Last week I sat down across the table from a young woman. It was a social setting where we were meant to interact, so we casually chatted a few minutes. Throughout the course of the conversation, we each learned the other’s occupation. She is a nanny; I work for a local church. When she learned that one fact about me, she immediately decided I was no longer worth her time. She made very large assumptions about who I was and what I stood for without even asking.
I have become aware that my statement about working for a local church brings up a plethora of emotions for people outside of the church. In January 2023, George Barna, a market researcher who focuses on religion, released a study that asked pastors what keeps people from faith in today’s world. An overwhelming majority of pastors assume that past experiences with a religious institution (83%) or the hypocrisy of religious people (80%) cause people to doubt Christian beliefs.
Those statistics gives me pause for a few reasons. First, I never want to be a stumbling block for someone else’s relationship with Christ. Second, I think we have forgotten where to put our faith, our hope, out trust. We are not called to rely on our neighbors or even our church friends to be the never-failing, ever-present presence in our lives; that’s only God’s job. When we misplace our trust and confidence by putting them in earthly people and institutions, we have missed the mark.
Luckily for us, this is not a new problem for the church. Paul saw it in his church, too. He saw Gentiles leaving the faith over the stubbornness of the Jewish people. He saw Jesus-believing Jews turning from Jesus because the Gentiles did not respect their law. We all fail. We all cause hurt.
The promise of scripture is that when we fall short, God prevails. When the church falls short, God’s faithfulness stands firm. Make sure you are taking advantage of God’s promise by putting your faith and trust in Him.