Upheaval by Susan L.

  My church is going though some major upheaval since the passing of our pastor. Yesterday there was a meeting to discuss an option the church elders had come up with. They put forward the idea that we align ourselves with the Meeting House in Oakville. It's a modern church whose main goal is to take the "church" out of church. Faith without religion, what a concept! Our sermons would be podcasts of their main pastor, Bruxy Cavey.
  The fact that he got everyone to laugh on Sunday speaks volumes about his ability to teach.
  We would format our youth groups and our small groups based on the Meeting House's structure and teaching materials. Instead of independently choosing a bible study program, we would take the time to analyse and explore further the lessons of the previous Sunday. I think that's a neat idea personally. How many times have I heard a sermon and forgotten the lesson the moment I left?
  Should we decide to go this route, our elders would re-define their pastoral search to look for a pastor who's sole job would be pastoral service. It would free them from having to do the teaching every Sunday. That had been one of my biggest concerns, that there would be no pastor for us but the one on video.
  The elders have temporarily suspended their search for a new pastor and have asked the congregation to continue with the Meeting House teachings until the end of February. There would be a vote at that time to decide which way everyone wanted to go.
  The meeting got ugly. Leaked misinformation had already created feelings of anger and suspicion long before the elders presented this.
  On Friday, a woman from my church approached me. The first words out of her mouth were, "I've been told to keep this secret but I think you should know..." She then proceeded to tell me about what the elders had in mind. What she told me was not what the elders said.
  My mistake was not stopping her. By listening, it encouraged her to gossip and slander the church elders. I won't make that mistake again.
  Thank You, Lord, I was able to listen to the presentation with an open mind.
  The elders are elected by the church people. Are we not supposed to trust their leadership?
  "Let the elders who rule well be counted worthy of double honour, especially those who labour in the word and doctrine." 1 Tim 5:17