A few weeks ago, Craig and I had a conference scheduled in Nova Scotia. We had to rent a car. So we took a little time to explore. Driving was definitely worth it. The scenery took our breath away. More beautiful than we could imagine. Serene, quiet, colorful and spectacular. A true fall drive. We did the typical tourist things. We made it our mission to find stuff we “just had to see”. On our drive that day, we noticed something we had never seen before. Anywhere. We first saw it from a distance. The tall and magnificent steeple stood proudly above the picturesque landscape of trees and residential roofs. It was the local church. As we got closer and drove by, we were shocked to see big sheets of plywood nailed over the front door. And even bigger sheets of plywood were covering the massive stained glass windows. Boarded up. Abandoned. Empty and forgotten. All of the surrounding buildings were fine. No natural disaster stormed through here. No tornado. No hurricane. No flood. No fire. But it was a wipeout of this church. Just a shell of what once was. We kept driving. Feeling kinda confused and sick. Not too far, in the next town, we saw another church just like it.
At lunch we just had to ask someone what happened with the churches. They flatly said “it’s been like this for a while here, people just don’t go to church”.
Forgive us God, that We the Church have people in our lives that are spiritual wipeouts. Disaster has hit them hard. We see it happen from a distance. But we keep driving past them. Because they are boarded up.
Forgive us God that We the Church tend to cover up our “church business” with boards so others can’t see what actually goes on. But You do.
Forgive us God that We the church emphasize typical “church things” and in the process of tradition, the Holy Spirit becomes empty and forgotten.
Maybe something has wiped you out. A flood of despair. A hurricane of doubt. A fire of fear. A tornado of debt. So you have carefully erected big sheets of plywood over your heart. Hoping no one would notice. No one would see. Maybe you have become just a shell of what once was. And you feel kinda confused and sick. So you surround yourself with others that have erected the plywood sheets around their hearts too. Hoping you won’t feel so bad. Or so alone.
Jesus sees your pain. He knows your wipeout. Every piece of it.
You don’t have to schedule a conference with Him.
He hears you anytime of the day or night.
So tell Him about it. Psalm 22:5
Ask Him to take the nails out of the plywood walls you carefully built.
He will be glad to. He was a carpenter and knows exactly how.
PRAISE: We met in San Francisco last week with Christian leaders throughout the nation. We are excited about what God is going to do through this group. Please pray for protection on all sides and for the leaders present to move forward with direction from the Holy Spirit.
PRAY: For pastors in California to be willing to stand strong on issues and not hesitate to preach from the pulpit Biblical values. And the pastors that currently are to have a host of heavenly angels encamp around them, as they are enduring incredible attacks, (including death threats) because of it.
PRAY: That Christians in California would rise up like a mighty army of God to fight for religious freedom and to not be ashamed of the gospel. That Christians would be willing to open their mouths and tell others the good new of Jesus.
Questions or comments? Email me at shellynotw@gmail.com
Sincerely,
Shelly Huey
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