Church is good for me!

Widens my circle of concern
I often do not have much good to say about the church - even though I am a Church minister. I think the Church distorts the way of Jesus. I think that often the Church has led to a self-centred christianity. I do not like much what happens and what is expected in worship. I do not enjoy organ music. I think often the Church has become an end in itself rather than a means to an end. As I reflected on my life sometime in bed last night though, I thought of something significant my Church experience has done and does do for me. It widens my circle of concern and interest.  We can easily lapse into a sheltered lifestyle, where we look after ourselves and our "tribe".  We can become just a part of the problems in the world by basically being apathetic about the needs of others. Someone has said that the opposite of love is not "hate" but "apathy" - at least hate treats the other as a person. Apathy is indifferent to the other's existence altogether. In my life my experience of Church has always kept before me the needs of others.

As a kid growing up in the North East Valley Church of Christ we had people in our congregation who had a wider vision about life. Dr A L Haddon, principal of the Glen Leith Bible College, had a passion for CORSO. We as kids were involved in door to door collections, packing second hand clothing. I had a relative we called "Uncle Harry" (Harry Smith, married to my father's cousin) He was involved with St John Ambulance and we as children got involved on street appeal days and were aware of this service organization. We were constantly informed about the needs of people in Southern Rhodesia (Now Zimbabwe) by visiting missionaries. One of my heros was a one time missionary, Sir Garfield Todd who championed the cause of the black population, became Prime Minister of that country, but later was imprisoned and suffered for his beliefs. He visited and knew my parents. We had visits from Leprosy mission representatives who challenged us with the needs of lepers throughout the world. Christmas was always not just a selfish wallowing in gluttony and receiving of gifts. We were always made aware of the needs of others through the Christmas Bowl appeal. This has been true throughout my life. As a minister when I have had to seek to communicate the message of scripture I have been challenged by Jesus' words calling for a servant lifestyle again and again.  The message of Old Testament prophets to look after the poor, to seek justice and to care for the oppressed has always challenged me. Right through to last Sunday's Mission Sunday visit, the Church has been good for me as a person. It lifts my vision from my own navel gazing to think about others. It broadens my understanding of the world. It puts the problems of life in perspective alongside the needs of others. It simply widens my circle of concern and in so doing helps make me a better person.

Stupid car, stupid flu and stupid weather.
Today I have a sore throat. It feels like the flu is coming back again. The weather has once again been uncertain with cold winds so it has made me hunker down inside most of the day. We went to the farm supply store and bought a big bag of sheep nuts to feed our goats. While loading this into the back of the car I hit my head on the hatch. I could feel it gouging out the skin on my scalp. It just keeps bleeding and has given me a bad headache. But it will come right. Not a great day off.  Now you can say "He talks through a hole in his head."