TRYPRAYING

If you are anything like me there will be times or have been times when you have felt like walking away from ministry. At this moment in time the thought has gone through my mind that the best thing I could do is to walk away and let someone else, more successful, take up the post. In a declining congregation there is nothing more debilitating and more challenging than to get one of those letter of resignation from a key member. I would have hoped that after ten years of working with a person the least expected would be to have a face to face conversation about the unspecified issues which have remained. Sometimes I think people loose all their sense of corporate responsibility and all sense that the minister, pastor or church leader, or whatever title they give, will actually take this personally. I understand perfectly that there are many pressures on people today and we live in a high pressure situation where the vast majority of the population have taken the decision to walk away from the Church and in a situation where passion replaces reason and reaction pro-action. I understand that we are a church in trouble-by church I mean the whole institutional church and I mean that all the churches are living in and involved in a thoroughly dysfunctional community.

For 40 years the community was torn apart by violence and sectarianism and by poverty (not the poverty of a developing nation but a poverty which touches every part of the being) and we all have our baggage but issues do not get sorted by a short conversation where the people with the issues (usually we all have issues and we need to recognise that it is not always the other person who needs sorted). Talking or even shouting at people will not do it and logical reasoning won't do it either. the only way forward is to accept people with unconditional love and allow God to do the sorting.

 I was involved in a very heated conversation where the small group of participants, when there should have been many more, were happy to point fingers or even to imagine that blame was being attributed.  and look for someone to blame. I was sitting listening and looking for an opportunity to make, what I considered, a positive contribution.This body has lost its vision and so when things go wrong they turn in on each other. This is how issues are dealt with because it is still a community under attack and on the back foot ( a cricketing term meaning to be on the defense. In this community there is a deep seated paranoia. How could you not expect the church to reflect this?

If a person, who has been deeply involved for most of their lives feels they want to walk away it is probably time to. Living in the community and ministering in the community I need to understand that sometimes things get the wrong way round and instead of the gospel challenging the community its the community that challenges the gospel. All of this drives me to the conclusion that I can do it no longer, I do not have the strength, the skill or the ability but God does. the only way forward is to bring it all to God. this is God's mission. Outside our church we have two banners saying "TRYPRAYING". 

Here is the old lesson learnt the hard way again, TRYPRAYING. Will you join with us as we pray? Every Wednesday night 7-30-9.30pm the Gathering Place ( The coffee area at the front of the church) will be open as a space for prayer. We welcome all people-we have no barriers of religion or class or profession just a desire to reflect and bring all our concerns to Jesus Christ. 

Time to walk away? Only God can tell me that, only God can tell you and only God can transform this and other communities. The Apostle Paul sets out the context of corporate and systemic sin in Ephesians 6 and pleads with his people in that great city to pray without ceasing confident that at the end of the battle they will be standing tall in victory.