Weekend Warring
It’s Sunday, and I wonder
What to do
Where does an outcast go
To Zoar or another city of refuge
Will I be taken on
And how do I breathe the air
Of those who had abandoned me,
Now empty
It’s a search for something
A church without a church
See the steeple
Where are the people
A confessing place
Otherwise, an empty chapel
Would do well
Or a ruin of a larger place
Where faithful life might have been teeming
Once
And no longer
Through caprice
Of ownership or demographics
A tall room for birds now
Maybe those who listened
To Saint Francis
I don’t mean to hide
I am energized by people
As sometimes they have been by me
Even though they took too much
Last time
And what is left is wondering
And, yes, wandering, too
A walk outside beside a grave
A columbarium, mausoleum
A museum to the dead
Though I think it might be good
Remembrance
And for the living,
We who are outside
Not even looking in, anymore
Each of us stays in place
Waiting
Attending
C L Couch
clcouch123 
November 7, 2018 at 6:13 pm
It’s awful the church has hurt you so, or rather some of its members. I hate to say it but sometimes, church members or “cliques” can be the worst with acceptance and treatment of others. But I don’t view their perspective as God’s. The church is it’s people but more than that its Jesus Christ, his words. So, I think whether you are listening to devotions online or seeing a church on TV, there God is too. I think if you find a Church even outside of the Lutheran that aligns mostly with your beliefs and you can attend and feel apart of the congregation and their fellowship, that’s okay too. My brother (we all grew up staunch Lutheran), had an awful time had his first church. He was the only one who volunteered to do the church books and did an excellent job. He also helped the current pastor apply for disability when he had mental health problems. What was he supposed to do. Isn’t that Christian behaviour? , isn’t that just being a friend & being nice?
Apparently not, the congregation had some influential and old school members who did not like that Justin helped this pastor and that they have to pay for his disability. They demanded he step down from doing the church books b/c of this.
It was a terrible situation. Justin stopped going and attending there. He couldn’t stand the people who treated him that way. For awhile he attended a plethora of churches until some of his best friends asked him to come to their Anglican Church. It’s very similar, my Grandpa a Lutheran Pastor, was also quiet fond of the Anglican Church as he’d worked with many of them way back in his day. The liturgy is pretty much the same, the hymns and praise songs very similar or the exact same too. He loves it, has friends there, and enjoys how accepting and welcoming this congregation has been to him. Thus, my point if another denomination of church has similar enough beliefs & is a better place for you, there’s nothing wrong with finding a church home there, when your health permits.
Anyway Christopher. I aim to email you today too. But wanted to read and respond here too.
Hugs and prayers go you!
It will be okay my friend. God has plans for us all to prosper, I truly believe that.