Hello, My Name is Church

Hello my name is Church:

I’m sure you’ve heard a lot about me.
I have no shortage of critics.

Perhaps you have heard that I am

Boring
Shallow
Cheap
A waste of time

You’ve heard that I am full of

Hypocrites
Clowns
Greedy people
The self- righteous

Maybe you have visited me before and discovered

Horrible music
Passionless singing
Dry preaching
Rude congregants

Maybe you needed me and I was

Too busy
Too “righteous”
Too broke
Too blind

Maybe you joined me and found I was

Distant
Demanding
Dull
Preoccupied

Maybe you tried to serve in me but were caught off guard by

Business meetings
Committees
Teams
Bureaucracy

Maybe you left and were surprised that nobody

Called
Cared
Noticed
Invited you back

Perhaps your experience has driven you to

Speak negatively of me
Swear to never come back to me
Proclaim that no one needs me
Believe you’re better off without me

If this is true, I have something to say to you

I’m sorry
I was wrong
I blew it
I made a huge mistake

But remember, I never said my name was

Perfect
Flawless
Complete
Arrived

My name is Church. I welcome the

Hypocrite
Dry
Self-righteous
Shallow

I welcome the

Sincere
Passionate
Forgiving
Selfless

I cannot shut my doors to the people who make you

Angry
Uncomfortable
Impatient
Self-conscious

But I would remind you that we couldn’t always worship in the same room.

In the Old Testament there was a division between the

Gentile
Jew
Man
Woman

In order for us to all worship in the same room Christ was

Shamed
Beaten
Killed
Resurrected

Which is far worse than being

Bored
Uncomfortable
Embarrassed
Ignored

So why not come back to church and let all of these messed up people

Challenge you
Sharpen you
Strengthen you
Humble you

I can’t promise you that the people will be great

This is church
It’s not

Heaven
Paradise
Beulah Land
The Celestial city

Come back

God wants you here
The body needs you here
The world needs your witness here
You belong here

Hello, my name is Church

I miss you
I love you
I’m sorry
Can’t wait to see you

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This poem is copyrighted by “Unappreciated Pastor.” All rights reserved.
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