Does your faith...?

For years, I noticed every congregation had its fringe members. People who would show up late only to leave early, those folks who sat in the back but rarely got involved. When I was a younger minister I thought these were just lazy “pew-packers.” Nowadays my guess is there’s a history I’m unaware of, like they’ve probably suffered from abuse or burnout -- I’d bet they are doing the best they can just to get by.

A hard reality for churches to face is the fact that 80% of our work is done by 20% of our people, and as long as this trend continues we can expect more and more of our burdened people to drift towards the backdoor. As churches we are partly to blame for the walking wounded, some of those folks left frayed by their faith are our responsibility.

Believe it or not serving can skew our focus, even distract us from knowing God. We need to be cautious about confusing self-importance with submission, so don’t ever confuse your participation with God’s presence. For example, “But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.” (Luke 10:40) If you are amazed to hear that Jesus doesn’t congratulate Martha for her selfless dedication, you should read the rest of that story and examine Jesus’ surprising response.

While Ministerial staff members are at a high risk for burnout (it ravages the pastorate), if the truth be told, when it comes to balancing out serving and resting, we who preach and teach often set the worst examples for the flock. Burnout leads to fallout; for example just recall Boxer from Orwell’s “Animal Farm.” So much of this world/life drains us, but our faith shouldn’t. Churches will wear you out if you let them, regardless of which side of the lectern you’re standing on.

Sure, when it comes to church work some people are hardwired to serve like a Border Collie and they’re “all in.” We should be active, but we shouldn’t deceive ourselves either -- there are graveyards filled with congregants who thought their local church couldn’t continue without them.

How did we get so far off track? Well, for far too long we’ve underestimated the value of solitude and quiet meditation. While we’ve treated our faith like it was a sprint, we’re in a spiritual marathon for which we seem poorly trained. We’ve refused to acknowledge our need to rest, as if it were a weakness or some sort of sin. We've sabotaged the concept of a Sabbatical, and as a result, we’re exhausted too early and too often.

Jesus clearly instructed His weary disciples to take a break, “And he said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while.” For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat.” (Mark 6:31) And elsewhere Jesus also said, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” (Matt 11:28) God values rest, it’s a necessary gift.

Psalm 127:1-2 firmly establishes a worthwhile, holistic perspective in all of this: “Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep.” In other words, if God isn’t the driving force then our efforts are pointless anyway. And at the end of the day, faith should leave us feeling rested.

We should feel excitement about our kingdom work and church involvement should energize us. We shouldn’t dread serving, it should be a priority not a problem. In the end, ask yourself: Does my faith refresh me or does it drain me? If your faith continually drains you, taking its toll on you, it’s not healthy or fulfilling and it’s not what David wrote about in Psalm 23:3 when he says of God, “He restores my soul...”