A place to put down our masks and costumes

One of the hardest things about living as a Christian is the pressure of the role model.

Have the mind in you that was in Christ, the apostle wrote.

Sure. No problem. You do know he is the living God, right? I’m just an average nobody from nowhere in particular.

Pastors get a double dose of this. You are also an example for everyone else and no matter how much we try to knock down the laity/clergy divide, every room the pastor walks in, he or she is the pastor.

This is why support groups and covenant groups are so important. It is why we need to build each other up in love. We all need a place – laity and clergy – where it is okay to confess your failings and your fears. Everyone needs a place where the bright, shiny, happy facade – or the gloomy and grim one – can come down for a bit and real Christian love can be expressed and accepted.

Everyone needs to be able to say, “These are my wounds. No matter how hard I try, I can’t make them heal.”

In the best of circumstances, families can be this way. No matter what the circumstances, though, you can’t get this at Sunday School and Sunday worship. These gatherings have their own important and gracious purposes. To have a group of Christians gather to speak in truth and love with each other is a miraculous thing. It requires patience and trust and love and time. It takes the Holy Spirit a long time to break through all our dodges and defenses. We are wily prey.

It is what John Wesley called Christian conversation. Or, so I gather. It is an art and a means of grace that takes practice an discipline to master.