Mission and the Sword of Damocles
I was talking today to leader in a mainline denomination responsible for battling to save churches with small congregations. The discussion focused on the very real threat of closure in the case of these churches, unless they saw growth. Afterwards I thought about the sword of Damocles, it is used to denote the sense of foreboding engendered by a precarious situation, especially one in which the onset of tragedy is restrained only by a delicate trigger or chance. The pressure of trying to save a church with a small congregation and the fear it engenders is very real. Add to that the fear of rejection each member has if they go and invite their friends and you can see the build-up of fear. How can one invite into a situation like that? Well what options do we have? We can work on reducing the fear and then facing that fear that still remains and then invite someone to take a closer look at Christ and his church and fear not for God is with you.
