Trail blazers
I enjoy walking through the woods. The area I live in has a lot of trails marked with colored “blazes” to keep you from getting lost. I walk almost every morning, so I know the trails well.
Many blazes have faded over time and can be challenging to follow, but since I’m familiar with most of the trails, I can find my way even when the blazes are not very clear. But for a hiker new to the area, more clear blazes would be a blessing. A few days ago, on my morning walk, I noticed someone had come through and repainted all the blazes, making them easy to follow, even for someone unfamiliar with the trail.
As I was reflecting on the Lord during that hike, it occurred to me that this was somewhat similar to navigating the “church” experience. If you are a seasoned Christian, you don’t need many instructions to figure out what to do at church. Even if the sermon is a bit muddled, you can still find your way. But if you are a new believer, or perhaps still a seeker, muddled messages on what to believe or how to act are likely to leave you lost in the spiritual forest wandering among countless spiritual ideas, many of which lead nowhere. Like the trail I recently walked, we need someone to come through and make the blazes clear so we can follow the trail easily and understand what God is trying to say to us.
Perhaps all of us more experienced spiritual hikers should contemplate how we can make the Gospel message clearer to those less seasoned than ourselves.
Here are some practical ways more experienced Christians can give direction to those still learning the ways of the Lord:
Be careful about using theological terms in casual conversation. There is nothing wrong with using words like ‘sanctification,’ ‘glorification,’ ‘justification,’ ‘imputation,’ ‘soteriology,’ or ‘eschatology’ in a small group Bible study, but they can be confusing in large group discussions where many people may not understand what they mean.
Smile and greet a person you don’t often see at church activities. Your church may have “official greeters” who do this, but a simple smile, word of welcome, and perhaps a handshake (if it is not flu season) can significantly impact a person entering a new situation for the first time. If your church prints a bulletin or worship guide, hand them yours with a short explanation about how the service or event flows.
When you see a parent with young children who might be getting restless at a church event, offer to sit with the parent and help, or perhaps let them know the church has childcare or a cry room.
Have an open ear for verbal confusion and offer to help. Once, we had an older teen who had never been to church before, and he came to our service alone because he knew he needed something more in his life. At the time, our church still used hymn books, and when we started singing, he was so confused because he did not realize that in a hymnbook, the hymns have multiple verses that you sing one line at a time, and he was trying to sing straight down the lines. I heard his voice on the wrong line and stepped over beside him and showed him the right line in the hymn book and then showed him again at the next line. He whispered to me, “Duh, I guess I should have realized that, but I’ve never seen a hymn book before.” He eventually became a regular part of our worship service and loved the music (once he understood how it worked).
In addition to these “on the spot” types of efforts, you can also make some long-term, more permanent adjustments like having clear signage in the building that shows where the bathrooms are (no one wants to ask that, it's embarrassing!).
Make directional signs in “regular” language, not “memorial” or religious language. For example, call the fellowship area the “Refreshment Center” or perhaps the “Coffee Counter,” not the “Agape Café.” Call the childcare area the “Childcare Center” not the “Maxine Smith Memorial Center for Christian Education.”
While these may seem like minor adjustments you can make in your everyday life and church, we don’t know the extent to which God can use them to bring lost souls to Himself. Let’s blaze a trail for others to clearly follow.
Dr. Terry W. Dorsett serves as the executive director of the Baptist Churches of New England.
