Better Late than Never
Hello My Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Wow! It has been a long time since I last blogged. It really just went out of my head. I would think of it at really weird times like when driving or laying in bed or in the middle of a service. I am sure there is some Freudian explanation, but the fact remains, 'I am back!'. Now, what to talk about? The economy? Politics? The war in Eukraine? Violence in our country? Apathy in the church? Mmmm, apathy in the church sounds about right. If we could eliminate that then the other problems would not be so bad. I believe that. If we could get a moral code of ethics instilled within the hearts and minds of our fellow citizens then I believe the world would be a better place. People, politicians, advocates, and others want to have gun control as if guns are evil. While I believe in some gun control, I do not believe that it addresses the real issues we have in our society. People have a poor self image and will do anything to make themselves feel better about themselves even if it is hurting others to get attention and/or to vent their frustrations and rage.
People who have worked hard all their lives now see money, educations, benefits, housing, and more being given away to people who did not work for it. Buy a new car? Now you can barely afford to fill it up with gas. The $10 bill has become a $5 bill, the $20 a $10. It may even be worse than that. I am no economist. Whose fault is it? Lets play the blame game. Right now the war in Eukraine gets a lot of the blame even though our woes began before the war did. Oooops! Sorry, got political there. Speaking of the war, our society once again lives under the threat of nuclear war along with the devastation of ecnomic war. I remeber as a grade schooler practicing hiding under my school desk. Crazy times we live in!
Then there is the weather which seems to be out of control. Fires, floods, droughts, and storms seem to be worse now than at any other time in our history. Again, not sure if that is true or more propaganda. Boy! Ooops, sorry. Girl! Nope, that won't do either. Person! It is hard to keep your opinions to yourself and avoid politics. I believe a major part of our social stress and problem is that we do not know what yard stick to use. What is correct and socially accepted? What is pc? I really dislike that term. Society should not determine right from wrong because everyone has a different opinion as to what is right and wrong. So this leads me to the apathy in the church.
Old joke; what does ch--ch spell? Nothing. What is missing? U R. Now we have church. Since the pandemic our church attendance has taken a hit. We were steadily growing and our average attendance was around 170 for the weekend counting both Saturday evening and Sunday morning worship. Now we average about 120 or so in person and another 12 to 20 online for our service. We can get up to 700 hits during the week online but we are not sure of the quality of that visit to our services. What changed? I am not sure. Of course, the fear of getting Covid is keeping some people away even though it has become about the same as having the flu unless you have underlying conditions (again, the flu). That year off is what did a lot of people in and between that and the stresses of the economy, wars and threats of wars, lethargy in the work place, hostilities on the televsion, video games, and the news people have become apathetic and take the easy way out by following the crowd. We have forgotten who and what our God is. God is all powerful, all knowing, ever present, all loving, jealous of our love, and the Almighty.
Deuteronomy 6:4, 5 "Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength." There is no other god before Him. Not popular opinion, not psychology, not money, not politics, not government, and certainly not fame, pleasure or fortune. The authority of God's Word is what is under attack in our world today because God's Word is the yard stick against which we measure right and wrong. The devil doesn't like that because the Word of God leads us to salvation which is found only in the name of Jesus Christ. Apathy in the church. Lots of reasons for it, but the Choice Is Yours! What are you going to do about it? Where do you think God wants you to be? Ch-Ch. God loves you and so do I.
Praise the Lord Always, All Ways, and Anyways