If We Are the Body?

Recently I have been looking for a home church.  I have been thinking of past churches and communities that we have been in. Each one being very different from the last, this would be the most different. It has made me think "what is church" what is community" "what is it to be the body of Christ"??? I don't know if this will go over well with my reader(s), but here is what I have come up with.  Let me just say that most of this is a reflection inside of me things that I know I am guilty of.

When we say we are the body of Christ, it seems to me that we are under our own church roof.  We set up and establish programs for the church ( which is good I am not knocking that at all).  Programs like Youth Ministry, but we only reach out to the youth in our church.  We also have a person set aside to go to the hospital and pray for people, most of the time only it is if someone from our church is in the hospital or someone from the church has asked us to see a friend or relative.  I have been to the hospital to many times and know that there are always floors of people that are there not to mention they people that work there. Who is reaching out to them? I know there is a Chaplin but, if we are the body why aren't we moving, why are we putting it off on others. Why do we care if there is rejection from someone. Why are we not trying to reach out. We have all kinds of ministries but we only seem to reach out to those that reach to us first.

We say we are a community, but when was the last time that churches in a community came together to do something for the community. We all stick with just our home church, those people and those functions. Sure we invite people to go to church. But it is ussaly to our church. There are plenty of churches, does it really matter what church they go to? Isn't the goal not to grow our church but to grow the body of Christ? Yet I have never heard, nor have I asked someone what church they might want to go to. I stick with my comfort zone. After all what would people say if I was seen at the church across town!?

When we have someone that is not a "friend" yet we know them and talk to them.  We don't talk to them about Christ because we don't know how they feel about it, we aren't that close to them so we just don't go there. Aren't these the people we need to be reaching out to?

What is it to be a christian and call ourselves the body of Christ if we only stick together, if we only do what we are comfortable with. Why are we not taking chances? Is our faith really that small that, we don't think God can use us outside of our church? When was the last time you saw a new face at church, did you talk to them did you interact with them? Have we ever dared to take someone to church other than our own?

If you read my blogs, you will know that I am a sinner, I have issues with vanity, I can be a failure, I mess up. One thing I don't want to do is turn people off to Christ because, I say I am part of the body of Christ, that I strive for a better community, but only when I feel comfortable doing so.