The cloak of religion...

I have been blessed to find a church that I can call home. A place where the word of God and the scripture of the bible are expressed in terms and ways that I can actually understand and digest. The pastor and each and every speaker bring a dynamic energy to their topic and engage me in a personal dialogue with God. Ours is a Christian church, non-denominational - accepting and open, full of passion and praise, enthusiastic worship and loving and kind fellowship. The blessings I receive from my interactions with volunteers and staff members alike continue to add value to me long after I have gone my own way. The relevant teachings I take with me from each service provide my spirit with nourishment and sustenance, feeding my faith and helping me grow in my relationship with Jesus and God. That is the important thing! Our spirituality and our relationship with God.

I have been blessed the past couple of nights to be asked to record video of the passover services at a Catholic church. I was raised Catholic and had forgotten much of ceremony involved during a typical service, not to the mention the nearly overwhelming tradition embedded within. Tonight I was told by one of the parishoners to put the camera away, that it was very distracting, (i'm using a small dv camera with no light). I apologized and told her I was shooting for the church. She said she didn't care and that I should be respectful and put the camera away. After apologizing a second time, I moved to a position behind her to avoid being a distraction to her. Upon reflection of her attitude I found it rather odd that someone who was so concerned about the service could find such a small issue to become distracted over. That maybe her focus wasn't necessarily on the ceremony and the story of Jesus's crucifixion and his resurrection, but more on finding an excuse to be distracted. In my mind, it doesn't matter what cloak you put around your spirituality, Catholic, Muslim, Lutheran, Protestant, Christian, Mormon or Baptist...as long as you are in the House of God to build a relationship with Him, that is the key. The staging and ceremony, the songs of praise and worship are all just window dressing to help people find the conduit they need to find their path to the Lord. If Latin phraseology and hymnals are what bring you closer to God, then by all means I support your efforts. Each of us as individuals need to find the system that is most palatable and easiest to swallow.

So, in my humble opinion, if you find yourself in church, looking for distractions to keep you from listening to the teachings of the day, maybe you should be focusing instead on listening to your heart and allowing the word of God to speak into you. Church is not a place to go to be seen by friends, there is no one there keeping track of your attendance and attitude. But be assured that there is no hiding the truth that is in you from God. Let your church become a place to actively participate in a full on relationship with God and watch how the distractions will disappear from your line of sight.

Thank you GOD for all you do, I am blessed so that I may be a blessing to others. May you be able to focus on the reason for the season and find happiness this Easter weekend.

Just something that was on my mind...always excited for what tomorrow will bring!