The headlines are certainly not sharing good news for the most part. Natural disasters abound from one side of the world to the other and that doesn’t begin to touch the folly of man that points to other tragedies around the globe.
It would seem we could all do with a healthy dose of Good News and I know of only One solid source for that that never fails. What is tragic is that too often shadows even fall over that and discourage too many from believing there is Good News or there is a place where they can find it.
In the novel, Jayber Crow by Wendell Berry, that has inspired a fair number of posts of mine, Jayber talks of his own struggles as a result of the various church experiences he has known in the various small Kentucky villages and towns he lived in. At one point he muses:
“…as I have read the Gospels over the years, the belief has grown in me that Christ did not come to found an organized religion, but came instead to found an unorganized one. He seems to have come to carry religion out of the temples into the fields and sheep pastures, onto the roadsides and the banks of the rivers, into the houses of sinners and publicans, into the towns and wilderness, toward the membership of all that is here.”
Our reactions to his experiences can range from offense to strong agreement based on what we view as the hypocrisy of the body of Christ or organized church or the very personal wounds we have experienced within it or as a part of it. Our reactions are very 
much based on our own experiences, our own lens, even as Jayber’s were.
The result can be that we can be duped into either dismissing the church (or ourselves from being a part of it) or we operate with a certain denial that ignores the truth of evidences it is blemished to varying degrees by the human element and the enemy’s assault.
Major fractures have taken place in our churches and in other places minor cracks have been observed. They are evidences of the fragmentation within each of us. Try as we might, perfection eludes us which is why we needed a Savior to begin with and why God’s grace and love was extended because He knew He would have to do for us what we could not.
I wonder if we have expected too much of the church or perhaps too little. I wonder how often we consider our own role in the conundrum.
How fragmented we may or may not be affects the fabric of the church as well. Fragmentation is the handiwork of the enemy. It exists in varying degrees in us all and he has been using it since time began and most certainly after Jesus left His disciples to spread the Good News and usher in the body of Christ as the bride He is coming for.
John Eldredge speaks of how traumatizing the enemy’s work has been from the very beginning, pointing out his lustful desire to separate us not only from God, but also from one another. In one of his latest book, All Things New, listen to some of the ways he describes this:
“Our Enemy is the Great Divider. His most poisonous work takes place at the level of fragmentation, dividing families, churches, and fomenting racial hatred. He uses pain and suffering to create deep divisions within our own beings.”
A few lines later he adds:
“Our lives have become cut off from the Garden we were meant to flourish in.”
Have we been duped into looking to each other to be what only He can be?
Have we forgotten the thread of humanity that resides in all of us is what can bring us together in a crisis or tragedy? Do we not value that enough?
There is not only Good News to be had, but also truly the very BEST news.
Certainly the Bible speaks about it, but He is not limited to that primary source. He speaks to us through creation at every turn, through the rustling leaves stirring in the breeze, the babbling brook, and the warmth of the sun on our skin. He reminds us He has created and set us in time to structure our days and nights and create order in the midst of the enemy’s desire to create disorder.
The growing disorder we see is also a reminder He is coming again and likely sooner than we may think.
Can we see in the midst of and beyond the headlines and see Him watching and looking for us to look up and see Him?
It’s nice to read something that I’m not guilty of!!! I do not believe I’ve ever looked to the church (bldg of believers) to fulfill something in me. Whew, maybe I have something right after all!!!
Yes, we are definitely watching the beginning of the labor pains Pam. So much is happening globally its exciting & daunting all at the same time.
It brings to mind the verse in Matthew 24 that “in the last days even the elect will be deceived, if that is at all possible”!
We need to keep watch but through with the Holy Spirit’s discernment.
Bless you,
Jennifer
I couldn’t agree more about your choice of words – “exciting and daunting” – good examples indeed. That verse in Matthew 24 never fails to give me pause to ask the Lord to reveal if I fall prey to any deception. Have a blessed weekend.💝
God is love and peace. You are so right. The division and ugliness of the world belong to the one who roams about seeking whom he may devour.
