Give Jesus a Shot

About 6 1/2 years ago I left what is know as the "Christian church." I blatantly decided I had personally endured more than enough of this whole church thing for the rest of my life. I knew what the Bible said, I believe in Jesus and I knew the answers to many of the theological debates. But I had no use for the Christian church, the people in it or the way they lived. So I left.
For about 3 years I became a ChrEster (Christmas and Easter) Christian. I attended got dressed up and even enjoyed being around family for the day. But other than that my life was pretty much living the way I wanted without church on Sundays, Wednesdays or any other day of the week when people felt the need to tell me I should attend some sort of 'Christian group.'
I often heard the, "well you know so much, especially since you were a pastors daughter, you know you should be in church." Or, "well maybe you should give church another try. My church is amazing." My typical response, depending on who it was, usually ended in a not too subtle definitely no! I had no desire what-so-ever to ever step foot in a church again. The people there drove me nuts. The way they talked, the way they told me how to act and what I should and shouldn't do, the way they pretended that life was fine and Jesus was their everything and then they would go home and take a Prozac to keep them from falling apart. I just didn't get it. I didn't get the reasoning behind it all. Church, in my eyes, was a place full of hypocrites, selfish people with secret agenda's and fakes. I personally couldn't handle fake, I do real and I decided it wasn't for me. Jesus could be my friend without being around those people that seemed overly judgmental and critical of my life but not of their own. I had been hurt, in many different ways by the church and some of it was pretty hard core. I just couldn't do it. I couldn't risk the pain of enduring the church again.
While I had distanced myself away from the church there were times when I felt God tugging on my heart but I ignored it. I didn't want to go back to church, besides I was living in WI where I knew the man I was getting married and pretty much no one else and I didn't know of a good church to go too. I could have come up with a million reasons why I didn't go to church but bottom line, I wanted seriously  nothing to do with anyone who said they belonged to a church.
For me the invites to church were just annoying. They bugged me and irritated me beyond belief seeing as I felt most Christians were not true to their words. And I like most people who leave the church felt myself walking further and further away from the people who called themselves "Christians." I walked away for many different reason the more I knew of someones faith, but mainly it was because I didn't want to go back to the life of having to pretend that everything was o.k. I didn't want to put on a face every Sunday morning and pretend that each day I was happy with God or with the way He was allowing things to go in my life along with being surrounded by other hypocrites it just wasn't something I was willing to do. I was a straight shooter. I loved wine, and other drinks, I loved to smoke and I loved to do a bunch of stuff that lets face it, the church doesn't really appreciate. I didn't want to be forced to give up those habits for God. I didn't ever feel like they were wrong, I felt like they were sins that man created, not God.
Now, this post is not to Dog on Christians so hang on. I am not saying I still think this way. Obviously I don't seeing as I am involved in my church and bring my children there and they love it and I love it and my husband loves it. So waht happened? What made me give church another shot?
Nothing! Nothing made me want to give church another shot. I gave Jesus a shot! I knew my life was not what I wanted it to be nor was it headed even close to that direction. I didn't give the church a shot I gave Jesus a shot. See people who are not walking in the faith, aren't going to church don't need to be told time and time again to 'try church." Or, "all churches are full of hypocrites get over it and come back." What they need to hear isn't anything about your church. Trust me those people know that church is there, the building and the people. What they don't know is how to walk in it and not feel judged. They don't know how to walk in it and feel loved and they definitely don't know how to walk in it and see all the screwed up people in the church with the love of Jesus.
When talking with someone who has left the church or doesn't go to church tell them to give Jesus a shot. The church is not what is going to save them. The church of Christ is set up to be the help along side of them that they need to grow in their walk with Christ. I am not saying someone can't get saved from walking into a church and hearing a sermon where God speaks to them.  What I am saying is that there are several people out there, much like I was, who don't want to step into a church because they have been in one for years and even attended different ones and always found the people to be about the same and always felt alone.
Inviting someone to your church is a nice gesture, but a nicer gesture would be to witness to them about your Jesus and your faith in Him. It's not your churches job or your pastors job or your small group leaders job to witness to them, it is your job. Offer those people a chance to see Jesus, to meet Jesus and to claim Him as their own friend.
The difference of why I was able to walk back into church a little over three years ago wasn't because I found this amazing life changing church where people were not the way I had remembered; it was the fact that when I walked in, knowing Jesus love, I was able to see people through different eyes. And just when I would start to complain to Him about 'His people," I would always get the gentle reminder, "I love them just as much as I love you." And trust me there have been days where I have questioned Him, fought with Him and had many tears over problems with 'His church.' But, it makes it way easier to walk into church every week knowing that it's not my job to find the faults of others, or to find whether their hearts are sincere or fake. My  job is to show love to all, Christians and none Christians alike. I am to have the love of Christ flowing through me and to be patient and caring not just with the people who aren't in my Christian family but especially to those who are in my Christian family. I am to not judge but leave the judgement of each person up to Christ.
And yes the church is stacked full of hypocrites,I am no exception. We all know the rules, we all know what God wants for us but we all are also given a choice. A choice God calls free will. There are countless times were we take the option that is not right. We join in on a conversation we know we shouldn't be a part of, or we make the decision to open our mouth and be rude instead of keeping silent and showing grace. It doesn't make them a bad person or less of a Christian when they do the wrong thing, it makes them; forgiven, loved and saved by grace the same as I am.
So the next time you feel like inviting someone to church and asking them to 'try it out,' remember that person has a reason they haven't stepped foot in your church. Instead, try just talking to them about Jesus, not about your church. There might not be anything wrong with the church you attend but they might not be able to see that through unloved eyes. Only when we experience the love of Christ fully upon us can we see people with love like no other. If you can show them by being living proof of what it means to be loved and forgiven they are more likely to want to know Jesus on their own. They will become more likely to want what you have; peace, love, joy, gentleness, self-control, grace and mercy. Though you may not be all those things all the time the fact that they can see Christ through you is going to be more interesting to them than just an offer to come check out your church.
 Stop offering to pray for them and offer to pray with them. Stop inviting them to see all their faults (trust me they know about them) and offer to show them Jesus who forgives and wipes clean all their wrongs. And do the world a favor, stop offering to let them come to church with promises that it's different than they remember in hopes that the people you know don't scare them away or in hopes that the pastor is going to give a hearty sermon to change their minds to think the way you do. Offer them Jesus. Offer them the God of the universe with the ability to see what true forgiveness and freedom to live means. Don't ask them to give church another shot; Ask them to give Jesus a shot! HE WILL NOT LET THEM DOWN!