'While he was still a long way off...'

“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.” Luke 15 v 20-21.

Just over a year ago I returned to church having been away from the Open Heaven community for about 5 years.

During this time, I always held onto the fact that God was there for me and His love would never change for me.  This belief kept me going for a while, but I always knew in my heart that this was not enough and that one day I would want to be a part of a vibrant, Christian community again. 

If I can speak honestly, I really wanted someone to reach out to me, to invite me to a meeting, anything, but no one did.  I began to feel quite desperate and I listened to a talk by Steve Clifford on the Open Heaven website (it felt like someone was reaching out to me in this way), and he talked about not brushing things under the carpet, and making relationships right.  I wanted more! Then I listened to Kate’s testimony from the OH weekend away, and how bravely she spoke about how she had done just this. I thought if she can do it, so can I.  So I randomly emailed the church office (thinking I could be anonymous as no one would know who I was, as I was now married and had a different surname!) I said how much I’d enjoyed the talks and encouraged Open Heaven to keep posting them. I started this email relationship with someone called Kate, who I quickly discovered was the same Kate whose testimony I had listened to.  We arranged to meet up and this is how my journey began.                                     

I wanted to share my story, because firstly I thought some of you who knew me before might be interested, but mainly because I felt I had something I needed to say to the church. These were my thoughts when I first returned:-

Don’t forget the people who have left church.

Don’t let them go too easily.

And let them know you still care by sending them a card, text or email.

Don’t forget that you cared for this person because of who they are and not because they went to church.  Show them that you care.

So when someone leaves church, for whatever reason, don’t wait until they’ve walked through the doors again. Love them, just as the Father embraced his son, while “he was still a long way off.”

Posted by: Sarah Coombes on Friday Jun 15th, 2007

Comments

Phil Lyon writes:

thanks for writing that, good ideas.

...left on Monday Jun 18th, 2007

Ness Wilson writes:

Thank -you for being brave and putting your heart on display for everyone to see. Thank -you too for challenging us. x

...left on Tuesday Jun 19th, 2007

Lucy Lyon writes:

Its brilliant to have you back Sarah. Thanks for your honest comments too - we need to hear stuff like that.

...left on Tuesday Jun 26th, 2007

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