no idea what to name this...

This post is setting myself up for a lot of opposition, I am sure. But I have been thinking about it a lot lately, and came to the conclusion that if I blogged about it then maybe I could move on from it.
So, let me start by saying this: I KNOW OUR CHURCH IS NOT PERFECT. THERE ARE A LOT OF THINGS THAT NEED TO CHANGE. I AM NOT SAYING THAT WE SHOULD BE CONTENT IN MEDIOCRITY.

With that said, let me continue.

I am so tired of people complaining about our church. Nobody likes the worship, nobody likes the sermons, etc. I am so tired of people saying that they are unable to worship because they don't like the style of music. So, what if you don't like it? Is it suddenly all about you? I thought we went to worship God, not to listen to music that we like. Pop in your favorite cd on the way to church, get it out of the way. Then make the decision to worship God. It seems if our ultimate goal in life is to bring glory to God, then isn't that what our goal at church is? Do you think God really cares if you are singing a hymn or a contemporary song or a "cutting edge" worship song? Sometimes I wonder (and now I'm being like Justin, as I think this is completely theologically incorrect) if God even hears the words of our songs. Or if he even cares about the actual words. I think he looks at our hearts and what they are doing. Are we choosing to worship him? Or are we saying really good words but not meaning them? Don't you think it brings even more glory to God when we worship him even thought we don't like the songs? Making the decision to push through and worship God even when it doesn't seem to come natural seems like it would mean more to God than when we are handed the opportunity to worship on a "silver platter".
And the sermons. Honestly yes, often times I sit there and think "now what are they talking about???" But really do we think that every sermon needs to speak directly to us. Isn't God in control? Of course a sermon on being a grandparent, or teenage mother(those are "extreme" examples, there are also everyday sermons that don't relate to everyone) isn't going to minister to my life. But it is probably exactly what someone else needs to hear. So would I be selfish enough to think...oh, this isn't relevant to me, therefore it is a stupid meaningless message? Wow, I sure hope I am not that self-centered.
Sometimes people wonder if our leadership are hearing from God and then obeying what he has told them to do. And I really don't know if they are. I don't think there really is a way for us to ever know. But the conclusion I have come to about it is this:
When Justin first got hired at the church there was a meeting to introduce him to the parents. I remember one mom in particular stood up and asked "why should we trust this man with our kids". My thought was that she should trust the leadership of her church. If they think he is qualified to be a youth pastor to her children then she needs to accept that. She has, by attending the church, placed herself under the leadership of the church. They made a decision and she should have trusted in their decision making. (now I am not saying blindly trust the leadership. in this situation some parents had us over to dinner to get to know Justin better, and that was great. they were not challenging the leaders decision, but were accepting their decision and then taking their own action to assure that they could fully stand behind their leaders.) So I think that if you are a member(I don't mean member as in gone through the class, I use that term for anyone that attends) of the church, then you have placed yourself under the leadership of the church and need to trust their decisions. Just like when I married Justin I placed myself under his leadership. Now, do I always like the decisions he makes? No way. We are 2 COMPLETELY different people, and he is kinda "out there". But I have placed myself under his "authority". I think in the same way that husbands will be held accountable for more than we are wives are, church leaders will be held accountable for how they lead their church. So really if you don't trust the decisions of our leaders and don't believe they hear from God, then I honestly think you should find a new church. It would not have been right of me to marry Justin if I couldn't trust his decision making. This does not mean I like his decisions always, but I know he would not do anything to willingly hurt any of us and he always has our best interest at mind. I think the same for the pastors/elders of our church.
My reason for attending church is fellowship with other believers, encouragement, and corporate worship. I think as Christians we are responsible for our own walks with God. We cannot rely on church alone to get us through our life as a Christian. I think when people use church as their only interaction with God is when they become disappointed in church. No church is the world could sustain you as a Christian with their sunday services. You need to take responsibility for yourself and learn to read your bible and worship God in everyday situations and read books by Christian authors. I compare this to my pregnancy and how I don't really have many questions for my doctor. I don't want to put "all my faith" in one persons opinions. There are many ways to do things and I prefer to read books, research on the internet, talk to other moms, and ask my doctor about questions I have about my pregnancy. Then I am able to make the decision about what is best for me. There are many different ways to interpret a single scripture, and there are many different ways of living a holy life. We need to draw from a bunch of different places and then make decisions on what is best for us. What I mean is say you wondered if drinking alcohol was acceptable as a Christian. (not drunkenness, that I think is a black and white issue) You could go to your pastor (or sit through a sermon on "alcohol consumption as a Christian"), but you would get one persons interpretation of scripture and one persons life experience. Maybe their parents were alcoholics, therefore they feel very strongly against alcohol. Or, you could listen to your pastor, search your bible for scriptures, read books on the topic, and then draw your own conclusion.Wow, that was really rambling, but I hope you understand what my point is there.
Lastly I don't think very many people pray for our church. If there is something you think needs to change then pray about it. Maybe it is your own heart and attitude that needs to change, or maybe you will see change as a result of your prayer.
I will now get off my soapbox. :) This is really just me venting. Like I said before, our church does need to change. I also have complaints about it.
Justin and I talk about church a lot. We desire to see change in our church. We desire to see Gods best for our church. Sometimes I think it is hard to separate what we think is best and what God thinks is best. So can we please just make the decision to worship God in whatever situation we are in? Isn't that what life is all about?