Heart of Worship?

Yesterday I heard some rather disturbing news and was both disappointed and upset about the decisions that some people have made, although I didn't know all the facts.

Today, after having made some phone calls to follow up on this news, I was given much more detail about the lead-up events to the decisions that I was informed of yesterday.

Given the fact that we're talking about leadership positions and our church, I'm even more disappointed in what happened to cause the outcome of one of our leaders stepping down from their position due to a dispute that they aren't even necessarily involved in. Pressures from various parties have forced them to seriously consider whether they can continue in the position as an effective leader, and the decision they came to was that they cannot.

The decision in itself isn't so much an issue for me, but the fact that there was a leadership meeting (which I attended) last week and that this issue wasn't brought up for discussion does cause me a great deal of concern. It could have been tabled and we could have come to an agreement in ways to ease the pressure that this person felt they were under. Furthermore, it may have changed some of the focus of our meeting, and impacted on some of the discussion and decisions that arose out of the meeting.

This isn't the biggest point of disappointment for me, though. As I alluded to earlier, the lead up and the way some things have been handled is nothing short of disgraceful. Leaders having children make derogatory comments on their behalf in public forums regarding other leaders is just not cricket. That's disgusting behaviour. Even if it wasn't intended, the mere fact that the comment was made at all (let alone by a child) in a public arena is despicable.

I have noticed rising tensions in the last few months, and I was hoping that things were beginning to settle down, but it seems that issues continued to simmer beneath the surface and have now come to rear their ugly head. Trouble is continually brewing as Satan tries to get a grip on the church family and create division among the Kingdom. We have to be on our guard at all times and realise that sometimes things don't always go our way. Of course, we are all only human and we'll be rubbed up the wrong way and we'll react poorly at times, but we have to be big enough to realise when we've been wrong and step up to the plate and apologise for our behaviour. Sometimes even when we are right, our behaviour is pretty poor. I know mine can be. Sometimes I can be so caught up in the fact that I know I am right about something that I let my pride get in the way and act like a child. "I was right and you were wrong" etc etc, or hammering a point home like a stubborn brat.

As Christians we are supposed to learn humility and grace. It's not always easy but it's a whole lot more satifying when we realise what has happened. We are supposed to be living examples of Christ on earth. Big shoes to fill, and something we'll never quite live up to, but something we all strive for nonetheless. We have to take a step back and remember that the Jesus Christ is the heart of everything that we do. He is the heart of worship. It's all about Him.

Sometimes we lose sight of that.