While trying to find the context for a Eugene Peterson quote that appeared on my (Rebecca's) Twitter page this morning ("Go to the nearest small church and commit yourself to being there for 6 months"), I came across an interesting blog post HERE. While recommending you read the rest of the post, I've lifted an excerpt from it. Here it is:
You might wonder how my faith stayed alive and growing in the midst of
churches that had little to "offer" me and that never turned into the
well-attended, popular church. But I think it was precisely
because they
were so small. My parents and my pastors more than made up for any lack
in children's education by the time they spent teaching us and praying
with us on their own time. I have vivid memories of my pastor teaching
me to drive, my parents singing hymns with us in our living room, and
many, many adults in those churches who cared about us, mentored us,
took us out for birthdays, and generally made us feel valuable and
accepted.
In the smallness of those churches, we were not just numbers. We were seen and loved individually. And
my parents took their job as spiritual leaders seriously - they
couldn't (and didn't) just delegate it out to the awesome children's
ministry pastor and her amazing curriculum.
I don't know how else to explain this phenomenon besides 1 Corinthians 1:27-29:
But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God
chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the
lowly things of this world and the despised things - and the things that
are not - to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast
before him.
Are small churches weak? You could say that.
Lowly? Comparatively, yes.
But just as in all of the rest of our upside-down Gospel and upside-down
kingdom, God often does things a little - or a lot - differently than
we might expect.
Ironically, you may not always need a bigger church with "better"
children's programs, a "better" worship team, and a "better" preacher in
order to grow in your faith.
You may actually find yourself more known, more loved, and more
personally accountable for living out your faith in a small Body - one
that feels like a family - one where you can plug in and be used and rub
off on people and they can rub off on you and you can be challenged and
not always comfortable. You may find yourself growing in ways you never
expected - even without a famous preacher or world-class worship.
M:
Eighty-one years is a long time. As you enter your final season of
life, what would you like to say to younger Christians who are itchy for
a deeper and more authentic discipleship? What’s your word to them?
EP: Go to the nearest smallest church and commit yourself to being
there for 6 months. If it doesn’t work out, find somewhere else. But
don’t look for programs, don’t look for entertainment, and don’t look
for a great preacher. A Christian congregation is not a glamorous place,
not a romantic place. That’s what I always told people. If people were
leaving my congregation to go to another place of work, I’d say, “The
smallest church, the closest church, and stay there for 6
months.” Sometimes it doesn’t work. Some pastors are just incompetent.
And some are flat out bad. So I don’t think that’s the answer to
everything, but it’s a better place to start than going to the one with
all the programs, the glitz, all that stuff.
- See more at: http://jonathanmerritt.religionnews.com/2013/09/27/faithful-end-interview-eugene-peterson/#sthash.xGV6jpjB.dpuf
M:
Eighty-one years is a long time. As you enter your final season of
life, what would you like to say to younger Christians who are itchy for
a deeper and more authentic discipleship? What’s your word to them?
EP: Go to the nearest smallest church and commit yourself to being
there for 6 months. If it doesn’t work out, find somewhere else. But
don’t look for programs, don’t look for entertainment, and don’t look
for a great preacher. A Christian congregation is not a glamorous place,
not a romantic place. That’s what I always told people. If people were
leaving my congregation to go to another place of work, I’d say, “The
smallest church, the closest church, and stay there for 6
months.” Sometimes it doesn’t work. Some pastors are just incompetent.
And some are flat out bad. So I don’t think that’s the answer to
everything, but it’s a better place to start than going to the one with
all the programs, the glitz, all that stuff.
- See more at: http://jonathanmerritt.religionnews.com/2013/09/27/faithful-end-interview-eugene-peterson/#sthash.xGV6jpjB.dpuf
M:
Eighty-one years is a long time. As you enter your final season of
life, what would you like to say to younger Christians who are itchy for
a deeper and more authentic discipleship? What’s your word to them?
EP: Go to the nearest smallest church and commit yourself to being
there for 6 months. If it doesn’t work out, find somewhere else. But
don’t look for programs, don’t look for entertainment, and don’t look
for a great preacher. A Christian congregation is not a glamorous place,
not a romantic place. That’s what I always told people. If people were
leaving my congregation to go to another place of work, I’d say, “The
smallest church, the closest church, and stay there for 6
months.” Sometimes it doesn’t work. Some pastors are just incompetent.
And some are flat out bad. So I don’t think that’s the answer to
everything, but it’s a better place to start than going to the one with
all the programs, the glitz, all that stuff.
- See more at: http://jonathanmerritt.religionnews.com/2013/09/27/faithful-end-interview-eugene-peterson/#sthash.xGV6jpjB.dpuf
