The kids ask us this from time to time and I always stumble for words. I’m regularly inclined to say, “Well, we keep you from the machine because your dad has a bunch of hang-ups.” And a 7, 5, and 1 year old wouldn’t know what to do with Wayne Jacobsen’s Why I Don’t Go To Church Anymore: Living in the Relational Church thoughts.
So I told them that going to church is impossible. Dad is the church, Mom is the church, you, and your two siblings are the church. Together we, with the church throughout the world, are the church. Church isn’t a “do,” it’s a “be.” We can’t “go” to church cause we are the church. Stuff like that. And our oldest says, “We could do church here.” And yes, I think we could BE the church right here, right now, in all that we do and think. And certainly praxis enters into that somewhere. More specifically, praxis is all over the place. Just not in a physical temple. At least not for us in this season of life.
The very thought of institutional involvement is enough to give me a quiver in my liver. I’d have to accept way too much law to jump into that stream again. There are Jesus people all over in our lives. And our generous Father is always speaking. We just need to listen. So I’ll continue trying to find words for this beautiful life we have in Jesus. A here-and-now experience of faith that doesn’t need a Sunday religious experience. Sorry for the judgement. It’s just where I’m at right now. G’night.
