Frustration

Since the evolution of facebook, I must say, I have cast my blog to the wind. But I've caught it again, because I realize that it is a valuable resource. I just can't share my thoughts on facebook like I can with a blog. I'm not even sure that anyone reads my blogs anymore. I wouldn't. I give up on those who don't update at least once a week!

Well, here it goes... is the way Chrstians live out their relationship with God changing drastically? I remember a time when being a Christian meant that you wore dresses to church (females of course), even when it was -40, slippery sunday shoes (why not just slap on a pair of ice skates... it would have been safer!), tights that were way to tight in the stomach and left you feeling nausious at the end of service and brought God's Word without fail. A time when the order of service was the static organ prelude, welcoming by pastor, sing two hymns. sit down, have announcements, offering, special number, hymn, message and maybe hymn at the end. All the pastors sat up on stage in their big red comfy chairs while we all sat on hard wooden pews. And if you ever talked... God be with you cuz' the look you'd get from your parents would send you straight to the grave. A time when it wasn't okay to sing "camp songs" in church, because they were resereved for camp. A time when a christian could talk about everyone in the church and judge how aweful of a person they were being but heaven forbid if we pierced a second earring hole. A time when we hid in the basements during halloween so people would know we were "different" (all along they thought we didn't like children). A time when dancing, having a drink and going to the club were taboo but it was ok to never have a reason for what you believed and you just believed because "those were the rules!"

argh.

Who wants that kind of Christianity? Isn't it about the heart? Can a person have a tatoo and be so loving that he wins the favor of his friends and God gives him the opportunity to share the love of God with them? Is it concieveable that a Christian can go to the bar, not to get drunk or find his release in the sensuality but rather because he wants to hang out with those God has put in his life simply because they're all people?

Is it possible that God does not care how we come dressed to "church?" and what about church anyway... Is God even in church anymore? aren't we the church? So then he is in us. Why don't we act like it? what if church was a group of believers of Jesus gathered together to encourage one another, and sing together and share what God had been teaching us. And what if church didn't suck. And what if people felt comfortable enough to ask questions and share their struggles with faith? And instead of others giving trite "i'm going to fix you" answers, they actually listened? And what if we accepted people for who they were and let God change them? What if?