We’ve all been to “Circle K’s,” “Quick Stops,” and “7-11’s.” You know. Convenience stores.
You zip in, get gas, and maybe a cup of coffee, then off to work or some other place. If you come at the same time every day, you might see a familiar face waiting at the counter in line. Maybe you see the same couple of clerks, too. You say, “Hi.” You say “Bye.” Or “How’s the family?” “How are the kids?” Sometimes you get more information than you asked for (we’ll get back to this later). Over time you build relationships. Sorta.
Convenience stores. Dash in. Dash out. Get your needs met. There’s some human contact. Sort of a relationship. But not too much. Convenience stores are there for you when you need them.
Gas. Coffee. Maybe even a doughnut. Sometimes you pick up other extras, like batteries. It’s not like Costco or a Grocery Store where you really go for the necessities. You need Costco. You need Whole Foods or Trader Joe’s. Convenience Stores are different.
Sometimes you visit other convenience stores. You’re on the road or on the other side of town. One day, after a few years, a few months, or even years something happens and you take your business elsewhere. A clerk says something you don’t like. There’s a change in décor. Who knows? It doesn’t sit well with you and boom, you’re gone. It is after all a convenience store. It’s there for your convenience.
In this next to the last installment on “The Downgrade,” we are going to compare the Convenience Store to the Local Church. If you are coming here for the first time, you might want to read the preceding blogpost-essays, starting here or just scroll down.
For many Christians today, the local church is a convenience store. It’s there for their convenience. Dash in, dash out. Drop the kids off in Children’s or Student Ministries, come to a service, and go. After a while, you begin to see familiar faces. You strike up relationships. And one day, you hear or see something you don’t like and you are gone. Like a convenience store. It never occurs to you that you may have misunderstood something. Or that you need to grow spiritually beyond your comfort zone... or that following a few friends who don’t want to be challenged is a bad idea. After all, the church is here for you... Or is it?
Aren’t you there for Christ? Aren’t you there to serve others? Aren’t you there to be challenged? Speaking of being challenged, a church is a family. Membership is like a marriage. And the church, any church is not like a convenience store. Would you walk out of a marriage without a word? Abandon children without self-examination—or let them know that you’ve gone?
How did the Western Church become a convenience store? Read the previous essays.
What can be done? Read the coming essays. For now, think about your take on “church” and maybe even the gospel and the Bible. A mind is a terrible thing to waste, and so is your opportunity to lay up treasure in heaven.
Note: the final essays are “What is the Church and Who is it for? And ” “What is Grace?” Stay tuned.