My Mind Battles as a Christian- I don't know who's winning!

Ok, I am reading a book and listening to cd's on another subject, while my world zips by and occasionally  crashes into me.

I was meeting with a Church today about a project. I ask them to tell me about their group and their description surprises me. And thinking I'm the only person engaged in a book at present, I say:  "You might want to read a book by Andy Stanley called "Deep and Wide".   The three men smile and say, "We will sell you a copy.  We have a whole stack of them in the next room.  We are reading it as a church body."  YIKES

I got to the meeting early and was setting in the car reading the Stanley's book.  I'm telling you that I can't read his book without gauging my life and environment.  You see Stanley believes that Jesus came to seek and saved the lost, the needy, and those who have lost there way.  He says that a stranger can walk into the lobby of a church building and tell that:

They are not expecting guests.

That what is going on there is not that important.

That the members expect someone else to pick up after them.

That there is no pride.

He also says that most churches aim at the members (They pay the bills) and give little thought to what the visitor experiences.  Of Course most visitors in our churches are also Christians.

If a minister preaches to the fringe element (unchurched) he gets in trouble in the churches that are for the unchurched.  They want sermons on the Bible and let that be enough. NO contemporary applications.   (Sounds Familiar)

He says, "Face it, David always beats Goliath, and there will always be ten commandments.  the only thing that changes is the presentation."

He says, "I'm not trying to produce Bible scholars. And By the way teaching through the entire Bible doesn't create Bible Scholars.  It creates people who think they are Bible Scholars. And those are some of the meanest, most uncompassionate human beings on the planet. You know who I'm talking about.  You've got 'em in your church too. They will correct you when you make the slightest error. But they aren't about to serve anywhere. Too busy for that. Not only do they believe in a literal hell, you get the impression they are happy about the fact that people are going there."

Andy says, "I'm partial to hungry, ignorant Christians myself. The kind who are content to love Jesus and the people he died for. I'll take the Christian who doesn't know it all but is committed to doing whatever he or she knows or the Christian who knows it all and that's as far as it goes.  Remember the widow who gave everything she had?  Jesus liked her more than he liked the Pharisees.  She was a doer. Jesus liked doers. I imagine he still does."