Over the last few weeks, I've had some heart-wrenching conversations with fellow brothers and sisters in Christ...conversations that reveal the worst about our human condition and the way our sins manifest themselves within the church...conversations that reveal how damaged we can become in the process of trying to serve God's people...conversations that reveal how much we desperately need more Christ and less religion.

Having personally served on staff at several churches and then worked with countless others through SAGE, I am saddened to see the hurt that we as Christians so often inflict upon one another. And while recent months have caused me to ask God some difficult questions about church, I can honestly say that my belief in His Church has not changed. I certainly understand our tendency to retreat or even flee the Church in the face of great pain dealt at the hand of a fellow believer, but it's time for us to stop running away.

I recently read an interesting article in The Washington Post entitled "Church: Love It, Don't Leave It." The authors made some great points, but the portion of the article that moved me the most is listed below:

"We've been in the church our whole lives and are not blind to its failings. Churches can be boring, hypocritical, hurtful, and inept. The church is full of sinners. Which is kind of the point. Christians are worse than you think. Our Savior is better than you imagine."

Churches will always be full of sinners, me being the chief among them. But the Savior should not be made to suffer because of my mistakes, or those of others. The church is His bride, and she deserves both my love and allegiance.

Maybe you've run away from the Church, and along the way, you've started to run from God. Friend, trust me on this - He knows if you are hurting and who caused the hurt. He cares about your pain, enough to gather your very tears in a bottle (Psalm 56:8). He is the God of all comfort (2 Cor. 1:3), and He longs to heal your broken heart. And one of His healing methods is the love and community that can be found within His Church. Even if you were wounded there, you can still find healing there in His arms...and in the arms of the saints He is molding into His image.

Still struggling to see the Church's value? Check out a few more thoughts from the Post article...

"We love the church because Christ loved the church. She is his bride - a harlot at times, but his bride nonetheless, being washed clean by the word of God (Eph. 5:25-26). If you are into Jesus, don't rail on his bride. Jesus died for the church, so don't be bothered by a little dying to self for the church's sake."

So if Christ could die for the church, surely I can put aside my pain long enough to see the beauty at the heart of His bride. It's not an easy task, but it is a biblical one. I'd like to think I'm "into Jesus," but my prayer is that I can be more than that. My prayer is that I can be like Jesus, and Jesus has never turned His back on the church. So I better take off my running shoes and start loving. That's what He would do. Scratch that - it's what He has already done.