come and see

Dear neighbors,
I think a lot of people in our neighborhood have the wrong idea about church, misconceptions or false impressions.  Also, some churches give people the wrong idea about church.  So, if you want to know a little about church from an insider that thinks church is still worth knowing, here is a word about us:  We are not entertaining.  We are not a rock concert, a light show, or a video message board. We are not shouting out the latest celebrity gossip. We are not the coolest place in town.  We are not the center of attention.  We are not hi tech.  We are not "starbucks for Jesus".  We are not the stomping grounds of the wealthy or offering self-affirmation for the guilty.  We are not here to chastize you, straighten you out, or condemn you to hell.  We are not dressed in our Sunday best.  We are not marketing anything or selling anything to you or anyone else.  We are not the newest, hottest trend on the net.  There is no app for what we do.   We sing old hymns with words no one understands like "ebenezer." We eat small pieces of bread and drink wine from small plastic cups.  We read or recite prayers together.  We listen to readings from the bible.  We say, "Peace be with you".  We say, "Thanks be to God."  We say, "Your sins are forgiven." We stand up and sit down, stand up and sit down, stand up and sit down. We are old people, widows and widowers, retired and downsizing.  We want our lives to have meaning and to leave a legacy of good in our wakes.  We are young people, with ambitions and dreams and energy and hope.  We want to change the world, make it better for everyone.  We are families with children trying to live sustainably in a demanding economy where costs-of-living often exceed income. We are single adults looking for friends and community in an isolated and isolating neighborhood of strangers.  We are people who have made serious mistakes.  We are divorced.  We are addicts, trying to recover.  We have been incarcerated.  We are on parole.  We have hit rock bottom more than once and we have gotten back on our feet.
We are people whose hearts and minds have been captured by an ancient 1st century story of a Jewish Rabbi named Jesus of Nazareth, who died and lives and is the son of the living God.  He is a savior, because we have recognized that we need someone to rescue us.  We cannot save ourselves.  We do not save. We spend and consume and expend.  We devour and destroy and die. We throw away, we discard, even people.  We perpetrate injustices unawares every single day. But Jesus came and promised new and better life to people who believe it's possible.  To people willing to sacrifice being the greatest, the richest, and the strongest in order to reveal that God is all love and mercy and peace, there is this story.  In it, Jesus confronted the inherited power of darkness that resides in the human soul and destroyed its power over us, so that we do not have to keep on living in the woundedness of the past.  We do not have to repeat the course of human history, with its wars and diseases and crimes against humanity. Because on a Friday afternoon, it was finished.  A new chapter in the human story began three days later, when the crucified man was raised from the dead and appeared to many people.  The church began as a tragic defeat was turned into a surprising victory. That's the story we believe and tell over and over again.  God promises to turn the world upside down by turning each one of us inside out.  The hungry will have bread, the homeless will have a place of their own, the lonely will have companionship, the sick will have merciful help.  Church are people who believe that God is healing the world right now.  And we are recipients and partners in that healing.  We are givers and lovers, helpers and healers devoted to others before ourselves. We are not entertaining, but who we are is worth seeing.  We are God's people, God's imagination, God's workforce, God's family, God's slaves.  We are not who you think we are.  What you thought you knew about church is not altogether true.  That's more our fault than yours or anyone elses.  We have not lived honestly and openly.  We have not shared.  Because we are ordinary people.  We live messy, complicated, painful lives.  Church people are not perfect. But we are God's chosen ones, holy and beloved.  And so are you. That's the secret we have to share with you.  God is with you.  Everyday.  In your house.  At your place of work or schooling.  In the car.  On the bus.  God is with you.  God wants you to come closer to Him.  Jesus formed a church so that communion with God could be a shared reality throughout the world.  The church is God's way of reaching out to you and reminding you who you are.  You are God's beloved child.  
We can't promise you'll be entertained.  But what we have to show you and tell you is worth hearing and seeing.  Your life will never be the same.  Come and see.