Thanks so much Teresa!💕
Your post is on point, Pam. We are in a season of plotted divisiveness and division. I think God is calling his children to remember we are not of this world. We are strangers passing through. When all hell breaks loose, it is our time to shine. To show the world how we link arms and stop satan from succeeding. Unfortunately, corporate worship is either closed for the season or operating at small percentage of attendance. We must remember the church is not the building. We are the church and God is calling us to report to duty. One way I have answered that call is with individual connections. Phone calls, text messages, comments on social media posts. Some of which have led to 1on1 meetings via zoom with perfect strangers I now call friends. I have been more intentional with posting things that promote Christ. Sort of anti-division statements. The church still exists and our weapons of warfare are still available. God forbid we hid in the closet when he needs us most.
This is so well said. Thanks for sharing this as you did. God forbid indeed that we hide in a closet when He clearly calls us to be salt and light!💕
This is a very timely post! There is division in so many places today. Even the creation of like-minded groups for causes can be division by segregation rather than being inclusive. It is sneaky work that we really do need to stay awake to and be aware of!
Thanks, Lynn! Division is increasing and like-minded groups do seem to add to the division and no one is talking to each other that polarizes things further. God help us! Even though the Word says it would be this way as the day of His return is approaching, it is pretty frustrating to watch it all begin to unravel. Unbelievable really!
Yes, isolation and division are alive and well in today’s social climate. So many churches aren’t even meeting now, and those that are may find themselves criticized for doing so. I was talking to my son about that recently, and he used the words “divide and conquer.” The division is definitely happening, but, we know THE church cannot be conquered. Jesus said that even the gates of Hell cannot prevail against her. There is hope in that truth!
I am new to the Christian blogging community, and I found you through Tell His Story. You are the link before me.
Blessings,
Patti @ Clothed with Joy
Hi Patti! Thanks for stopping by and your good comments and reflections here. Welcome to the Christian blogging community. I will circle back and check out your website. We are a pretty supportive/encouraging group💝
Amen! May I keep my eyes lifted up, and watch for Him. HE is moving here, and loving here, even in these days of chaos and shortened time.
This: “Try as we might, perfection eludes us which is why we needed a Savior to begin with and why God’s grace and love was extended because He knew He would have to do for us what we could not.” The church is living proof of our need for a Savior. Lots to think about here, including asking ourselves what part we play. Thanks for provoking such thought, Pam!
It is indeed. Paul knew that well as he wrote to the early churches. Focusing on the chaos around us and the headlines has also (in too many cases) taken our eyes off the ball so to speak. We are citizens of heaven first and our hope is always in Him and He calls us to be light and salt.
Thanks for your kind words.💝
Pam,
I think the enemy is delighting that the church body is isolated from one another – it makes us easy prey for him to seek and destroy. There is A LOT of hypocrisy in the church. It certainly kept Paul busy, while in jail, telling the churches of Corinth, Ephesus, etc. how they could step it up! The pandemic has hindered the corporate church from influencing others, but we as individual members of the body have a responsibility to speak up and tell the Good News so that others don’t miss Jesus…terrific post – very thought provoking!
Blessings,
Bev xx
Hi Bev!
I would agree! He knows any time he can help bring about isolation, he is more likely to pick off the sheep who are not connected well and even with those, he can create disappointment and other things meant to neutralize us.
The pandemic is the first crisis where instead of the church coming together on its knees corporately as in 9/11, we have been separated.
Sadly, many believers have gotten caught up in the headlines about the virus and the chaos happening and have used their media platforms and conversation to feed the wrong wolf that I wrote about in a post last week.
Thanks for your affirmation and encouragement! Have a blessed week!💝
I was thinking about this in a secular sense. One way to defeat your enemies is to get them to defeat each other-it’s a plot often used in movies but it happens in real life too. And even in the church. This post is thought provoking. Found it through Grand Social link up.
Keen observation! That’s true…we see it in movies and sometimes in real life. Thanks for stopping by! Have a blessed day!🎈