August, 2025

A Church Renewal instructor was surprised to learn that the best-selling religious books in our
country were about Buddhism, not Christianity. When he asked a bookstore salesperson why,
she replied that books on Buddhism describe religious practices, while books on Christianity
focus on religious doctrine. She suggested that many people believe Christianity is a way to
connect with God through what we THINK. People are hungrier to learn what they can DO to
connect with God.
I thought of this as many of us recently built bedframes with Sleep in Heavenly Peace. On one
level, we were only sanding, drilling, staining, and attaching boards. On another level, we were
making a difference in the lives of children in the area who don’t have beds to sleep on. Some
of our members also delivered the beds to the children’s homes and got to see directly the
impact of their actions. To paraphrase Jesus speaking in Matthew 25, “Whenever you build a
bed for a child who has to sleep on the floor, you have built a bed for me.” I suspect this is
much like the experience of those who take part in the youth mission trip each year.
Many tasks required for a congregation to flourish are actually spiritual practices.
 Christian hospitality (welcoming strangers as beloved children of God) is practiced by
those who take part in greeting folks for worship on Sunday mornings, those who
maintain building and grounds as welcoming spaces, and those who serve food for a
variety of gatherings.
 Christian stewardship (managing God’s resources) is practiced by those who give money
or goods for many different mission projects, as well as for the church’s general budget,
and also by the people who pay the bills and work with the money and resources
received.
 Christian worship provides for communicating with God through practices such as
prayer, meditation, singing, scripture reading, receiving communion.
 Christian education provides spiritual formation and moral development, as well as
intellectual growth.
What practices draw you closer to God? How well does the church promote these as spiritual
practices, as opposed to institutional necessities?

Peace, Rev. Tim Darmour-Paul