God wants people to talk with each other. In the Bible, we see the elders sitting at the city gates, so that anyone who wanted to come and ask a question or have an issue settled could come and sit and learn. I think they, the elders as well as the people who came, also would share things they had learned: a part of Scripture or how to treat an ox, or how better to bake bread, etc. Deborah sat under a tree so that people could bring their problems to her for her to judge what should be done. They could do this before things became “really bad.” . When I lived in Peru, each day we bought the goods for our lunch from the various vendors in the marketplace. An orange from the man with the lisp because his always seemed larger, 2 lemons from the boy who always looked desperate for a sale, peas from the old lady who was half-blind but sharp as a knife in wit, a piece of pork from one of the meat vendors in a more shady area. We saw the sellers face to face, and, when they decided you were a nice person, you could get a better deal without asking….just a smile. We had little chances to prove our character as we dealt with them fairly. . God says in the New Testament that, when we meet as church, we should each bring a little something – song, verse, teaching, whatever – sharing our lives together was the point. The nose of the body telling of the first whiff of summer roses on the wind, the ears telling us about the song God sang to them that week, the hands bringing the touch and hug of God for the weary, the feet telling us about walking through the Body’s neighborhood and meeting all the people and their joys and pains and sorrows. Each part contributes to the whole. . Now we live in a digital age, and, while it is most fascinating, I think we all need to be aware that we now see others face to face less often, and, when we do, the situation is usually formalized. We buy our groceries after walking down aisles by ourselves, and then a vaguely attentive person scans the goods while someone bags them, usually while complaining about their boss, their supervisor, their mean teacher, or their unreasonable mate. The task is the point. . Having the elders sitting together multiple times a week for others to come and ask questions or share something or seek counsel has been formalized into scheduled meetings with who’s bringing the cake or cookies or fried chicken or meeting with one elder in a suitably formal room, often with a safeguard person present when genders are mixed. No push and pull of ideas, no iron sharpening iron. No look me in the eye. . And services have turned towards the pro’s running the show. You must have been in the church X months/years in order to do things. Getting a deacon or elder means a formal review, written feedback whose writer will be hidden from the candidate, months or years of consideration before acceptance or denial. Seems to me that in Acts 6, when the church needed deacons, the leaders said to the people, Hey, pick out 7 people who you think will do a good job. The people did it right there. The leaders and people laid hands on them, and it was done. . Why could they do this so quickly? They lived face to face on a daily basis, heard the arguments and joys in the hut next door. They met on an almost daily basis to do business. No email messages that carry no emotion so you do not know whether something was said in jest, in earnest, or in stupidity. Do not forget to leave your digital cocoon and live life face to face, and use those times to prove your character in little ways. I know it’s rainy today, but get out and go see someone who cares face to face.
Posted on: Fri, 26 Jul 2013 14:33:21 +0000
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