Hello,
If you haven’t been to church for a while, I would like to offer you an
apology.
The apology that needs to be given to you is this; we have been wrong to
speak of you as “C and E” Christians, that is Christmas and Easter
Christians. We have been wrong to
diminish the honesty of the intellectual struggle that you might have in
aligning the Christian message with realities of life that you see. We have been wrong to make small the
challenges of your world that sets you on a treadmill that just keeps going
faster and faster. We have been
wrong not to take blame for making secondary things seem to be the primary
thing that we stand for. We have
been wrong for not coming clean on the hurtful things that we have said and did
that may have turned you away. But
most of all, we have been wrong to be cynical about your presence among us on
Christmas or Easter, rather than to be thankful for it.
It is important for you to know that not every person who regularly
attends worship thinks of you as a “C and E” Christian. I know that I do not. When you make the effort to worship
among us, that is our chance to impact your life with God’s love that has
opened up our lives. It is our
chance to be Christ to you; loving you no matter what others think of you,
forgiving you no matter what you have done, and walking with you no matter what
life might bring. Of course we
don’t do that perfectly, but when you come and worship with us, I trust that
the Holy Spirit’s presence will overcome our faults and shortcomings.
So, with apology behind, let me say to you as boldly as I can, please
accept my invitation to come to worship this Sunday, Easter…..actually, it is
not my invitation, it is Jesus’ invitation. Nothing would delight Jesus any more than for him to see you
at his table and to commune with you.
Nothing would delight Jesus any more than to have you spend an hour
warming up around the fire of his love as you live in this rather cold and
harsh world. Nothing would delight
Jesus any more than to fill your ears with the truth, that you are of such
value and worth that he would die for you, in a world that is constantly
bombarding you with the lie that places your value on the things you do. Nothing would delight Jesus any more
than for you to bring whatever struggles you face in life, and for him to lead
the charge back out into the world like a NFL lineman, blasting a hole of hope
through which you can pass.
No matter how long it has been since you have been in worship, I hope
that you will come to church this Sunday, Easter. Of course, I hope that you will often come back, and I ask
you to take my word when I say that my hopes have nothing to do with filling
empty pews, reaching a church budget, or personal pride. I hope that you will worship regularly
because there is nothing more that would delight Jesus than to have you in
church regularly….to hope you, to peace you, to joy you…..to love you.
See you Sunday!
Have a great week,
God’s grace and peace,
Pastor Jerry Nuernberger
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