Confessions of a Follower

Over this past week as I've been thinking about what to do with my blog (that has a few new followers and comments, mind you. Thanks to everyone!) I was feeling a little bit of a creative block as to what I should do. I couldn't find inspiration anywhere until I thought about something I do a lot on Twitter.

If you're not that familiar with Twitter and its use of hashtags, feel free to click on the hashtag link  so you can get up to speed.

However, if you're stubborn like I am, or just a PC user weary of viruses from some unknown link placed in a blog post, I'll gladly give you a brief definition of what a hashtag is. On Twitter, people use hashtags, or a pound sign (#) with text after it, to group their Twitter posts so they can find them easily if they need to or see what people using the same hashtag are saying.  For example, a hashtag I use a lot  in my tweets is #qwikquestion. I use this whenever I have a random question on my mind. For instance, I was wondering about how if toilets flush in the opposite direction in different hemispheres of the world would their faucets be labeled the opposite from ours (e.g hot would be on the right, cold on the left, etc.)

Well, after being told the whole "toilets flush in different directions" thing was bogus, I cried a little on the inside. Then, I felt a little bit better and felt good that I was now an informed person who knew the truth that all toilets flush the same way.

But anyway, I was inspired by this hashtag that I use every now and then and I thought I'd bring the concept to you guys here at Confessions of A Follower.

So, today's Qwik Question is: What is the role of the church to you?

I read online today that Anne Rice, a famous author who writes a lot about vampires,  left the Christian faith via her Facebook status. If you remember the '90s movie "Interview With A Vampire" with Tom Cruise and Matt Damon, she wrote the novel of the same name that spawned that movie.  I remember a few years ago when she was interviewed on Good Morning America about her leaving the dark atmosphere that her books were about in favor of a Christian slant. But now to hear this, it's kind of sad.

There were also some interesting comments about this story, one in particular that made me want to ask this question. The comment is by a user on the Today website named "Texas Lady-1937322" and here's what she said in response to Rice leaving her faith:

"I think I understand what she was trying to say. However, her choice of words is, perhaps, not correct. I am a Christian. Have been all my life. But, I am anti-church. I think more harm has been done in the name of organized religion than in the name of any other institution in the history of mankind. I refuse to be a part of this. It irritates me when someone tells me that because I do not attend a church I am not religious, but spiritual. That makes it sound as though I have created my own religion . I am VERY religious and believe in the true Christian doctrines. I just chose to practice my religion in the quiet of my own home rather than parade it before the community. It is a private matter to me, between me and my God. Anyone who tries to force others to do as they do in the name of religion is just a bully and organized religion is their weapon of choice."

What I don't understand about this woman's comment is how she can be a Christian without the church. In my opinion, I think the church is a critical part of our spiritual growth and development. I keep reading her words and I keep getting blown away; "...I [choose] to practice my religion in the quiet of my own home rather than...before the community[?]" What about our calling to be salt and light from Matthew 5: 13-14? Aren't we called by God to "add flavor to" this bland world and shine the light of Truth in this fallen world that's covered by darkness? I don't think God wanted us to wait for everyone to come to us, I think he told us to "Therefore, go and make disciples" (Matt. 28:19).

In the end, she may have some scars from how the church has treated her in the past, and I can understand that, but if she was hurt, she didn't heal properly from it and it seems like she's formed some bitterness. All I know is that the church, the Body of Christ, has many parts, and all of them are needed to function. A body can't function with only one hand or eye, can it? Maybe prosthetic limbs could be an option, but they only cover up the real problem: you're missing a hand or an eye. The Body needs parts, people gathered in the name of Christ, to function properly. The church is where we gather together (be it in a legit church building or your neighbor's basement) to fellowship, to worship, to be accountable with one another, to meet each other's needs, to pray for one another, etc. The church builds up certain areas of our lives that just aren't tapped into when we are by ourselves. When our relationship with Christ is when it's purely vertical, when it's "me and God and that's it," or when we are injured by the church and aren't treated properly, we become deformed. We start to spiritually rot and we can only go so far in our walk. As gross as it sounds, it's true and it happens.