Thank you for being the first post I've read to say this. "We stay because Jesus is worth it." Of course I agree with you in the need for some to leave abusive situations. My husband one day turned to me and said, "We don't follow Christians, we follow Christ." And it has brought us to the feet of Jesus each time we experience hurt and mistreatment. Of course it is my deepest desire to see the Church be the refuge for the world again rather than the instrument of pain, but boy do I want to give people a hug and remind them that Christ is not synonymous with those who follow Him, even though it should be. Thank you for gracefully writing this.
i was/still am a bit where your son is. I get it. Why believe in Jesus if this is what HIs people look like? Ah but then you jump in with the reasons to hang in there. And I get that too. But at the moment, I feel so beaten down by the crazies, it has become hard for me to focus on the real character of Jesus. And yes, where *would* we go?? I have seen snippits of real Christians, they really are out there and they - for the moment - are what keep me going because I can see them, sinners that they be. However, I need to keep on pushing forward and will keep your post for future reference. Thanks for your candor.
Beautifully written. Us Protestants don't have examples for what it looks like when the organisation that houses the people of God goes south. We used to go into the desert and seek God there and no one accused us of walking away from Jesus. In fact, they found them to be a simpler and more refined believer. We need not always be a part of an organisation to faithfully follow Jesus, --wandering the desert has been the true testing and growing of my faith that I would have never experienced if I had stayed.
Dorothy - an excellent piece and very timely. Its not as if Jesus didnt warn us of the leaven (Matthew 16 and Mark 8): Pharisees/religious legalism; Sadducees/intellectual vanity; and Herod/political power. Yet we seem to be in a season of sifting on all the above. Lord knows I've needed to repent and humble myself dealing with all of these in my lifetime. I understand better what it means to work out our salvation with fear and trembling now. I appreciate your consistent voice and transparency on these matters - it matters and I'm thankful for all your past and future contributions. While the church may be struggling right now, I've always liked to think about it as C.S. Lewis described as "spread through all time and space and rooted in eternity, terrible as an army with banners". While a major change in its expression or even format in our nation seems overdue, I find solace in knowing a community of believers will always exist, that the Spirit is ever moving, and we will never be alone.
Great essay Dorothy! I resonate with all your points! This whole movement has the ability to discourage me, but I remind myself to keep my eyes on Jesus!
You nailed the young people's hypocrisy detection meter. I think because my husband and I have always been in involved with teens and college kids, either as church youth ministers or public school teachers, we have retained some of that same youthful outlook. And yet, like you, we have made the decision to stay--at least in the faith, though we have left some specific church bodies. We have deconstructed and reconstructed a bit here and there (as I wrote about in a recent post), but we have not deconverted. Sadly, both of our children, like your son, have. This is not the family dynamic we ever anticipated having with our adult kids. Thank you for this post. I feel it. Like Peter so famously said, "To whom would we go?"
Truly helpful and insightful, Dorothy. I find myself in so many of your illustrations... Church, Pastor's wife and mother of 3 grown daughters.. I am encouraged to keep going strong, with a heart of love for all of the people I am with each day. Also, I appreciated the call for those that have walked away from even healthy churches to find a new place (finding out later, that they just aren't attending church anymore) Keep up the good work, my sister!
Thanks for affirming the decision to persevere even if it has come “in spite of” rather than “because of.”
Thank you for being the first post I've read to say this. "We stay because Jesus is worth it." Of course I agree with you in the need for some to leave abusive situations. My husband one day turned to me and said, "We don't follow Christians, we follow Christ." And it has brought us to the feet of Jesus each time we experience hurt and mistreatment. Of course it is my deepest desire to see the Church be the refuge for the world again rather than the instrument of pain, but boy do I want to give people a hug and remind them that Christ is not synonymous with those who follow Him, even though it should be. Thank you for gracefully writing this.
Most versions have mistranslated Roman 8:28. It should be rendered, “God works all things together WITH those who love him”.
See this link for more info:
https://cryingoutforjustice.blog/2024/03/02/romans-828-has-been-mistranslated-it-should-not-be-used-as-a-platitude-to-mollify-someone-who-is-suffering/
i was/still am a bit where your son is. I get it. Why believe in Jesus if this is what HIs people look like? Ah but then you jump in with the reasons to hang in there. And I get that too. But at the moment, I feel so beaten down by the crazies, it has become hard for me to focus on the real character of Jesus. And yes, where *would* we go?? I have seen snippits of real Christians, they really are out there and they - for the moment - are what keep me going because I can see them, sinners that they be. However, I need to keep on pushing forward and will keep your post for future reference. Thanks for your candor.
Why is christian nationalism bad theology?
Beautifully written. Us Protestants don't have examples for what it looks like when the organisation that houses the people of God goes south. We used to go into the desert and seek God there and no one accused us of walking away from Jesus. In fact, they found them to be a simpler and more refined believer. We need not always be a part of an organisation to faithfully follow Jesus, --wandering the desert has been the true testing and growing of my faith that I would have never experienced if I had stayed.
Dorothy - an excellent piece and very timely. Its not as if Jesus didnt warn us of the leaven (Matthew 16 and Mark 8): Pharisees/religious legalism; Sadducees/intellectual vanity; and Herod/political power. Yet we seem to be in a season of sifting on all the above. Lord knows I've needed to repent and humble myself dealing with all of these in my lifetime. I understand better what it means to work out our salvation with fear and trembling now. I appreciate your consistent voice and transparency on these matters - it matters and I'm thankful for all your past and future contributions. While the church may be struggling right now, I've always liked to think about it as C.S. Lewis described as "spread through all time and space and rooted in eternity, terrible as an army with banners". While a major change in its expression or even format in our nation seems overdue, I find solace in knowing a community of believers will always exist, that the Spirit is ever moving, and we will never be alone.
Great essay Dorothy! I resonate with all your points! This whole movement has the ability to discourage me, but I remind myself to keep my eyes on Jesus!
You nailed the young people's hypocrisy detection meter. I think because my husband and I have always been in involved with teens and college kids, either as church youth ministers or public school teachers, we have retained some of that same youthful outlook. And yet, like you, we have made the decision to stay--at least in the faith, though we have left some specific church bodies. We have deconstructed and reconstructed a bit here and there (as I wrote about in a recent post), but we have not deconverted. Sadly, both of our children, like your son, have. This is not the family dynamic we ever anticipated having with our adult kids. Thank you for this post. I feel it. Like Peter so famously said, "To whom would we go?"
Thank you, Dorothy, for this thought-provoking post!
Truly helpful and insightful, Dorothy. I find myself in so many of your illustrations... Church, Pastor's wife and mother of 3 grown daughters.. I am encouraged to keep going strong, with a heart of love for all of the people I am with each day. Also, I appreciated the call for those that have walked away from even healthy churches to find a new place (finding out later, that they just aren't attending church anymore) Keep up the good work, my sister!
Excellent post, Dorothy, thoughtful, informative, and important.