religion is the halo."

Ask yourself, have your beliefs changed at all since you first believed? Can you look back at some of the things you used to think were very true and solid, things that drove your opinions and behavior and say maybe they weren't as true as I thought? Do you still believe all the things you used to? How much of what you used to believe was a kind of "opium" or illusion? Will you look back 10 years from now and say the same thing about what you currently believe?

I believe fear is the underpinnings that drives the behavior and beliefs of many Christians. It is exactly what drove most of my behaviors, thoughts, discussions and unfortunately how I even read and interpreted scripture for many years. And yet, we find contradictory verses that say "God is Love". I contend that a mind driven by fear is unable to comprehend the love of God. These people think they understand God's love but it's only an illusory form of emotion based on guilt and release.

I will leave you with this thought from 1 John 4:18-19

There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love. We love Him because He first loved us.

Let it Shine!

A couple of months ago I got to attend the talent show at my kids' elementary school. It was excruciating. First of all, the gymnasium was way too crowded, and the 500 plus American bodies (64% of which must have been overweight or obese according to recent studies) heated the place up to somewhere between slightly uncomfortable and just plain smelly. Secondly, I got there too late to get a seat, so I had to stand on the sloped base of a volleyball net pole as there wasn't even room to stand on the floor. Thirdly, speaking in general terms, the talent was awful. Now I'm not trying to sound hateful or mean; I'm just stating that in terms of performance quality, there was none. Ok I'm exaggerating a bit. Some of the kids were actually very good. There were a couple of piano players, some dancers and a singer or two that truly brought the good stuff. Overall though, I found myself wishing Rip Taylor would just strike the dang gong.

But here's the thing, the kids that were performing didn't seem to care if they were "good" or not. They just enjoyed being in front of the crowd. And here's something that really shocked me: while I expected to parents to be polite and clap and not make fun (out loud, anyway); I did not expect the audience of children to be so supportive. But they were more encouraging than even us polite grown ups. At one point, a young child forgot his song half way through the act and got embarrassed. But the crowd of kids didn't pounce. They clapped and started chanting his name, in a positive, encouraging way. They wanted to see him succeed. The kid then finished his act and the crowd went wild for him. It warmed the cockles, I'll tell you.

As I left the school I was experiencing both joy that I was driving away, and sadness that somewhere along on the line most of the kids in that show will probably decide to quit putting themselves out there. I'm not just talking about talent shows, either. I certainly don't think everyone needs to get in front of a crowd and perform. I mean that in life most of us decide to "blend in" at some point, so as not to have to deal with standing out and perhaps being ridiculed or failing at something (whatever that means). The young souls I saw at the talent show wanted desperately to express themselves creatively, whether or not the expression of that creativity was technically "good." And boy do I admire, and aspire to, that.

So many of the things we associate with soul/spirit involve flight. From doves and angels, to the ascension of Jesus, Mohammad, Enoch and other religious figures. The human soul was built for flight. Not in some escapist way, so we can rise above the crap of this world and live a trouble-free existence where it's all Benjamins and Blow-Pops. I mean the spirit was built to be bold in the good times and yuck times. The spirit was made to prevail. Mother Teresa, Nelson Mandela, and Ghandi have proven what a bold spirit can do. But somewhere along the way most of us give in to the voices that tell us we "can't" do something, or "that's just the way it is." So we clip our own wings and settle for comfort and anonymity. And perhaps even worse, at some point many of us start secretly hoping that those around us don't do great things either. We seem to want the herd to stay together.

Since I can't find a point to finish this post with, I'll end with a little confession. As I've been writing I've been nervously editing and censoring my content. I've haven't been sure that what I'm writing makes sense or that it truly represents what I'd like to express; but since I've been writing about these brave kiddos who express themselves without a lot of shine and polish, I'll do the same and post this anyway. Enjoy!

I'll Stop the World and Melt with Me

It happened. At some point when I wasn’t looking, Youth skipped town without paying the rent; now she’s probably shacked up with some Gen Y’er who has tattoos and plays the guitar. And here I am left to fret over aching joints, and both the frequency and quality of my bowel movements. Such are the joys of aging.

But not all is bad about moving into mid-life. As my body has lost some of its elasticity I’ve been drawn to yoga to help keep the joints mobile and the muscles pliable; and it's been quite a gift. My preference is attend a class so the instructor can show me how to get the poses correct. However, family and work sometimes dictate that I can’t make a class. For those times, I purchased a DVD to practice at home. Now to say I enjoy Yoga would be a bit of a stretch (Ha! Stretch. Get it?). For me, it’s kind of like eating broccoli. I don’t hate it, but I really only do it because I know it’s good for me. There is one part of yoga, though, that I absolutely love. And that is Savasana. This is the time at the end of the session where you lie in Corpse Pose and just relax. Each session on the DVD ends with a different Savasana where the instructor takes you through a guided meditation of sorts. My favorite one involves imagining that your body is like ice or butter. You start with your toes and imagine them melting into little pools. You then move to your feet, up your legs, through the torso, the arms and finally the head. As you go through the body you imagine the sun melting it away to nothing. This relaxes me like no other meditation I’ve tried. By the time I get to my head I’m usually completely relaxed. This is an uncommon state for me. I come from a long line of anxious insomniacs (Some people are born with silver spoons in their mouths; in my family we’re born with Tums and Xanax in ours). But all of that flies out the window when I do this particular Savasana. What hit me the other night as I practiced this meditation was that while my body was relaxed to point where it almost didn’t exist to me, my consciousness was still there and aware.

