Empty Seats

Take a church full of sinners with issues galore, each needing profoundly the grace of the Lord. Some trapped in addiction, some weighed down in sin, some struggling with faith, some who tried but gave in. Some filled with anger and some with regret, some who cannot forgive, but there’s one group I fret - the judgmental crowd. They make it so tough, thinking they have no sin or that they’re good enough. And I wish that were all but it’s not for I find, they poison the whole for they’re willfully blind. Doing all that they must to protect the charade, ranking sins amongst others and handing out shame. Handcrafting a culture that turns out to be, in direct opposition to what sinners need. A place to be open, a place to confess, a place to find comfort, a place to find rest. A place to find Christ and the healing He gives. A place to start over, but somehow this lives in the culture of church after church I observe. I guess human nature just can’t be deterred. For it seems to be common despite where I go - the part poisons all, no one stops it and so the judgmental crowd wins and history repeats where they end up the only ones… left in the seats.