Old Cousin Mary

A church is a family. That sounds so nice! And it’s true! I’ve been in many branches of the family of God over my life. Some have been essential and formed me into who I am. Others were sort of blips on the screen that were basically neutral. And then, like most anyone who has ever ventured into church, I’ve been hurt by those who I thought should love me. While tragic, it’s because all churches are made up of broken individuals and are products of their own pain. I have started participating in a new family. My experience with larger churches has not been good. Usually, the larger churches have awesome worship and lots of good ministries and programs. They usually have dynamic teaching and preaching. I go to a church like that! It’s amazing. I love it. I also love that there are families with small church, new babies being born, teenagers and young adults in love with Jesus and growing in their faith. Another thing I love is that there are a lot of strong men. The honeymoon is over with my participation. I have been there long enough now to be wanting to move to another level of participation. I want to feel that I belong. That is the hardest part of a large dynamic church, you are “new” for forever. Exceptions are those new people who come related to pillars in the church. Or a new convert. This got me to thinking today. When a new convert comes into the church – they are so cherished just like a brand new baby in the family. I’ve been watching this new little baby boy. He’s passed around by everyone. Everyone wants to hold him and fawn over him. AS THEY SHOULD!!! Who doesn’t want to cuddle a new baby. All this is right and good. It’s hard not to smile and reach out to hug a new baby. Likewise, with a new believer, we want to make sure they get everything they need. We want to see them develop and grow. We want to see them find their place. We are patient with them. We pray for them. As they grow, we will find a place for them to flourish. Let’s look at this another way now. All of a sudden, your old Cousin Mary, that you have never met comes into the family and wants to participate. No one knows her. No one knows her history. No one is interested in her or her history. She is just there. Cousin Mary is learning the culture of the family. She’s spent most of her life with another branch of the family but is now wanting to be part of your branch. That’s hard for the family. That’s hard for Cousin Mary. Cousin Mary has things to offer. Cousin Mary wants to be a meaningful part of the family. She wants to contribute. If she pushes too hard, she’ll be dismissed because she’s old. Stereotypes abound. It’s hard for a family to know what to do with old Cousin Mary. It’s for her to know where she belongs.