Articles
Too Convenient
As I was driving to work, I passed some bank drive-in's, and ATM's. I passed two drive up ice dispensers. I passed a couple of convenience stores, and then a grocery store that has a little store out front in case you don't feel like going into the big store. Why, I can't tell you, but I thought about power steering, automatic transmissions, and power brakes, which lead to power windows and remote starters. (I know, weird) By now I'm figuring when I do sit down to write today's article that it will be about convenience, so I'm noticing power lines, cable TV lines, and as I pull into the parking lot, like most mornings, I look to see if the automatic sprinkler came on and watered the grass at my office. When I go home each night, I open and close my garage door with the push of a button, and I talk to my phone and tell it what time to wake me up.
I'm talking to me as well as you today, when I ask if we are guilty of, not intentionally but unintentionally, letting our religion become less of a sacrifice and more of a convenience. Satan wants to keep us out of the church, and the church building. (By the way, they are not one in the same, that's another of those false teachings we talk about often in this space.) Satan will use whatever he can to keep us out of both. Has our worship become impersonal? Have we become impersonal? Have we grown cold?
We can turn on the TV in our homes and watch somebody in a church service somewhere on Sunday mornings. Some say they are worshiping that way, but if they are, they are not involved with those who are assembled. They can't hear you sing, they can't be encouraged by your presence if you are not there with them. They don't even know you exist, and that is not what God intended or desires from His Worshipers. Obviously, I'm not talking about those who can't go to worship, but those who won't go.
We can whip out our credit cards and send money to Africa or Haiti, which is good don't get me wrong, but what did it cost us? Are there people here, close by, that need our money and our compassion and our concern? Do we meet human needs face to face anymore, or do we just point and click and transfer a few bucks from our bank account to help them? Again, I'm not saying that's bad, just that it doesn't build relationships, and we don't even know the names of our recipients. They benefit from the money, but they miss any concern and love from the person who sent it.
I've been guilty of wanting to rush out after worship to get home to some TV show, or to some event. Again, that's not wrong in and of itself, but what are we missing? What are our brothers and sisters missing from us, and us from them? The more we do things like this, the easier it becomes to be an impersonal Christian, and the more we become impersonal the less we need the interaction with others in the Church, and that is NOT the way God intended us to be. If we don't make commitments and get involved, Satan has all he needs to start working on getting us to throw in the towel altogether.
We live in a world of convenience. We appreciate convenience, and we despise inconvenience. God has given mankind the ability to figure out things, invent things, craft things, and make our lives much easier than they would otherwise be. The older I get, the more I appreciate technological things that do my work, as I hurt much less because of them. It's unfortunate that some have likewise applied that way of thinking to religious principles. When it comes to my spiritual well-being, I'm convinced I don't need to look for anybody or anything to do my work for me, because I will become accustomed to not doing it, and that will make it really easy to stop. God wants me to be active, and do my part in the family of believers, not live like a hermit. Maybe we would all be better off if we still had to ride a donkey or walk to Jerusalem every year!
