So many things rambling through

my head on the church front that I can’t make sense of them in a coherent way. Just wisps of ideas here and there on various topics that are somehow related but in a hyper-linked www kind of way. Or is it that my thought processes are now hyper-linked to the point that I can’t see the whole?

I think it started with the whole Ted Haggard mess the other day and as predicted, all the clowns came out with the hypocrisy lines thinking they were original. And I really enjoy those believers that tell us how our churches are filled with hypocrites while they sit on their fat rears at home doing nothing. Yeah, those are real peaches. And then I moved on to thinking in macro terms about faith in America, reviewing the Baylor study data more. And then actually got to go to church on Sunday and fellowship with all those hypocrites. And was, as always, renewed in my spirit. Let the naysayers nay, I’ll pray, fellowship and read the Word.

A guy from my class called me Saturday and needed counseling. Although I felt wholly inadequate for the task, I nevertheless said that I would help him. As JM said in class Sunday, he probably just needs someone to listen. Let’s hope so. I decided to get him a workbook, so after work yesterday I stopped by Lifeway at Baybrook to see if anything jumped out. What jumped out was the commercialism of the place. This ain’t your daddy’s Baptist Book Store, for sure. Normally, I’d rant and rave about that but it struck me that it was okay, just chill. As I recalled the data from the Baylor study and observed the crowd in the store at 4:30 in the afternoon on a Monday, dots began to connect. People are HUNGRY for the Word. And they aren’t getting it in their churches. Why?

What did the early Christians do in “church”? They met together and learned from each other. They read portions of letters from the apostles and helped each other understand them. What is interesting is what they didn’t do – they didn’t spend their time in “church” trying to convert people. No, they did that outside of the “church”. As in, they lived what they learned in “church”. If our churches aren’t feeding the believers, is it any wonder that church attendence is down? Outside of the megachurches, that is. And there are many reasons megachurches are thriving but the one that stands out to me is the entertainment value that they bring. But that’s a tale for another day.

So anyway, back to my shopping trip, I ended up with 4 workbooks and book to read for myself, No More Christian Nice Guy. I’ll deliver one to him and one to his fiance tonight. I picked The Man God Uses for him, a workbook I did a couple of years ago. For her, I picked up A Heart Like His, I’ve seen SU give that one away many times so it must be pretty good. The thing about workbooks (good ones) is that they force you to actually read your Bible and learn things on your own. Not just regurgitate someone else’s interpretation of the verses you read. They are wonderful tools, I just wish there was a way to distribute them cheaper so that more people could have access to them. For instance, the couple I’m giving these to couldn’t afford to purchase them. $40 may not seem like a lot of money unless you don’t have any. As I say at the close every class, read your Bible, read your Bible, read your Bible.

Gosh, I’ve rambled, told you I wasn’t coherent yet. Late.