Yep, I’m THAT person – the one who takes ten words to describe my drink choice at Starbucks. The franchise is struggling and the lines do seem shorter in the airport cafes, but that means I don’t have to wait so long for my venti, triple shot, skinny, cinnamon dolce latte or sugar-free, skinny, venti, London Fog. But, hey, at Starbucks it is all about ME – my particular cravings, likes, wants. I have my own, personal coffee niche.
But what I wonder is: has the independent church of God movement turned into a niche market church culture? Is church the way I want it, when I want it, with only the music I like and the types of sermons that interest me, really the right next step in church evolution? (Or is it church creation?)
When did church cease to be about fellowship with like-minded people (not exact same minded people) and worshipping God together and become just another thing we special order? How can this happen?
My personal opinion, which, if you couple with $4.50 will get you a latte at Starbucks, is that this occurs because we don’t drink enough coffee together – figuratively speaking.
When was the last time you got an invitation to the HOME of a fellow believer? Potlucks at church do not count. Going out to dinner does not count. Talking on the phone does not count.
Nothing, I mean, nothing at all, compares with getting together in your home (or theirs) with brethren. Don’t even try to tell me you keep in touch with blogs, Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn, etc…
When you have people over to your home (or go to their home) for coffee, dessert, breakfast, lunch or dinner, it creates an entirely different atmosphere for conversation. In a setting where you don’t have to leave until you are so sleepy you are afraid to drive home and no waiter will be pestering you about the check or a refill on tea when you are making an impassioned point, true connection occurs. You can cry openly, laugh without being shushed, kick off your shoes, and toss aside your reservations.
Maybe it is because having people over to your home, were you stuffed things under the bed and into closets at the last minute in preparation for the visit – where a guest could open the medicine cabinet and find out that you have athlete’s foot or toe fungus treatments – where someone could notice (gasp) that you haven’t dusted the mini-blinds lately – is already a act of trust.
I’ve gotten away from that. I’m busy. I travel a lot for work. My house is small, cramped. I don’t dust as often as I should. The yard needs mowing because it has been raining so much. I could go on. You probably have reasons of your own.
I believe that the connections forged by gathering in the privacy, the intimacy, of home, will help us get back to the focus of worshipping, studying, learning, in a spirit of togetherness at church. I believe it will help us pray more intimately for each other. You might actually pray right then and there, in your home, at the moment your guest brings up a need. I bet you wouldn’t do that at a restaurant. I believe it allows us to open up and confess our sins to one-another.
So, I encourage us all to lay aside any excuses and take the plunge – invite someone over to your home this week. Leave all the bedrooms messy and just close the doors. Shove stuff under the kitchen sink. Clean only one bathroom (so the guests can us it). It is okay to start small. Just serve coffee or water.
After all, unlike a custom Starbucks drink, it is about you. It isn’t about the food, the dust bunnies or the state of the yard. It’s about getting back to a sense of “us.”
Love, Nancy
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