Last weekend as I was perusing the most excellent junk market (the local mall) I came across this advertisement, “you bring it, we’ll bling it”. It’s a goofy advertisement for gaudy cell phone covers, but it strikes a chord in me spiritually.

I think this is the approach that many churches take when dealing with people’s faith, “you bring it, we’ll bling it”. The idea is, come to church and let the church grow your faith for you. Then, these churches put their people on a steady diet of classes, sermons, singing, small groups, prayer groups, socials and service projects, all with the intent of growing and cultivating faith.

The problem is, while most of these things are good, alone (or even combined) they will never cultivate faith to the desired depth. At best all these things can offer is a fervent religion, at worst shallow “good feelings”.

Faith is so much deeper than that. It is first personal, meaning that the growth of faith is each believer’s personal responsibility. It is also foundational, so it’s primary care and growth should never be turned over to someone else.

The church is a necessary catalyst for the growth of faith, but it should never be the believer’s only source of nourishment. My prayer is that we will all take this walk with Jesus seriously and joyfully embrace our own responsibility for it.

What are your thoughts?