NOT MISSED

NOT MISSED:

If a tree falls in the forest and nobody's around to hear it, does it make a sound?

Around 2004, shortly after I was blessed with the gift of faith in Christ, I began attending a church in downtown San Antonio. I remember the senior pastor, T. Don Guthrie, preaching on a “game” many Christians play regarding church attendance - and it has always stuck with me.

The game looks something like this:

Phase 1: I’ll slide in and out of church as inconspicuously as possible. I may even slide in late and cut out early.

Phase 2: I’ll miss a week or two and see if anyone notices.

Phase 3: After my feelings are hurt - because nobody missed me or bothered to reach out - I’ll send a fiery email to the pastor, let him know what a horrible church they’re running, and how I’m taking my business elsewhere!

Phase 4: Repeat phases 1-3 over and over again until…

“For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.” -2 Timothy 4:3

Lost people want to be entertained. Followers of Christ are intimately invested in the promotion and proclamation of the gospel - no sales pitch required.

I remember Pastor Don saying, “It’s a dangerous game.” It is a dangerous game, and it’s one you’re always going to lose. There are zero win scenarios when we start playing games at church.

Recently, another pastor friend told me that someone in his church family was no longer attending. He mentioned that the person had missed church for several consecutive weeks, and they were deeply hurt and offended that nobody reached out to them. This person was hurt because they were not missed.

Not missed. Hmmmm...

The Bible teaches us that the Church is the literal Bride and (semi) metaphorical Body of Christ. The Bible teaches us that every member of the Church / Bride / Body - that’s EVERY member - is supernaturally gifted upon receiving the Holy Spirit for the purpose of contributing to and building up the Body of Christ in faith, knowledge, and unity in Jesus.

The Body “metaphor” is fitting here because there are no superfluous body parts. Doctors and scientists used to think that tonsils and appendix were evolutionary “leftovers,” with no relevant or significant functions. But it turns out that both serve important roles in the human body’s immune system. We aren’t born with a cosmetic limb in the middle of our back. We don’t have toes on our knee caps. We don’t have an organ that makes Play-doh or crayons. Every part of the body does something essential, important, and/or significant for the benefit of the whole. There are no parts that are disjointed, independent, random, or trivial; instead all the parts work together in unison toward a common objective. There are no parts or members of the human body that simply sit back and consume without contributing. That’s not the definition of a member; but rather the definition of a parasite:

PARASITE: noun; an organism that lives in or on another organism (host) and benefits by deriving nutrients at the host's expense.

The body neither mourns nor yearns for parasites. Actually, the removal of parasites benefits the overall health of the host organism. When you’re making a major contribution to your family - they’ll miss you when you are absent. How many times have you randomly stayed in a hotel just to see if your spouse or kids would miss you? When you’re a major contributor to a team - they miss you when you can’t participate. How many Super Bowl quarterbacks, World Series pitchers, or World Cup goalies have ever sat at home waiting for a phone call from the coach, owner, or teammates to see if they’d be missed? How many CEOs of Fortune 100 companies sit at home in their pajammies pondering, “I wonder if anyone misses me?”

When you’re an integral member of the Body of Christ - you don’t play the “Will anyone miss me?” game. The work of the Church is more important than any corporation or institution. The impact and significance of the Church is eternally greater and infinitely more significant than any/every Super Bowl, World Series, or World Cup; consequently your role as an ambassador of Christ is more important than that of any / every CEO, team captain, politician, and movie star - ever.

Not missed? Maybe that’s a more accurate reflection of your blase’, apathetic, lukewarm, fruitless, and lackluster contribution to the Body rather than a commentary on its leadership and other members.

Maybe the reason why nobody has missed you is that there’s nothing to miss. Maybe the constant drain of complaining, moaning, criticism, gossip, and grumbling is a relief. The Body is always healthier when blood-sucking, health-sapping parasites are removed. People can’t miss that which is invisible or what they’re unaware of.

There’s a HUGE difference between not being missed and not being appreciated. If you’re in ministry for awards, accolades, plaques, medals, and gold stars - you couldn’t have picked a more unsuitable vocation. This side of eternity ministry looks like the Cross (see Luke 9:23) not a medal ceremony at the Olympics.

In closing today I’ll leave you with a few words from Paul’s letter to the church at Corinth:

“Brothers and sisters, stop thinking like children. In regard to evil be infants, but in your thinking be adults… Everything must be done so that the church may be built up.” -1 Cor 14:20;26

If a tree falls in the forest and nobody's around to hear it, does it make a sound?

Blessings,

-Kevin M. Kelley

aMostUnlikelyDisciple.com