The Blessing of Brokenness
 

I read a post earlier today and it spoke volumes to me. I’ve been praying and studying small groups and their value in the larger church. Strongly believing in the value of house churching, this sort of thing is something very dear to my heart; something I feel and immense burden for. I’ll share the post and some of my thoughts.

I believe the statement above makes some very valuable points. I’m asking myself the question; why do we do this?

While studying small groups, cell groups, and house churches I’ve discovered something. If done right a cell group or house church, if done right, develops a level of “fellowship” naturally that is extremely difficult to achieve in the traditional church structure. For example, when attending a traditional church we put on our “Sunday Best”. Normally when using this term we refer to clothes, but it’s also true regarding our attitudes and “spiritual appearance”. Everything looks fantastic. We’re smiling shaking hands, patting brothers on the back, encouraging sisters to just “keep on keepin’ on”. We open with prayer with hands raised and worship as we’ve been conditioned to do. What know one knows is that many couples were fighting just moments before pulling into the church parking-lot. They were at each other’s throats with “I’ve had its!” and “I can’t take this anymores!”. Some were even yelling about divorce. The kids were on the verge of tears, if not already crying. But once inside, to look at this family you’d think, “What a godly family.”

Why? It is because a level of “perfection” is expected of us that is unrealistic. In the traditional church it’s often political suicide for a minister to be “broken” and “hurting”. Often a level of “perfection” is expected that causes the congregation to even pretend to be whole when in fact they are not. And so when one’s sin and brokenness causes a public fall… the congregation recoils and judges them to affirm their own false level of perfection for all to see. Sometimes we’re exceptionally harsh in our judgments because the person we’re judgment…represents that which we hate most about ourselves. For some reason we think that by crucifying the one who fell as we do we can crucify that very weakness in our own hearts.

In a house church or cell group the atmosphere can be a little different. Brokenness and imperfection is expected to be revealed. It’s important that what happens in the house church meetings or cell group meetings stays in the house church or cell group. Those who show with a presupposed “righteousness” are encouraged to move beyond the shadows into the light and open up. People are encouraged to share their sin and weaknesses so that all might pray for them and so that the light of God’s Word can shine in those dark areas we hide while on the job, at our traditional church, or when around extended family.

Every small group needs a balance of mercy and grace. This means that while there is mercy and understanding, a loving and non-judgmental “confrontation” with God’s Word must be the goal. As individuals share their battles, victories, weaknesses, and failures and air them out in the light of God’s Word the group finds an openness and strength that binds them together in ways meeting only four hours a week to listen to a sermon doesn’t provide. Only in small groups like this can sins of pride, arrogance, lust, adultery, materialism, ambition, and anger be properly addressed out in the open by a body of loving saints who are all viewed as sinners saved by grace. We confess our faults one unto another, we share each other’s burdens, we can encourage those taken in a particular sin together without a judgmental spirit…because all have opened up and revealed the spiritual weaknesses and faults that lay hidden deep down inside. In small groups we can be human beings in need of a Savior that isn’t facilitated in most traditional church settings.

The confrontation with God’s Word allows the entire group to be edified when one’s struggle and pain is openly discussed. Spiritual progress can be measured and victory encouraged and celebrated.

I think we like our religion convenient.

We like to attend church on Wednesday nights and on Sundays. We like to greet our brothers and sisters for the 15 minutes provided before the “service”. We’re comfortable sitting in our pews looking pretty and perfect. We like hearing generalized sermons that don’t directly address us and the sin we’re actually struggling to overcome. When the sermon is about another topic altogether we’re relieved because we can push that brokenness into the background and face it another day. The only problem is that it all too often festers and creates this judgmental spirit that is unleashed when we see a brother or sister’s sin exposed publically… even when we’re dealing with the same sin ourselves.

Small groups and house churches, if managed by their elders well, are specifically designed to directly address the realities we face as individuals. That’s scary. In a house church or cell group it’s midnight at the masquerade and all masks must eventually come off.

Perhaps it would do those of us who attend the traditional Pentecostal church well to remember that when another’s sin or weakness is publically revealed to consider the repercussions if our private lives including our sin, weakness, and struggle were revealed on the overhead for all to see.

To many I’m sure this post just sounds silly. I just had to share these thoughts.

God bless.

Re: The Blessing of Brokenness
 

It doesn't sound silly to me.