W. C. Fields once said, “I never want to belong to any organization that would have someone like me for a member!” W. C. Fields is known for his bar room humor and his disarming charm as an irrepressible drunk. His humor was based on his ability to say out loud what most people were thinking but perhaps too afraid to say. It shocked them to hear it and at the same time revealed a deeper truth about life. It’s one thing to think something in the back of your mind in private; it’s another to have those thoughts reflected back to you. So naturally I can’t help but wonder if he was thinking of the Church when he said this.
I have always taken this quote to mean that W.C. Fields, like all of us, wanted to be part of something that inspired him to reach higher and to risk failure in order to achieve something memorable and meaningful. It tells me he was looking for a great cause that would light a fire in his soul and challenge him to dig deep and discover there an inner strength that comes with testing. It reminds me that great organizations unite us in a noble fellowship committed to making the world a better place. Well, if that’s what he meant, then I say, “AMEN!”
As we begin a new year together I am excited by the number of opportunities that lie before us just waiting for us to jump in, stretch our faith a bit, roll up our sleeves and let God remake our little corner of the world. I’m excited by a church that inspires and then invites us to become something more, to dig deeper and to participate in a fellowship of life change. I look across the congregation each Sunday morning and see the faces of my friends singing, praying and giving out of God’s joy (regardless of the weather). I have been inspired by those who serve out of the sheer joy of giving themselves to help others or who pray and worship honestly and without reservation. I see all that we need is right here, right now, right .
I guess I would echo W.C. Fields’ quote “I never want to belong to a church that would leave me just as I am. I want to live for greatness sake, I want to serve great causes, and I want to share the road of learning and fellowship with great people.”
How about you? What kind of church are you looking for?
A church of comfort and convenience or a church of challenge and convictions?
A church of warm fuzzies and cold pricklies, or a church of emotionally healthy people growing, forgiving and loving one another? Email Subscription:
