MREs or Home Cooked Meals
For the last two months, the entire world has been facing the most unusual circumstances in our lifetime. We have been ordered to “stay and home and stay safe.” Churches have not been able to conduct in-person services. Pastors have had to be creative to stay in touch with their people and to continue to minister to them. We have seen a tremendous increase in “Livestream” church services on Facebook and YouTube. Churches have utilized amazing technology to host online Sunday School classes and children’s church services. We have preached and taught to cameras in empty auditoriums. Many have become “radio preachers” by setting up low power FM transmitters and broadcasting their services from their parking lots to church members sitting in their cars. None of these things were covered in Bible college!
We have encouraged our people to watch the services online to at least be able to hear the truth from the Bible. We have made phone calls and used texting and social media to connect in some way to help the people in our churches and communities. I am thankful that we have had these resources at our disposal. These unconventional methods have been necessary, due to the limitations forced upon us. These are like MREs, (Meals Ready to Eat), that our military use while out in the field away from camp. MREs are not good for long-term nutritional health. They are “survival food.” These cannot be compared with a lovingly prepared, home-cooked meal. Who would choose an MRE when you could have a slow-cooked beef roast with potatoes, carrots, and home-made gravy, served with freshly baked rolls covered in real butter? For dessert, a fresh from the oven apple pie with vanilla ice cream. All served by your loving family while all are seated around the dinner table. No distractions, no phone calls, no TV, just fellowship with the family. It is time to return to the dinner table where we not only are fed but enjoy the fellowship and function as a family. Online preaching, Livestream services, social media devotionals are exactly the same as MREs in a spiritual sense. They have provided basic nutrition but are no substitute for fresh bread from Heaven. None of these temporary measures can replace God’s plan for this age, the gathering of Believers in the Local Church.
One of my concerns for our churches is that some people have become satisfied with those substitutes for the Local Church, the direct influence of pastors, and the fellowship of the Saints. I believe there will be three main responses when we begin to open up our churches and try to return to a sense of “normal:”
1. The Faithful: These are the church members or regular attendees who will run back to church. They have missed the fellowship, the preaching, singing, the activities of a local church, and serving in a ministry. They will jump right back into their ministries and move forward for God. These will be the first ones back. They will be excited and spiritually hungry. They will help the pastor and the staff get the church moving forward and functioning again.
2. The Fearful: These members or attendees desire to come back, but are wary, or even scared. They may have a compromised health condition and are fearful of getting the virus, or they may have a family member who is compromised. They miss church. They long to be there but do not want to put themselves or others in danger. They will eventually return, but not at first. They must be cared for with great tenderness and compassion.
3. The Forgetful: These are the ones who have gotten used to not being at church. Oh, they have watched the online church services, usually on Livestream in real-time. They also have gotten out of the habit of getting up on Sunday morning, getting dressed for church, and going to church. They watched the services while sitting on their couch or recliner in their casual clothes, and at the same time were surfing the Web on their tablet or phone. They held conversations with others in the room or were texting their family and friends, all while “listening” to the pastor. Church was no longer a priority. Oh, it was important, just not VITAL. If they missed the service on Livestream, they would just watch it later. Church became like any other product they consumed. They used it when they wanted it, on their terms. These will need extra care to reach them again.
It is helpful to remember that none of us have been in this situation before. We have never shut down our church services and ministries for months. We have never had our ministry plans and finances be disrupted like this. Oh, we have seen weather-related cancellations after a blizzard, tornado, hurricane, earthquake or wildfires. The difference is that these events were very temporary and were resolved quickly. The COVID-19 event has turned our entire society upside down. Nothing is as it was before and we all desire to return to “normal.”
Pastors and ministry leaders must have a plan to move our ministries forward. In a word, we must be “leaders.” Sheep need a shepherd. One of the most difficult things for our people during this time is that they have not been under the regular care of their shepherd. Praise the Lord we have had the Great Shepherd to comfort, guide, protect, and sustain us. What our church members, and our communities, need are active shepherds in their lives. Most pastors and ministry leaders have done very well in staying connected to their people by way of daily devotionals on Facebook Live. Others have allowed their people to come to the church property on Saturday to pick up a copy of the church bulletin, drop off their tithes, and say a quick “hello,” all while maintaining social distancing. Others have driven by their members’ houses and left “care packages” on their front porches. These are great ideas and have been greatly beneficial to our people.
One of the blessings of the “restart” is the opportunity to return to the basic function and priorities of the Local Church. I fear we have become distracted by the abundance of the programs with which we have filled our ministries and lives. During the “shutdown” we have seen the importance of ministries that are focused on the things God has commanded churches to do. We must prioritize our ministries on the Biblically mandated components of God’s plan for the Local Church. When we analyze the churches in the New Testament, we find a simple focus on preaching, teaching, care for Believers, and the great commission. As we reopen our
Churches let’s keep our focus on those elements of church.
As we begin this process, let’s get back to the basics. Let’s preach with passion! Let’s focus our ministries on caring for our people and including them in fulfilling the great commission.
Let’s get back to simple church. Let’s get back to delivering the home-cooked spiritual meals for our church family. As David said in Psalm 39:3
Psalm 39:3 My heart was hot within me, while I was musing the fire burned: then spake I with my tongue,
May the Lord help us to deliver fresh bread from Heaven and meet the needs of our people.