This made me think of the suggestion of many ancient traditions to “die before you die;” put another way, to realize that you are “in this world, but not of it.” It's the perceived pressures of this world that cause my anxiety: bills, relationships, poor quality bowel movements, whatever. But when I realize that everything I can see and touch is temporary; and when I choose to believe that my connection to Spirit lives beyond this temporary world, I’m able to simply observe without worry or judgment. The moments that this happens are fleeting, but they’re there. It’s interesting to me that they happen when I just lie there and “do nothing” (as many popular new age guru-types tell us to do). But to get to the “do nothing” part, I have to get the kinks worked out to the point that I can relax. This requires that I “work hard” (as many popular self-betterment motivator-types tell us to do). As one of my yoga instructors said about a particular pose, “to get this right, you must find the balance between effort and surrender.” If you ask me, that’s good advice for just about anything.

A Statement of Faith???

While the idea of the “lone wolf” is romantically appealing, and I admit to occasional fantasies of a solitary existence, I know at my core I’m a pack animal. I find comfort in friends and family, in a circle of people who are similar to me and will nod their heads in agreement at most things I say. There’s comfort in being a valued part of the “family” (however you define the word). That’s one of the chief appeals of organized religion. You can meet with like-minded folks. It’s comforting to worship together, to sing to the Almighty in one voice with a group of people whose ideas and beliefs are similar to yours. I suppose having others believe as we do provides a sense that we are justified in what we believe; that it must be “right” because it’s validated by all of those around me.

As a child this was huge for me. I enjoyed going to church, only playing sick on rare occasions to stay home and watch “All-Star Wrestling.” Most of the appeal was that feeling of kinship and acceptance; of belonging to something bigger than me. I have so many cherished memories of the grandmotherly and grandfatherly folks in my congregation who took an interest in me and were happy to see me each Sunday. Another aspect I liked was learning what I believed. Sunday school and sermons let me know what “we believed.” And for an impressionable child this served a wonderful purpose and built a strong foundation. I know this wasn’t exclusive to my church as I had discussions (and arguments) with Catholic friends and Baptist friends about our beliefs. All of us were very sure of the legitimacy of what we believed and had no trouble describing in concrete terms what we knew to be right. And, all of us were parroting exactly what we’d been told in our respective churches.

This foundation continues to support my spiritual evolution. Yet like a snake that to grow must shed the skin that once protected it; I’ve had to shed many literal beliefs that once nurtured me. And it seems that each new belief which emerges is more subtle than the last. There was a time when my beliefs were easily articulated and defined. And for the most part they involved whether or not a certain story was factually true. A statement of faith for me was clear and definitive. I could craft little walled gardens of definitions inside whose boundaries my ideas were happy to stay. Now, however, my beliefs refuse to play in small yards. They’re slippery and subtle, and easily elude my attempts to cage them. As I’m drawn further into mystery I find myself less in need of concrete, easily articulated beliefs; and correspondingly, less in need of a tribe around me that shares my statement of faith. While I still find my association with church to be a source of support and kinship, I’m much less concerned that those around me share my “beliefs.” It’s comfort enough to know that we are collectively supporting each other on our individual journeys.

Don't do certain things or eat certain things to please God? Your weak in faith according to Paul

Are you very careful about what you eat or drink for the Lord? Or do you eat all things and bless His name knowing that nothing in and of itself is evil or good but our thoughts make it so?

You can apply this to almost anything in the christian life. There are those who only do certain things because they think they may be offending God. Then there are those who do all things as unto Him without worrying about the legalities of right and wrong.

It can all be summed up in a few little verses from Romans 14. No you won't hear any preacher or teacher talking about these because you see it confuses their points about sin and right and wrong in the church because these verses speak of those who don't watch what they eat or what they do as much as being "strong" in faith not weak. In the christian community it's the opposite thought that tends to dominate thought; that is you are strong in faith if you do live your life just so.

Take a look for yourself. Romans 14:2

"For one believeth that he may eat all things: another, who is weak, eateth herbs."

That's right, the one who is really trying to please God by just doing certain things is what? "weak in faith."

"One man esteemeth one day above another: another esteemeth every day alike. Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind."

There is the key, the "mind". The mind is where all the discrepencies lay when it comes to your faith. It is your thinking that makes it so said Shakespear and Paul.

So why do we have thousands of versions of christianity? The mind. Why do whe have millions of christians each with their own ideas of what sin is and isn't? The mind. Why we do we have wars of religion? The mind. I think you get the point. The mind is carnal and even referred to in the bible as an enemy or "enmity" against God.

Romans 14:14 reads:

"I know, and am persuaded by the Lord Jesus, that there is nothing unclean
of itself: but to him that esteemeth any thing to be unclean, to him it is
unclean."

Again it's what you "esteemth" or what your mind decides.

Romans 14:22

"Hast thou faith? have it to thyself before God. Happy is he that condemneth not
himself in that thing which he alloweth."

Anything not of faith is basically sin according to Paul in this chapter so live your life in faith and stop trying to judge yourself and others. If it is love that is the fulfillment of all the law then live in faith and love for this is the goal of the teachings of Jesus. If you are being harsh on yourself and judging then you are not living in faith and love.