To the Christian who has left the church

There is no doubt church life can be messy, it can be stressful, it can even be painful. Many of us have been offended or even hurt in church, often by someone we love and trust. There are probably 101 ways people have been hurt in church, and an equally great number of reasons people have left the church.

It’s difficult to quietly stand by as a church member and watch a fellow member or someone in a leadership position fall into the snares of sin, the very sin they may have preached and warned you about a dozen times or more.

It’s no secret that many people have defaulted on their high calling to love and serve Jesus’ church as Pastors, teachers or some other form of church leader or even as a disciple.

We can also get into a church rut. When it sounds like the same sermon, the same illustration, the same concept that you’ve heard countless times before. The question comes to mind, is there anything left for me here, does the pastor have anything left to teach?

Maybe you have been turned off by consumerism church, with strategy after strategy to get you to give more so the church can build a bigger building, or renovate the coffee bar to redo the parking lot, or whatever other thing that has taken the role of the main thing for a given season.

Is this all church is?

Believe me, I understand all of that. I know church hurt, offense, rut, consumerism and more can create a wedge between you and the church and make it almost impossible for you to worship or fellowship without your mind wandering and your attention being stolen by everything else going on.

So you quit. You leave the church. You love Jesus but have had enough of the church. If this is you, you aren’t alone.

There is something important that we can easily lose focus of and we all need to remember.

The church, of whom our perfect Lord and Savior Christ Jesus is the head; is otherwise imperfect.

The leaders are imperfect, the members are imperfect, the worship team is imperfect. We are all imperfect people, whom Christ has called and loved into relationship and placed together to belong to Him and one another through the local church. We are all sinners who have been saved by grace through faith.

Jesus told His disciples, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor—sick people do. I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners.”

So, according to Christ, the church is a collection of sick people, who know they are sick and are in the process of being healed and made whole by Christ.

When we look at the church (the people) we will see a messy conglomeration of sin and short-comings, mixed with genuine love, good intentions and a desire to sin no more. People who are a little further in their walk with Christ and people who are just barely starting on the path, and everyone in between. When we look at the church we shouldn’t expect to see a tidy gathering where everyone sings in tune and lives out their faith well.

When I think of my church, the first thing that comes to mind is family. We are a family in every sense of the word. Think of your family for a moment. Are they perfect? Have your parents never made a mistake? Do you come to your wits ends at times? Has grandpa told you the same story so many times you know it better than he does? That is sometimes what family is. It’s also love, it’s safe, it’s the people who know the real you and allow you to be your most authentic self. That is what church should be. At Unhindered we are not perfect, but we are a family of believers. We love one another, we look out for each other, we want the best for each other and I can tell you, none of us are perfect. But the best part is, all of us have something very important in common, and He is perfect, His name is Jesus. He will never fail us, He will never default on His promises to us. He will never backslide into sin and leave us wondering if any of it even matters. He is worthy of all we are and all we have.

If you don’t belong to Jesus as part of His body, that is, the church, you are missing out on what He intended for you. Jesus wants us to be part of Him through a community, and He knows this community will be messy. He knows people will fail and He knows none of us are perfect. That is why He is the head, He is the focus, He is the one we look to, not the people who are being transformed by HIm, but Him alone. The people are here to push one another, not serve as the perfect example.

“And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” Hebrews 10:24-25.

If we are not surrounded by other believers, who love us, no matter how imperfectly, we will not experience the opportunity to not only be encouraged, but to encourage others. We will be absent from the place God has put us to love His imperfect people and stir them up to do better, to trust deeper and find peace in our Savior.

No matter how much we love Jesus independently, we will never be able to replicate the power and anointing that comes in a community of believers around us. We so desperately need each other. The worst place a lover of Jesus can be is alone. The strongest men and women of faith I have ever met, were not exempt from the schemes of the enemy or from the lies the world bombards us with.

We need to be connected. We need to belong. We need to love and be loved by others. We need the church!

If you have left the church, prayerfully consider coming back. Find a church that focuses on Jesus, truth and love and leads people toward a deeper relationship with Christ. Find a church that doesn’t excuse sin or accept sin in leadership. Find a church that loves Jesus and His people above all else. Find the church where you belong and have a place and purpose and opportunity to grow.

God has put something special and unique and amazing within you. He has put it there to strengthen His church, to help others, to serve others, to love others.

You may have never been told this, but the church needs you. The church without you is not as good as the church with you.

You belong, you are so loved!