"How you gonna pay your rent/ All your money spent/ Telephone disconnect[ed]/ Waiting on your next paycheck/ Baby need a pair of shoes..."
In the middle of our refrain of "Work it out!" I stopped to ask myself "Why is all the money spend before the rent is paid? Is God really supposed to step in and "work out" an avoidable mess that we got ourselves into?" It got me to thinking further: while we admonish the congregation to trust that Jesus can work out our problems, what is the church's responsibility to equip the people with certain tools to avoid the pitfalls from which we ask for divine rescue?
It strikes me that many churches, especially Black churches, only focus on the religious aspect of life and neglect the everyday issues that have nothing to do with the devil. What happened to "first natural, then spiritual" (I Cor 15:46)? IMO, if a church wants to be effective, it should address the whole man with practical, real-world solutions as well as Biblical application. Money management, conflict resolution, developing skills to give an advantage when job hunting, helping kids deal with bullying, monitoring your health. These are just a few of the things that should and could be addressed through the church. And not just by someone who has an opinion on the matter, but those with experience and (preferably) professional training in dealing with these issues.
I think that religious leaders must realize that there is more to the people who fill the pews every Sunday than needing to pay tithes and hear about Heaven. After the shouting is done, people have to leave those four walls and deal with life. The Gospel (good news) needs to not be limited to words in a book about things that happened thousands of years ago. The message should be that we all have the power to overcome, with education and examples that make it a reality.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.