How to Befriend a Church
MR. JONES'S HUNCHED-OVER, ox-yoke shoulders framed a body once six-feet-three inches tall, but after ninety years gravity was winning. You couldn't have rendered a teaspoon of fat from his trim physique. His bull pine arms clung tightly to their shoulder sockets; years of bucking bales left them permanently angled at the elbows. His powerful hands could slam-dunk the earth.
His strength was intact, but his joints didn't cooperate. His hearing was shot; and he saw only shapes, no details. I never heard him sing, but when he spoke, his bass voice sounded like it originated from the center of the earth. A nurse cared for him full-time, including bringing him to church. The piety was hers alone.
In personality, Mr. Jones was as subtle as his frame.
The pretty white country church held about 120, but we felt blessed to gather forty-five on a Sunday. We hoped for new families. Some visited, few stayed. To remain, you had to like Mr. Jones as much as we did because at any point in the service he might say just about anything—loudly. Ostensibly, he was speaking only to his nurse. But when he leaned over to whisper in her long-suffering ear, his God-given basso allowed everyone to hear every word. None of us will ever know if Mr. Jones couldn't manage discretion, or if he was just an old coot who figured he'd earned the right to be a public nuisance. I suspect the latter. But since he never upset us too much with his outbursts, he probably never accomplished his goal.
Once during my pastoral prayer he supplicated his nurse, "Who is that up there, anyway?" (Quoting him verbatim violates reasonable norms of language for Christian publishing!)
...
Mr. Jones was a church-growth nightmare. We loved him, but we never thought visitors did. Then ...
Like the preview? To read this complete article
and 18,013 more in the archive—JOIN NOW!
Easily find high-quality, well-researched materials that provide a Christian perspective on topics ranging from headlines to history.
Start using this invaluable tool TODAY for preparing your Bible studies, presentations, class lectures, sermons, meetings, and more.
|
It's easy and quick to join:
Brought to You by Christianity Today Int'l |  |
|
| 
Find similar articles
E-mail this page
