Presbyterian Problems

My good friend Warner Davis came by to see me yesterday. Warner is the pastor of a local Presbyterian Church. A tall, distinguished man, we met soon after I arrived at St. Andrews. (We were two of the three white people at the local Martin Luther King, Jr. memorial.) Since then we have had many great times together at Rotary and in shared experiences with our churches. Mainly, he has been one of my best friends and supports in the ministry. He is a man of deep faith and gentle spirit. He has written a book (Peace in a Mad Dog World) about his experiences as the son of a missionary in the Belgian Congo which I highly recommend. It would make a riveting movie. Lots of close calls and action and a touching to story of faith.
http://www.amazon.com/Warner-Francis-Davis/e/B0042L04XQ

Warner met with me because the Presbyterian Church has just okayed the ordination of active homosexuals. As I know well, the decisions made at a national level impact the local church. People will leave his church, even as many left my parish. There will be hurt feelings as people with a variety of opinions express them strongly (and many people who would rather not engage in conflict see it emerge all around them). There will be no lack of people who know exactly what needs to be done. Many of them, on opposite sides of the arguments, will prop up their position with a hodge-podge of Scripture quotes and emotion.

My advice to him is point across the street to my parish. For eight years St. Andrews has lived as a minority presence in the Episcopal Church. We have not thrived under the "new thing" but we have been a good church. I told him that the local parish church can continue to do its ministry. As long as we exist the Progressives have to deal with an alternative (Traditional Christian) narrative. As long as we exist, there is a chance to voice a counter opinion. [We can also be challenged in areas where we are wrong.] I have come to greater peace in the last two years. I have friendships with people who believe differently, but love Jesus. I have listened to them and grown as a man and as a Christian. We still disagree on things, but the benefits of staying outweigh the costs. If we left, there would be no ground for discussion. I think that if missionaries to the Belgian Congo can suffer so much to proclaim the faith then I can certainly live in middle class luxury and preach Jesus in this situation. It is not always pleasant, but it isn't supposed to be....

So I pray for the Presbyterian Church. Like us, they are in rapid decline. They are disappearing as a denomination in the USA. I also know that the 'new thing' which their Progressives are pushing will not fill their churches up. The conflicts will only hasten their demise. What I also know is Church history is filled with such stories. Sinners tend to sin, and the church is 100% sinners. No way around it. They sin. We sin. I sin. If we aren't battling over this, it will be that. There is no place to hide, in America, from forces set against the Christian faith. The people outside the church are much more aggressive about it than they are inside.

So my advice to Presbyterians: trust God and be trustworthy, pray, read your Bible, proclaim Jesus, serve the needy, love one another, be greatful, repent. In other words, do what you are supposed to do. God rules. He will take care of everything.