I had lunch with a friend yesterday. He serves another church in Florence and I’ve known him for many years. And even though we are of different denominations and work in totally different fields, it was good to remember how much we have in common. And it was good to sit down with someone who has absolutely no agenda and is completely honest about some of the issues we face as ministers in Florence.
There are so many hurdles in ministry around Florence right now . . . There ARE churches out there with motives OTHER THAN building the Kingdom of God. There are churches that engage in feuds with other churches and try to hurt each other. There is an attitude among people in Florence to be non-committal, to only commit to something until something else better comes along. Sometimes that one creeps into the church, too.
I don’t know if this is sad or what, but it is also comforting to know that Ebenezer isn’t alone in facing some of the people issues we face. I guess it is sad, but at least we are NOT alone!!
All in all, I really enjoyed my lunch with a friend, and in the words of Ferris Bueller, I highly recommend it.
The Random Thinker 
Leave a Reply