Yesterday, Paula, a seminary intern working with the youth in our congregation, delivered the sermon in church. Since she had just started working at the church, she took this opportunity to tell a bit about herself. Pastoral ministry will be Paula’s second or third career. She recently left a very good job as an executive at a local bank. She shared with the congregation a bit about the journey that brought her to this point in her life.
Paula was raised Roman Catholic, as she says “at a time when Catholics did not read the bible.” Her life’s faith journey was sent into a tailspin when she was a teenager. Paula recalls, “I went to confession one day with an agenda, I had a question that I needed to have answered. To this day I can’t recall what the question was, but I will never forget the response.” The priest hearing Paula’s confession told her, as the answer to her question, that it was sinful and ir-reverent to question her faith. From that moment on, Paula stopped attending church unless her parents dragged her. She says, “ I didn’t see the point in attending a service and listening to a lecture that I was not permitted to ask questions about.” Paula spent the next several years searching… searching for a way to feel complete in life. Searching for her own understanding of faith. She got married, had a son, joined a gym and went for walks in the woods…still, she reflects that none of those events or activities filled the void. It was not until the events of 9/11 that Paula realized where God was calling her life. She felt a burning desire to overcome the fear and distrust that so many of us had (at least on some level) after that terrorist attack. Paula wanted to be a person to spread hope and love... she knew this was God's calling, because she finally felt that longtime void, filled.
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Paula's journey, although it may have some common threads with the journey of others, is very personal. But the best part, is that she can share it. I read an article a few years ago that relayed a conversation that took place amongst a trainer and a number of pastors. The pastors were gathered around a table and were about to get into a conversation about 'leading people to Christ.' The trainer began the conversation by asking each person to share a story of at least one person that they knew they had personally led to know and accept Jesus.... ... the room was silent. Not one pastor had a story to tell.
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So... if faith is personal, how can we expect to grow the Church if we don't know how to tell the story. I know that there are a few dozen books on this subject, but to me, it doesn't seem like a tough concept to grasp. My mother raised me to know the bible, to pray, and to give up control of my life so that God could use me for his purpose. We went to an Episcopal church, with plenty of ritual and singing. In looking back, none of it was personal to me - it was part of my routine ( a good routine, but still a routine) It was not until college that I really took ownership of my own faith. Why then? It was in college that my roommate and my girlfriend (now my wife) each shared their personal faith stories with me, and for the first time I saw this Christianity thing as relevant and alive, as opposed to 'that thing older people do on Sundays.' Having said that, the Christian education that I was raised with has given me a great foundation to grow from - I still seem to know more bible stories than my wife (who came to her faith as a teenager).
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Growing the church is a person by person act. It does not take an army. It only takes a story, and a desire to share.
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