Hey church, we’ve got a lot of dirty laundry, and it’s showing. I don’t deny that—the evidence is too obvious. But this post is suggesting there’s another story to tell, without denying the first. I tend to be a bit protective of Christ’s bride, even as I marvel at how Christ hasn’t washed his hands of us. But perhaps we can take a cue from him on this one and spur one another on by sharing good news about the church, and not letting the dirty laundry steal the headlines.
In spite of the church’s failings, I have been and am humbled by and proud of Christ’s representative on earth. Years ago, I spoke at a benefit for a pregnancy resource center in Connecticut. People came in dresses and suits and left a ton of money behind (hundreds of thousands of dollars) to support the work of a center that supports women facing pregnancies alone or in financially deprived circumstances. There were three testimonies given by mothers that evening, and all of the mothers giving them were black. Probably ninety-five percent of the financial givers were of a different race. Nevertheless, they were digging deep into their bank accounts to save and support black mothers and children. I know there are many predominantly black, Asian and Hispanic churches that reach out generously to white addicts and homeless.
This past week, I walked through the atrium of Cherry Hills Community Church in Colorado, where I now serve as teaching pastor. Families streamed through the pop-up grocery store that is set up every Tuesday for families in need. One of the things that surprised me about Highlands Ranch when I first got here is how white it is. Denver isn’t, but Highlands Ranch, just about 25 miles away, is. Even so, our atrium was filled with people who by and large aren’t white: a little girl was getting a haircut, families were filling up shopping carts with food (for free); some even received flowers for Mother’s Day. Along with the free shopping, there are free ESL (English as a Second Language) classes, because many of the people who make use of Manna Care don’t speak English all that well. A few weekends ago, a group of forty men from our church drove from Highlands Ranch to Juarez Mexico to build three homes for three families. They promptly left and will return next year to do the same, likely with more people and very likely leaving more homes behind.
Continue reading this blog HERE over on Substack.