Forgetting a Part of the Journey

     Harry Truman once said, “Washington is a very easy place to forget where you came from and why you got there in the first place.”  Even sixty years later, there’s a lot of truth in that statement.  Politicians today, once exposed to the culture of the capital, can forget where their journey began and just why they came.  This is unfortunate in politics and often leads to a short career as a public servant.  Lately, though, I’ve noticed this tendency, not just in politics, but with Christians.  

     As part of the new ministry I now have, I try to keep up with what’s going on with young parents, children and millennials in general.  To do so, among other things, I read a lot of blogs, posts and articles.  In my reading recently I’ve noticed a trend.  A lot of people, when describing their Christian walk, describe their journey as one in which the church of their childhood was narrow, judgmental, superficial and harsh.  They often detail how they now have a better, broader and more Christ-like view than that they had when they were younger.  

     Before I incur the wrath of several, let me clarify some things.  First, not all people describe their walk this way.  Second, some folks really were victims of “friendly fire” in churches.  Third, there is a lot right with growing, developing and maturing in Christ.  Frankly, we ought to be in a better place spiritually today than we were yesterday.  What bothers me, though, about this trend is that I think it inadvertently slams some well-meaning Godly folks and tends to create a “spiritually arrogant” mindset that believes the church was never what she was intended to be until we got here.  Though I don’t want to get political, I think it is seen in the somewhat narcissistic phrase President Obama promoted at his first election when he said, “We are the change we’ve been waiting for.” 

     I don’t want to be the old cranky guy in the back row of the church, but I want to challenge people today.  I’m excited as quite a few folks are seriously considering spiritual things.  There’s a lot of discussion about what it means to be a “Jesus follower.”  Your relationship with Jesus is personal and all of us have walked a different road and have different backgrounds or stories.  As you think of your journey or your story, don’t just remember the mistakes made by the church of your past.  We’ve all got that.  No church has ever been perfect.  Do something new or fresh.  What’s that?   Remember the Sunday School teacher who taught you “Jesus Loves Me.”  Remember the youth worker who spent time with you when he didn’t have to do it.  Remember the old guy who seemed to always have a stick of gum for the kids.  None of us is where we are in our walk with the Lord without the assistance of someone else.  I think that’s important to acknowledge.  It might even be important enough to send a message to an old Sunday School teacher, minister or VBS leader. 

     “Don’t forget where you came from” is pretty sound advice.  Do something about that today.  Send the email, the note or the letter.  Thanks for reading.