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WHY DO WE DO THOSE THINGS WE DO?
by Debbie Porter
Perhaps you've never noticed,
'Though I think it's plain to see,
That there's certain things that happen
Which have often puzzled me.
Sometimes in church I stop and think
And that's when I wonder who,
Invented all those extra bits
That make us do the things we do.
~ Debbie Porter ~
It had been playing particularly on my mind for weeks,
perhaps even longer, but finally I shared my thoughts with the youngest
members of the family (excluding Tiger, the miniature Fox Terrier).
At the end of my statement, Kylie just looked at me and
simply said, "I've always thought that."
Matt agreed, and with a shrug added, "I never do
it anyway."
Some how or other, our teenagers had managed to avoid
slipping into the pattern of doing something purely because everyone else
was doing the same thing - at least in this case!
As I watched them walk away, I shook my head and thought
that I probably should have talked to them ten years earlier, which was when
this thing had first struck me as being just a little odd. Of course, at 6
and 4 years old, they may not have been quite so helpful.
Over that decade I basically became very familiar and
comfortable with this part of our service, opting to go with the flow and
follow the leader. After all, the same thing was being done in many churches
all around the world. Still, an occasional niggling "why?" would
pop into my thoughts from time to time, reminding me that it still didn't
sit quite right.
A popular Fast Food Restaurant has been running an
advertising campaign over recent months with the catch phrase, "Things
that Make You Go - MMMM". Well, I don't know about you, but I
can't help but think that there are times in church life when the catch
phrase could just as easily be, "Things that Make You Go -
Huh?"
Now I'm not talking about major doctrinal beliefs here,
and it's nothing to do with the sacraments or those strong traditions which
have been passed down through generations of faithful believers. It's more
to do with those quirky little things that may be peculiar to a particular
congregation, or to a type of service generally. Just little ways of doing
things or additional extras that are assimilated into the life of the
church, without ever really having much basis in Scripture.
The church, as a whole, is fairly eclectic, in that new
ideas and trends tend to be passed from one congregation to another
relatively quickly. This can actually be a good thing and very healthy, but
sometimes it's not.
As Christians, we're totally responsible for our own
actions and just because we've surrendered our life doesn't mean that we no
longer need to think. The reality is quite the opposite. We need to know
what we believe and why we believe it, and we need to know why we do the
things we do. As the Apostle Paul wrote to the Thessalonian Church:
"Test everything. Hold on to the good."
~ 1 Thessalonians 5:21 NIV ~
So what was this "major issue" that I finally
dealt with? Well, probably something that many of you participate in
yourselves, and may find very meaningful. To be quite honest I actually do
understand why it's done, and do believe that for a lot of Christian men and
women it's a very moving part of the service. Still, it's something I had to
weigh up for myself.
Quite simply it's during the time in the service when
people are invited to give their lives to Jesus. That in itself is
wonderful, particularly when the response is heartfelt and repentant. My
little stumbling block came when the entire congregation was always asked to
repeat the "sinner's prayer" along with the person who was making
their decision for Christ.
Now this doesn't happen in every church, but it does take
place in quite a lot and is a common thing in many evangelistic crusades.
Even though I understand that this provides a slightly less threatening
environment for those making the decision and also can be considered as a
re-affirmation of faith for those who are already believers, I struggled
with it for one reason. If I'm already a Christian - saved by grace and with
my name permanently written in the Lamb's Book of Life - should I really
keep repeating a prayer which asked for my salvation? After all, didn't the
writer of Hebrews say:
"Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full
assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a
guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us
hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is
faithful."
For me, it was definitely one of those things that make
you go "Huh?" and my response now is to use that time in
the service to whisper a prayer of thanksgiving for God’s grace and the
gift of salvation I've already received.
When things like this start to cause us little pangs of
confusion or make us stop and think, the important thing is not to allow them
to bend us out of shape. It's not an excuse to set out on a witch-hunt or to
get on our high horse and demand that everything be changed. Far from it! What
may seem confusing to me, may be a very precious and meaningful thing to
someone else.
Instead, it's about each one of us making sure that we don't
automatically brush aside those little feelings when they rise up. Instead, we
should look into those concerns, examine the facts and see whether there is
any basis for them at all. If there is, then we have to make a decision as to
what our personal response will be.
For me, it was really quite easy. I just needed to change the
way I participated during that time of prayer, and when I did that, all those
unsettled feelings about this one tiny little part of our service, melted
away.
When it comes right down to it, we just have to know why we do
the things we do, and then, if it all makes sense, just go ahead and do them!
Copyright 2002 by Debbie Porter.
A side note from Michelle...
Wow Debbie, I've been in lots of different
churches, and most of them evangelic, but I don't think any of them had
everyone praying the sinners prayer along with those making a new decision of
faith. We were in an awesome church a few years ago that asked everyone to pray
during this sacred time for those making or struggling with their decisions, and
that's what I've always done since... it is quite an incredible thing to be a
part of. But I really like your thoughts here of also using that time to "whisper a prayer of thanksgiving for God’s grace and the
gift of salvation I've already received." Thank you for
sharing this with us!
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