Embracing the Awkward Week 1
Sharable notes for the January 5, 2020 message. You can post these notes on your social platform!
Scriptures used: 1 Peter 2:4-9; John 12:25
“Those who love their dream of a Christian community more than they love the Christian community itself become destroyers of that Christian community even though their personal intentions may be ever so honest, earnest and sacrificial.” Dietrich Bonhoeffer
We have to understand that everything isn’t always like we want it, even in the Christian community. Sometimes things get awkward, but maybe we just need to embrace the awkward.
The church shouldn't be about me being perfectly understood and allowing me to stay in my comfort zone. Church is about understanding God more and meeting Him where He is.
“More than any before us, an American today believes ‘I must write the script of my own life.’ The thought that such a script must be subordinated to the grand narrative of the Bible is a foreign one. Still more alarming is the idea that this surrender of our personal story to God’s story must be mediated by a community of fallen people who we frankly don’t want getting in our way and meddling with our own hopes and dreams.” Tod Bolsinger
What if our commitment to faith existed even amidst discomfort? What if we were faithful even amidst disappointment? What if we learned to love church even when, or perhaps because, it challenged us and stretched us out of our comfort zone?
“If I had never joined a church till I had found one that was perfect, I should never have joined one at all, and the moment I did join it, if I had found one, I should have spoiled it, for it would not have been a perfect church after I had become a member of it. Still, imperfect as it is, it is the dearest place on earth to us. All who have first given themselves to the Lord, should, as speedily as possible, give themselves to the Lord’s people. ... As I have already said, the church is faulty, but that is no excuse for your not joining it, if you are the Lord’s.” Charles Spurgeon
Rather than trying to form communities around our own preferences, we must allow ourselves to be formed by God and his people.
By God’s grace we can see people from different races, ethnicities, educational and socioeconomic backgrounds share life together under the banner of Christ.
“The church is…made up of natural enemies. What binds us together is not common education, common race, common income levels, common politics, common nationality, common accents, common jobs, or anything else of that sort. Christians come together…because they have all been saved by Jesus Christ and owe him a common allegiance…They are a band of natural enemies who love one another for the sake of Christ.” D.A. Carson
Following Christ is not a golden ticket to a white picket-fence American dream. It’s an invitation to die, to let go of what we believe we are entitled to, and embrace what Jesus has purchased for us with His life.
“I didn’t go to religion to make me happy. If you want a religion to make you feel really comfortable, I certainly don’t recommend Christianity.” C. S. Lewis
“You can’t know God, change deeply, or change the world apart from community.” Tim Keller
Reflect or meet with someone to discuss:
What does your dream church look like?
What's the most awkward thing about church to you?
What keeps you from committing to the local church?
How has being a part of a church community stretched you?
In what ways can you allow yourself to be stretched even more? What's something new, and maybe a little awkward, you need to step out and do?
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What does it look like to follow God from season to season, career to career, possibility to possibility, from success to success, or from one challenge to another. Following God can be daunting, exciting, scary, fun, cloudy, clear, joyful, painful, unpredictable, uncomfortable, and so much more. This series of devotionals will help you navigate real feelings and inspire you to follow God with practical application.