I Was Picking a Lock Last Night

Last night was a great night.

There is a woman in our church who needed to move. It was kind of unexpected, she needed to get out of her house by the end of this week. She is a newly single mother of 4 kids, who understandably is a bit overwhelmed with the whole thing. I asked her how the church could help, and she said she really needed some help with moving some stuff.

So on Sunday, I made a quick announcement to the church about needing help, and sent out a text on Tuesday to come and help. Last night about 12 people showed up on a Tuesday night, in the dark, to help another person move.

As a pastor, there aren't many tangible indicators that you can use to surmise the spiritual health of your church, but last night I sure saw one. A bunch of men and women with trucks and cars showing up to help someone they didn't know that well. Just because she was in need. It was awesome.

There were old guys and young guys. Married and single. Kids. Even a pregnant lady carrying some small boxes. No complaints. No grumbling. No arguments.

There was one problem- when we got to her new house, the garage was locked without a key. We had to call a locksmith to come and open it. I held the flashlight for the locksmith and learned how to pick a lock. Cool stuff. I'm not sure how I'll use it in the future, but it was pretty cool.

What's the nugget? There still is love in this world. There is still community. I saw it last night and it was awesome.

There are people out there who say that the church is outdated, and that there is no use for it today. Those people think that the church is not needed. There are tons of great things about the church that exist, and last night I saw the love, care and community of it, and I was encouraged by it.

Be blessed.
matt