We have a Long Range Planning Committee at work on behalf of our church. This committee is thinking and praying about the kind of church God wants us to be as we make plans for the next 10 years. John Pierce, the editor of Baptists Today, recently wrote an editorial that can help us to think about what God wants New Hope Baptist Church to be.
He wrote, “Perhaps we are putting so much energy into trying to create ‘comfortable’ churches that we have failed to recognize the importance of being ‘comforting’? One does not need to go to church on Sunday morning to be comfortable. A blanket at the lake, the soft music at the coffee shop and the cozy sofa at home can provide that pleasure. Finding comfort from the storms of life, however, is a more difficult pursuit.”
Then John gives three basic ideas that can help a church be more comforting than comfortable.
“One, a person who is hurting must feel that the church really cares. Compassion and sensitivity are not programmed – they are formed though spiritual discipline.
“Two, fear of condemnation is a roadblock to community. One will only risk his or her pain, struggles and other evidence of human frailty in an environment of understanding, acceptance and grace.
“Three, the church must be a place where the transcendent presence of God can be experienced more so than anywhere else. Worship – regardless of style – must allow for those who bring burdens, fears, hopes, uncertainty, joy and confusion into the full presence of the Divine.”
God wants New Hope to be a comforting church. How would you say we are doing at showing people that we care, at providing an atmosphere of acceptance, and at bringing people into the presence of God in our worship services? What do you think we need to do to get better at being a comforting church?
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