By Sam Rainer<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n
Your discouragement is understandable. A lot is happening in the world right now. Everyone is on edge. When will the pandemic pass? Perhaps your church is not doing well. Maybe you\u2019re tired, or disheartened. Maybe you\u2019re hurt.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Don\u2019t give up. Your church is worth the effort.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Some churches reek of selfishness, but even the unpleasant bodies need someone to help clean out the noxiousness. If you don\u2019t mind body odor, then you\u2019re probably the one God is calling to scrub a few saints. Be strong.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Don\u2019t give up. Your church is worth the effort.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Some churches fight. A lot. Hostile churches need someone to be the example. Show them how to fight <\/span>for<\/span><\/i> a church, not <\/span>with<\/span><\/i> a church. Be brave.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Don\u2019t give up. Your church is worth the effort.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Some churches are the butt of everyone else\u2019s jokes. They don\u2019t have a clue, and people scoff. I don\u2019t think Jesus has ever\u2014or will ever\u2014ridicule a church. Jesus has a great sense of humor. But the church is his bride. Every congregation deserves someone who will lovingly shepherd towards a greater purpose. Be resilient.<\/span><\/p>\n Don\u2019t give up. Your church is worth the effort.<\/span><\/p>\n Some churches are immature. The body acts like a gangly middle schooler trying to impress the girls at skate night. The people go around in circles. Energies are poured into all the wrong things. If this is your church, then be the bigger spiritual person. Middle schoolers don\u2019t mature without guidance. Churches don\u2019t disciple properly without a mature shepherd. Be determined.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Don\u2019t give up. Your church is worth the effort.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n It\u2019s hard, but worth it. Selflessness can be lonely. Your peers may wonder why you stick around. Your church may not get it. But you\u2019re not alone. The Groom is with you\u2014always. He\u2019ll build your church to overcome the gates of hell. Don\u2019t give up. Your church is worth the effort.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"By Sam Rainer Your discouragement is understandable. A lot is happening in the world right now. Everyone is on edge. When will the pandemic pass? Perhaps your church is not doing well. Maybe you\u2019re tired, or disheartened. Maybe you\u2019re hurt.\u00a0 Don\u2019t give up. Your church is worth the effort.\u00a0 Some churches reek of selfishness, but…","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":699495,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"publish_to_discourse":"","publish_post_category":"","wpdc_auto_publish_overridden":"","wpdc_topic_tags":"","wpdc_pin_topic":"","wpdc_pin_until":"","discourse_post_id":"","discourse_permalink":"","wpdc_publishing_response":"","wpdc_publishing_error":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-699525","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-church-answers"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n