I ran across this article in a book by Jon Acuff, “Stuff Christians Like.” Acuff is a Christian satirist that takes a humorous look at things through a Christian lens. The following is a quote:
“If you want to become a professional church grumbler, not just some amateur, occasionally throws rocks at the worship service, minister, or other attributes of the church, there’s one key phrase you need to know:
“I’m not being fed.”
This simple complaint - the teaching is lacking, the sermons are thin, the worship music is not uplifting enough, or a million other things that people find inadequate – is the official complaint of church grumblers the world over. If we could figure out a way to monetize it, we could permanently end world poverty. Forget cold fusion; if we could generate energy every time someone says this phrase, we’d be able to break our dependence on foreign oil in about four minutes.
It’s such a perfect thing to say because it deflects any attention away from me, while at the same time creating false humility and making me seem more spiritually mature and advanced. ‘It’s not you, it’s me I just want to learn. I’m admitting that I am incomplete. I’m hungry for deep, real spiritual teaching. I’m humbly confessing that I’m not getting enough out of church. Please help me get the rich faith-building experiences that I so desperately need.’
Just be careful who you say this to. Pastors are starting to get wily. When people tell my friend, ‘I’m not being fed.’ he replies, ‘I’m perfectly happy to spoon feed my one-year-old. But if I’m still spoon-feeding him when he’s five, we’ve got a problem. Here’s a fork. Feed yourself.’”
Just some food for thought.
