In the heat of Uganda this past July, my heart burned hard, and I wrote a letter, a post, I keep returning to, igniting with, a post that sort of went crazy, A Letter to the North American Church. That’s what’s fiery in my bones… The church is the beautiful bride Christ’s returning for and I am passionate about the church, committed to her growth, her relentless flourishing, her certain thriving, preparing herself for His soon-coming. How do we, the church, grow and strengthen into the ready and beautiful bride?
I quietly have asked many of my friends to pray for the church over the next several weeks, and share with us here their own Letter to the North American Church. The letters they have shared with me have startled me, kindled me, convicted and moved me — changed me. My prayer is that they edify and fuel and light something deep in us all…
When my wise heart-sister, author and Women of Faith speaker, Patsy Clairmont’s shared her letter with me — I gathered kids and read the letter aloud, lump in my throat … Simply and profoundly moved. Maybe deep change begins with the simplicity of this:
Dear North American Church,
This is a confession.
I whine.
I admit without reminders I forget that I am blessed.
Recently I spoke in Colorado.
At the event I was assigned a delightful hostess to assist me in finding my way around the arena.
I had been dealing with a sore knee and shoulder that annoys me and I began whining about my discomfort.
After awhile my hostess looked at me with compassion and said, “I have such a heart for people who suffer in their limbs.”
With that she slipped her foot out of her shoe and to my amazement half of her foot had been amputated.
Then she showed me her skin grafts that covered her legs and arms, all damage from a fire.
I didn’t complain about my sore knee the rest of the day.
Actually I haven’t complained in days because I’ve carried the picture of this gal and her joyful spirit in my mind.
And when I’m tempted to carry-on about my inconvenience I start reminding myself of all my blessings.
We live in a land of liberties, and even though things aren’t exactly the way we want them, and life is hard (Jesus reminded us it would be), and people are, well, a tad odd —
we have much to rejoice about.
Your Church-lover,
Patsy Clairmont
{And I read Patsy’s simply profound letter again and keep coming back to this:
When we wear the habit of gratitude, the church becomes irresistibly attractive. }
An original Women of Faith speaker, Patsy Clairmont’s quick wit and depth of biblical knowledge combine in a powerful pint-size package. A recovering agoraphobic with a pronounced funny bone, Patsy speaks to women from all walks of life. Patsy and her husband, Les, live in Tennessee.
You can find Patsy making folks laugh, cry and love Jesus more at these Women of Faith dates.
I absolutely love this woman and her sold-out heart for Jesus — highly recommend her five star, life-giving upcoming release: Twirl: A Fresh Spin at Life
Related: My burning A Letter to the North American Church
Click here to download the FREE EASTER / LENT Devotional: The Trail to the Tree{please give it a few moments to download… thank you for grace!}