Expectations are...

resentments waiting to happen.  With that little piece of wisdom in mind I try not to have expectations that involve Mom doing something she doesn't want to!  So Easter and yesterday, I asked Mark to come and stay with her so Dad and I could make it to church.  That worked beautifully and we had two wonderful worship services together.  Then in the evening, Mark stayed with both of them while Hallack and I went to a gathering of the new church plant we're a part of.  What a gift he is to me in this "parenting our parents" adventure.

While at the gathering, I had a nice chat with a couple who had spent their weekend having a garage sale.  They said that they did really well and were busy the whole time (which has not been my experience with garage sales!)  As they reflected on why, they noted that "people are really hurting," and that this was a way for them to socialize, shop, share their stories and pick up a trinket or two.  This morning I was reading in the paper about a woman who's putting together a big garden in her yard so that she can give back to the community.  She was helped by Home Depot and some Catholic youth in the process and said that it "countered the stinginess of the era." 

Both of these stories reminded me of what I think is the golden opportunity for followers of Christ during this age of need.  I believe that the cutbacks in government aid give us another chance to do what Jesus commanded us to do:  "to love others as ourselves."  The problem is that many established churches are so busy running the club, maintaining the facilities and paying the salaries of the professionals that there is little left to give to hurting people.  In fact, churches themselves are feeling the pinch as people feel that they have less to give and so the push is on to get "more givers in the pews."   As someone who's been one of those professionals and married to another, I realize that this can be a frightening time.  At the same time, I can't help but get excited at the possibility of shedding the old way of doing things and embracing something new.  What if we focused on the needs around us and trusted that God will take care of our needs?  This might mean Pastors who are tentmakers and either sharing our facilities with others or abandoning them altogether.  I prefer making proactive choices now rather than waiting until congregation after congregation dies a slow death.  Do we have the faith to do so or will we continue to put more and more effort into propping up church as we've always known it?  I no longer have the energy or desire to keep the club going.  I do have a lot of passion for seeing God's people meet the needs of their hungry neighbors in all ways:  physically, emotionally and spiritually.  Not so that they'll join my club but just because that's what Jesus asks us to do.  Exciting times are ahead and I, for one, refuse to give in to fear but choose to have hope in what God is doing in our midst.  Fear Not!