When I think back to my childhood I can remember being schooled on the importance of never picking up a hitchhiker. These people, mostly men, skirted the highways and byways of America with a prerequisite unkempt look and an exaggerated thumb stuck out in the wind. I learned from a young age that these were people to be avoided and that most of them spelled “danger” with a capital “D”. So, when I think about the prevalence of hitchhikers these days and the fact that we are so quick to give them a ride, I am more than a little disturbed. Not to mention the fact that many of us ARE hitchhikers and we don’t even realize it!
The dictionary defines a hitchhiker as “someone who travels by obtaining a free ride.” Newsflash! Our churches are filled with hitchhikers!! No, you may not be able to spot them right off because they mask as legitimate vehicle owners but take a closer look and that thumb with an invariable 90 degree bend will be easy to
spot! I want us to look at the characteristics of a hitchhiker to help us further our attempts at examining our own lives to see if this defines us. Let me interject here before we get too deep into discussion to clarify a few things. We are analyzing the stereotype of hitchhikers not anyone and everyone who has ever thumbed a ride because of a broken down vehicle or some sort of unfavorable circumstance that left them without a ride! Let’s begin:
1)Hitchhikers are uninvested. Looking back to the dictionary definition, hitchhikers obtain a “free” ride. They aren’t sharing in the expense of vehicle ownership. They aren’t shouldering the burden of soaring gas prices or annual vehicle maintenance. They are sporting the “W.I.I.F.M.”attitude – “what’s in it for me?” They don’t want to share in any responsibility they are simply along for the ride and when the ride is over they are done.
2)Hitchhikers are uncommitted. The very nature of these people is one of transience. They are moving from one place to the next. When you drop them off they will likely pick up another ride and another and another until they find someplace to settle for a while. Although some have final destinations in mind, most have a general direction but no specific route they are following to get there.
3)Hitchhikers are unplanned. Timeframes and plans are typically not part of the hitchhiker’s daily worries. They are getting as far as they can, stopping to eat when necessary and generally playing it by ear from one day to the next. Let’s just say being intentional and deliberate are not things that are high on their list of priorities.
4)Hitchhikers are unsafe. I can’t even begin to estimate the many stories I have heard about people picking up hitchhikers to their own demise. There is something attractive and convenient about the ability to render oneself untraceable when committing a crime. Many well meaning people have met their end at the hands of a wandering repeat offender.
So, now that you have entertained me up to this point and we are thoroughly schooled on the finer points of hitchhikers you ask, “what does this have to do with me??” I have come to warn you that hitchhiking is on the rise however, you won’t see these people on the side of the road but sitting in your church pews! They won’t look like your average vagabond off the street – they will, in fact, look a lot like you! They will dress like you and speak Christian-ese like you but they have no intention of putting down roots! They are along for the free ride and they
will eventually move on. They love the fact that they can come in and be fed without having to serve. They enjoy a “no strings attached” relationship. They are perfectly content to let you pay for the gas, shoulder the burdens of car maintenance and take on the responsibility of ownership.
Ladies, I love church! I love church for many reasons but first and foremost because it is the BRIDE of my Lord and Savior and I am part of that bride and the body of Jesus Christ. However, I am increasingly heartbroken over people who do not want to take their commitment to the church seriously! I don’t know about you but when a husband thinks about someone mistreating and taking advantage of his bride it makes him angry. We have passed off the fact that committing to a local church is respect for the bride of Christ! I use the word commitment instead of attendance because the commitment of membership entails a deeper,deliberate, intentional choice. You are saying, “I am committed to this body of believers. I find my spiritual food here, I serve here, I worship with other members of the body here, I use my time, tithe, gifts and talents here and I will help to bear the burdens of these people HERE! I’m in it! Not half-way, but all the way! I’m putting down roots and investing my time here.”
The only qualification for finding a church home that is even biblical is the exaltation and Christ-exalting proclamation of the word of God! Not programs, not denomination (because Jesus wasn’t Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian etc; - He was God!), not youth groups or missions projects or the ladies’ quilting guild or the size of the building, the size of the budget or the number of members!
Be sure that if you are committed to joining with a local church and getting your hands dirty that you will have some conflicts because churches are full of hypocrites and people in need of sanctification (along with the rest of the world!). Be sure that you will get your toes stepped on by the Pastor as he preaches the tough things in scripture to keep you from just drinking milk for the rest of your life! Be sure that you will be convicted of sin and challenged to change sinful habits. Be sure you will be tired at times because you have been busy about the work of the church and caring for its members. But know that the bonds of fellowship that are forged in the furnace of suffering and the laughter of rejoicing are eternal bonds that are bought by the blood of your Groom…and He is waiting for the time when He gets to take you, all of you home together!
In summary, there is no hitchhiking in the church of Jesus Christ that pleases the Lord. It isn’t biblical and it isn’t safe. It hurts you just as much as it hurts the church that you are leeching off of. Do take your time to find a good, Christ exalting church, pray about it, take your commitment seriously and then put down roots. Settle in, invest, commit, plan, be safe, ATTEND REGULARLY and keep your thumbs tucked in!
“Do not forsake the assembling of yourselves as is the habit of some, but encourage one another and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” Hebrews 10:25
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