Have you ever had to quietly walk miles into the woods for church? Have you ever had to travel to find one person who had a Bible, just to be able to hear the word of God? Have you ever feared the authorities if you ever mentioned church, Christianity, or God? Have you ever been to a secret church?
More than likely you haven't. If you want to go to church, you get up on Sunday morning or night, or Wednesday night and go to a church building. You sit in nice padded pews or chairs, feel the nice air or heat, and aren't concerned at all if the authorities know you're there. Honestly, we have it made here in America.
There are so many people all over the world who don't have these luxuries. Not only do they not have nice church buildings, but they have to worship God secretly. SECRETLY. Meaning they can't tell anyone where they are or what they're doing. They travel miles through woods and rivers to find the one person they know who has an old Bible so they can hear it read to them. They stand out in the cold wind and rain or blistering heat. When they worship, they do it quietly. They probably even feel like they need to look over their shoulders every minute in fear of being caught.
I've honestly never thought about this. I've never thought about people who can't worship the way we do. My heart breaks for these people. But it also makes me think... they're out there in not so great conditions, and the only thing on their mind is Jesus. I bet my first thought would be, "I can't feel my toes." They can't worship in a nice church building like me, but they're so grateful to even be able to worship at all, even if it is in secret. Their only focus is worshiping Jesus.
So here's a question I'm going to ask everyone. It's the same question I've asked myself, so I'm not putting anyone on the spot. How many of us are Christians? Lots of us. Now, if the government told us tomorrow that we could no longer worship Jesus, that we could be punished if we were caught, what would you do? If someone told you about a secret church out in the woods, would you go? Would you go out in the freezing wind every week to worship Jesus? Are we that dedicated that we can step outside our comfort zone for what we believe in? It would definitely be hard for me to leave my padded seats and heated church building for a secret place that wasn't catered to me. I'll admit it. But this is something to think about. Would we really go out of our comfort zone for Jesus?
Thankfully we live in a country where we don't have to do those things. We're not taking a huge risk to follow Jesus. But so many people do. So next Sunday when I start to think, "This pew hurts my back," or, "Man I wish they'd turn the heat up," I'll stop and think about how good I have it. I'll also remember that a church isn't a building. It's a gathering of people with one thing on our mind: worshiping the one true God.
It's all about Jesus, guys.
More than likely you haven't. If you want to go to church, you get up on Sunday morning or night, or Wednesday night and go to a church building. You sit in nice padded pews or chairs, feel the nice air or heat, and aren't concerned at all if the authorities know you're there. Honestly, we have it made here in America.
There are so many people all over the world who don't have these luxuries. Not only do they not have nice church buildings, but they have to worship God secretly. SECRETLY. Meaning they can't tell anyone where they are or what they're doing. They travel miles through woods and rivers to find the one person they know who has an old Bible so they can hear it read to them. They stand out in the cold wind and rain or blistering heat. When they worship, they do it quietly. They probably even feel like they need to look over their shoulders every minute in fear of being caught.
I've honestly never thought about this. I've never thought about people who can't worship the way we do. My heart breaks for these people. But it also makes me think... they're out there in not so great conditions, and the only thing on their mind is Jesus. I bet my first thought would be, "I can't feel my toes." They can't worship in a nice church building like me, but they're so grateful to even be able to worship at all, even if it is in secret. Their only focus is worshiping Jesus.
So here's a question I'm going to ask everyone. It's the same question I've asked myself, so I'm not putting anyone on the spot. How many of us are Christians? Lots of us. Now, if the government told us tomorrow that we could no longer worship Jesus, that we could be punished if we were caught, what would you do? If someone told you about a secret church out in the woods, would you go? Would you go out in the freezing wind every week to worship Jesus? Are we that dedicated that we can step outside our comfort zone for what we believe in? It would definitely be hard for me to leave my padded seats and heated church building for a secret place that wasn't catered to me. I'll admit it. But this is something to think about. Would we really go out of our comfort zone for Jesus?
Thankfully we live in a country where we don't have to do those things. We're not taking a huge risk to follow Jesus. But so many people do. So next Sunday when I start to think, "This pew hurts my back," or, "Man I wish they'd turn the heat up," I'll stop and think about how good I have it. I'll also remember that a church isn't a building. It's a gathering of people with one thing on our mind: worshiping the one true God.
It's all about Jesus, guys.