The dark chasm of reality speaks to our souls differently.  It beckons for us to weigh the very nature of our morality levied against the backdrop of scripture. Do we, through our deeds, warrant the grace of God through our efforts? The answer is no, but I ponder on the thought as I wrestle with our aptitude toward service.

I am not trying to redefine the grace of God –by no means –but trying to come to some conclusions about the importance of service. For it is in service where the church has managed to find a disconnect.  We have the facets of programming down but we have not understood service. We have mis-defined service as something you attend instead of something you do –service has died as a noun instead of transforming into a verb.

It will be through service that the church regains a prominent hold in the community. Our programs are good but they will only serve as connectors and not sustainers. We must engage with the work of service that is continual and productive; a service that highlights the grace of God in totality done in a spirit of humility.

The church has missed the opportunity to grow intrinsically because of the unique position that it holds in the kingdom of God. It is quite possible that we have fallen prey to our own victories. The words of Bain, as he slaps Batman around, speaks volumes, “ Y[our] victories have made you [us] weak.” The fact that we have the presence of the almighty on our team we have managed to stop doing any work. We have made this selfish play that God has our back and all we need to do is show up. Well in some sense that is true but we still have to do the work. Preachers still need to study the text, singers still need to practice the song, ushers still need to smile, greeters still need to greet, etc. The goal is to be unselfish in our service to the Lord without it becoming just part of the program.

Just my thoughts…