What if...?

Ephesians 3:14

 Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever!

I was challenged a couple of years ago by a United Methodist program "Rethink Church." After watching the online video I looked up “church” in the dictionary. Its first definition was “an edifice.” Hmmmm – I don’t think so. Rethink Church posed some questions. What if church were something we did instead of somewhere we went?  What if church were a journey that could change the world? Would you come? What if church weren’t a building, but thousands of doors?  Now our custodian David  might tell you First Church is thousands of doors and every one of them is either stuck or won’t close, but that’s another story. Just a quick count shows we have around 132 doors in our facilities. The Bible says Jesus stands at the door and knocks. How do I know which door he stands behind? Have we created so many doors we are paralyzed trying to decide which one to open? (What’s behind door #1?) Have we spread ourselves so thin we are running frantically from door to door shouting “Who’s there?”

Reaching back through old financial stewardship campaigns I found one based on What ifs… what if you could serve meals to Austin’s hungry, what if you could help refugees learn English and adjust to their new homes, what if you could provide a safe place for children and youth to learn about God? What if? Then it pointed out all the ways our service at First Church is doing these things because of our generous gifts. What if today, Easter Sunday, we rethink the ways in which we accomplish all these wonderful things.

Easter is the time of resurrection, and in keeping with this season, I have a new set of what ifs. What if the current international financial crisis is an opportunity for us to rethink how our economic systems are structured? What if the decline in membership of the traditional mainline churches, and yes, First United Methodist Austin, is an opportunity for us to take really bold steps to move closer to the church God intends for us to be? What if God’s stewards stopped being afraid? What if?