I am currently, “behind the scenes” so to speak, working through the last six years of our life and all that God has done. I am writing about the story of this time, that needs to be told. But no one here will see this for a while. Why? It was a hard and complicated six years. But it was also immensely fruitful. It will take time to work through, write out, think through, revise, and so on. The goal is that It would not only be truthful and transparent, but written in love.
We moved from Michigan to where we live now almost three years ago. We fully believed when we moved that we were on our way to maybe becoming members of the Mennonite church where we live now, or at least were opening the door to that possibility. We are no longer in the Mennonite church, but now that it has been over two years past the time when we left, I am in a healthier place where I can share the positive lessons that I can take away from our time there among the Mennonites.
One of the ministers’ wives and I had a nice, but emotional talk, during the time when we were getting ready to leave the church. She asked me what I would say to someone interested in coming into the Mennonite church. Of course, not wanting to hurt her feelings, I glossed over what I was truly thinking at the moment. I was in a bad place when we left, and out of Christian love for her, I could not truthfully answer that in the state of mind that I was in at the time. We still love everyone in both conservative Mennonite churches that we were a part of, but I can not personally recommend it as a journey for others coming from “the outside”. If you want to know more, then please watch for a coming series of posts where I try to better explain that (hopefully) in love. It is a process.
But, having said that, here are some positive lessons that I learned from our time in the Mennonite church.
- A reminder of the value of reading the bible and making Christian and church fellowship a priority, and an underscore of why it is important that we do these things because we want to, not out of guilt or shame from others
- The value of truly caring about each other, and being there to share each others’ burdens in ways that go above and beyond. (Like a group of ladies coming over to help clean both the house you are moving from and the one you are moving to, so that you don’t have to do it alone)
- A focus on teaching the next generation to not only read the bible, but to know it thoroughly. (And a reminder of our need of discernment in processing the theology that we listen to or read.)
- The value of true physical and social modesty. (Why it is important to cover your body, and how greatly it influences the way that the opposite sex views and treats you. And how important it is to keep your mouth shut when it is better to do so, and how that positively influences the relationships around you.)
- The value of really internalizing what God is trying to tell us in His word in regards to how we should be living. (And a reminder to live for him, and not for the approval of humans, no matter how well meaning they seem to be)
- The value of ladies that have skills that I don’t have, like sewing and canning, that are willing to teach me these currently not as common arts.
- The value of being a true COMMUNITY of believers all week long, not just on Sunday! (And why it is more joyful to give when you do it willingly)
- The value of being accountable to others in things that we are struggling with, as a safeguard.
- And the biggest lesson I have learned was the value and freedom of being the very best child of God that I can be, and letting others have the freedom to do the same. (None of us will ever be good enough to earn our salvation, that is why Jesus came. My being the best that I can be, is the fruit of my faith, not my attempt to earn my salvation. I do not have all of the facts to be a just judge of another’s faith life, which is precisely why it is NOT my job to be their judge. Not saying that I don’t still struggle with this though . . . )
While there are downsides to how I have seen these things lived out in the Mennonite church that I don’t need to go into here, I do personally believe that we would see blessings in refocusing on these things in our personal walk with God.
Lord, I have shared my thoughts here today. But all that really matters is your plan for us as your people. Give us a new perspective. Give us a hunger for your plan, and your ways. Give us courage to not just live the way we do because everyone else does, but give us the discernment to live the way you want us to. Help us to choose your way of living even when it’s considered strange or counter cultural to those around us. Help us to show you love in how we live for you, and also to better see your love for us. We cannot earn your love, but may we be more in tune with all of the ways that you show us your love, and bear fruit in your current life season for us. We ask these things in Jesus’ name. Amen
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