i've been thinking a lot lately about the world we live in and how it views Jesus and His followers.  it seems to me that the culture beyond the four walls of the church feels that the church is against everything and everybody.  we're known more for our boycotts and picket signs than anything else.  as dan kimball's book reminds us "they like Jesus, not the church." 

don't get me started about things i dislike about the church, at least the way we practice it in north america.

i'm not big into fundraising, committee meetings, or people only focused on heaven or their own needs.  i'm not big into pointing fingers, using the Bible as a weapon, or buying things just because i can.  i'm never satisfied that we as the followers of Jesus are doing enough.  i'm not big into building buildings or at least the kind that scream "we're a church that's all about us!"  i don't hate or even fear those in the homosexual lifestyle even though I disagree with their choices.  i am not threatened by women in ministry and leadership in the church.  many of the things that the culture dislikes about the church, i dislike too.

see, i told you not to get me started.  it's not that i'm not against things.  i know that there are a lot of things in this world worth being against, but it makes me sad that followers of Jesus are known more for they are against instead of what they are for.  and i believe that if we want them give Jesus a second look, we need to help people know what we're for again.

as a follower of Jesus, i am "for" something bigger and more beautiful than what i am against.  i am for showing compassion to broken people.  i am for living more simply than i do right now so that i can use what God has given me to create a more just world.  i am for feeding hungry people and helping them learn how to feed themselves.  i am for grace and the way it changes a life. i am for surrendering my life to a God who can be trusted with it.  i am for creating a church that faces outward. i am for helping people get to know the way of Jesus - who He was and how He lived -  and for helping people see the beauty of His life, his death and His resurrection so they can choose to follow Him as well.    

and i could go on.  here at the watershed, we're trying to be a church that is known for our love and compassion.  more later.