It’s been a busy few days. Yesterday was a big YFC day for the south east when we met with our leadership team.

The morning started well, and differently, when we set the agenda for the session. Basically, people were asked to write on sheets of paper those things they were passionate about, then we got into the groups that interested us, discussed the issues and suggested actions.

Towards the end of the day, Roy Crowne, our National Director, shared some thoughts with us from Exodus 20 which really hit home.

Picture the scene … Moses has been away for days getting the 10 commandments. While he is there, Aaron is ‘in charge’ and the people hassle him about stuff so they make a calf out of God to worship.

Moses comes down the mountain to see all this worship going on and asks Aaron ‘What have these people done to you?’

It’s an interesting question. These people were wanting to worship God, were desperate to do something, kept hassling and Aaron kind of gives in. Maybe he gives in with a ‘just this once it won’t matter’. If he did, he realised he was wrong upon Moses’ return. I reckon, though, he drifted into the situation without realisng what was happening.

As a person passionate about Jesus, about reaching people and about churchI started to wonder if I become distracted like Aaron. I expect distractions and attacks from those outside my circle, outside YFC, outside the church. I guess we all do to a certain extent. But can it also be true that the attitudes, lifestyles and comments of those inside the church can pull us off course?

Do I, do we, expect the distractions from within those circles. I don’t think I do which worries me a little. It worries me because the distractions, in the form of good ideas, valuable projects or worthwhile causes are bound to be a lot harder to spot. To even think about looking out for the distractions within ‘church’ worries me more as this could so easily develop into the killing off of any creativity or innovation that there may be. New ideas could be viewed with skepticism and we would not progress.

I have just had a thought. Could it be that our mission is more at risk of failure because of the attitude and mindset of the majority of those in church with a faith, rather than due to those outside the church with no belief? Are we in another era where Jesus found himself up against Pharisees that were just missing the point.

Only this week I have read in the paper the pathetic names that so called ‘upstanding’ evangelicals have been calling the Archbishop of Canterbury while other vicars have been quizzing bishops on their views on sexuality before they decide whether they continue to ‘accept’ them as a bishop! How ridiculous can some become? (theist to accept tha they were God’s man for the job … are they now saying God has changed his mind? Maybe they think God actually got it wrong!)

While these people fight for ‘traditional theological truth’ I just want to scream out ‘where is the love for our fellow men and women in Christ?’ How can a priest call the archbishop of Canterbury a theological prostitute? Surely that is a big insult to God so I think these people are, in fact, missing the point. The gospel is not about what we do, how much we sin, rules we follow.

The gospel is about Jesus and what he has done for us.

It is about love and acceptance.

WE need to be aware and not let ‘people’ distract us from our central calling – to alert our communities to the fact that Jesus is there with them, wanting to be part of their lives.

What will we let these people do to us?