I have told the story many times – I was in Cincinnati serving a poor, inner-city church, when I walked into the hall and found about a dozen neighborhood residents, who we helped on a regular basis, sitting in the hallway. The service hadn’t started, but they got there so they could get money or food or lunch when we were done. I invited them in, and they all had a reason why they shouldn’t or couldn’t join us. I told them that I would never force them to attend church to get help, but I thought it would be helpful if they did. 10 of them decided to come in, and they were still part of that church when I left for Pennsylvania. All of their reasons, by the way, were connected to feelings of unworthiness – none of them believed they were good enough to be in church.
In the second chapter of the Gospel of Mark, this happened: When the scribes of the Pharisees saw that Jesus was eating with sinners and tax collectors, they said to His disciples, “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?” When Jesus heard this, He said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick; I have come to call not the righteous but sinners.” I was raised in a church that believed they were a hospital for the sick, not a resort for the healthy. That little group of weirdos were loving and imperfect and quirky – just like the followers of Jesus in the Bible. They did their best to serve God, and while it was a tiny church, they had a big heart. And while I am sure there were times they felt unworthy, that never stopped them from trying. They showed up every Sunday, ready to help. Imperfect – flawed – sometimes lost – saints of God.
I think it is the times we feel the most unworthy that we need to to be connected to our faith communities the most. If you are staying away because you think you aren’t good enough, or you feel disconnected, or for any other reason that is about you, I would encourage you to rethink your decision. If you show up at my church on any given Sunday, you will find people just like you – people who are trying to live their best lives and knowing that none of it will ever be perfect. People who sometimes feel unworthy but never are. People made in the image of God who are also kind of broken, trying to find healing. Just because we aren’t perfect doesn’t mean we aren’t worthy. God made us – God loves us – and God wants us to be together. I hope you will join us as we all seek God on our journeys. Because we are all worthy of love.
Prayer – Holy God, Your love creates and recreates each one of us, molding us into something more. Amen.
Today’s art is a cave painting from before 3000 BCE – located in Bulgaria.