Sitting on my desk are three coffee mugs, each a reminder of some important part of my life and work. One reminds me of my past, a Mississippi State University mug. Another, a white mug with the green and red flag of Bangladesh (a gift from Rocky & Gemma, fearless missionaries to the Bengali people), reminds me of my mission. The third, a black mug with the VCF logo on one side and the Every Nation logo on the other side, was given to me by my friend Ariel, pastor of our Alabang congregation. Inside the mug is the VCF-Alabang motto: “I Love This Church!” The Alabang guys borrowed the line from the old NBA, “I Love This Game!” commercial.
While looking at that empty black mug, I realized that I really do love this church. Not the building, the meetings, the doctrinal statement, the vision, the programs. When I say I love this church, I mean the REAL CHURCH, like in the Bible days when church meant PEOPLE, not cathedrals and activities. On my way home from the office yesterday, I silently thanked God for the church (the people) he allows me to lead. As Gandhi (or some famous person) once said: “Those are my people. Since I am their leader, I better hurry up so I can catch up with them.”
These days it is in vogue to be critical and cynical of the church. Not me. I really do love his church, and I thank God for allowing me to be part of it.
