Quote:
Originally Posted by aron
Let me give you a case study. A disabled brother on pension moved about 40 miles outside the city where housing is cheap. I periodically call him. He bemoans the fact that "the saints" have abandoned him, don't visit him, etc. I ask why not visit with some of the Christians near him? No, he replies; "I am absolute". This man won't have anything to do with "Christianity" because he is completely sold out for the local church, and the local church won't have anything to do with him because they don't consider him "good building material".
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This reminds me of a personal experience. Please know, I say this with love and respect for my dad- but he was taught this “good building material” mindset it seems...
It was pretty common for saints to live close to the meeting hall, that way fellowship was easier- makes sense! There was a certain brother though (really admire him and his wife) who decided to build a big house in the country, almost an hr away from the meeting hall. They built it themselves and I’m sure saved a lot of money by doing it that way! I remember my dad was (sadly) very critical of this. He didn’t think it was “good for the church.”
The interesting thing though is that house turned into YP central for probably decades now. We just caravaned out to the country for Saturday YP meetings. They built zip lines in their backyard, a rock climbing wall, had bon fires, even a pool table. Aside from all the forced participation stuff, I have some really great memories in that home. Also, a lot of the saints were married there and it was a little
more fun than the typical “wedding meeting.”
Just goes to show the blessings that can happen when you listen to the Lord instead of the elders, who might mean well- it’s just not their place. I’m not implying there’s not a need for elders or leading ones but ultimately- it’s not their place to tell anyone what to do and definitely not their place to judge you or condemn you for a decision you make that they don’t agree with. Unfortunately, what I saw growing up was people just going with the flow of everyone around them, which results in a lot of people dressing the same, talking with the same intonations/verbage, even decorating their home the same. I’m sure anyone who ever spent time in the LC could accurately describe the way many of their homes look! Put all the LSM books on display, a few pics are ok, not too much, framed versus on the wall, simple, no personality allowed, ha! Sorry, I’m kind of teasing them- I don’t care, it’s just funny to me.
Sorry to change the topic here, was glad to be reminded of this though after reading this thread
