Church

Because the church exists in this world, we tend to approach the church as though it were a part of this world. We expect the church to have the characteristics of other groups of people we experience daily.

We tend to think of the church as being like the company where we work, the professional association we join, a user group we participate in, a social group we belong to, and so on. We construct our expectations of church, based on our knowledge of other groups.

In fact, the church is something other-worldly. As originally designed by the Maker, the church is a place (not literally) where things work differently. Different rules apply.

Unless we take it over and make it in our own image . . .

Sitting in the pew yesterday, I was thinking about these things, and it occured to me to write an echo of the beatitudes -- those verses where Jesus talked about God's view of things, which differs greatly from our human view.

Anyway, as I thought about the church, I thought how glad I am that there is room for every one of us in God's body. The rules of other human groups -- who is valuable and who isn't, who is important and who isn't -- don't apply.

Here goes:

• Blessed are those who sing off key, for their songs are music to God's heart;
• Blessed are the socially clumsy, for they will be woven into the fabric of the church anyway;
• Blessed are those with the inability to verbalize their faith, for they will have the chance to preach through service;
• Blessed are the physically unlovely, for they will be viewed through the lens of brotherly love;
• Blessed are the professionally unsuccessful, for that is not how God measures people;
• Blessed are the self-centered, for God can use them in spite of themselves;
• Blessed are the least of the church members, for they will be exalted.

Aren't you glad you are called to be a part of God's church?