I love and wholeheartedly agree with this blog post from pastor and author Ray Ortlund. (Check out his blog.) Sure, we’ve all had our bad church experiences. Me too. But I tire of the unending criticisms of local churches, and the cynicism about the body of Christ. (I shared some more thoughts in a past blog post.)

Here's Ray:

My church or the Kingdom?

by Ray Ortlund

“My passion isn’t to build up my church.  My passion is for God’s Kingdom.”

Ever heard someone say that?  I have.  It sounds noble, but it’s unbiblical and wrong.  It can even be destructive.

Suppose I said, “My passion isn’t to build up my marriage.  My passion is for Marriage.  I want the institution of Marriage to be revered again.  I’ll work for that.  I’ll pray for that.  I’ll sacrifice for that.  But don’t expect me to hunker down in the humble daily realities of building a great marriage with my wife Jani.  I’m aiming at something grander.”

If I said that, would you think, “Wow, Ray is so committed”?  Or would you wonder if I had lost my mind?

If you care about the Kingdom, good.  Now be the kind of person who can be counted on in your own church.  Join your church, pray for your church, tithe to your church, throw yourself into the life of your church with wholehearted passion.

We build great churches the same way we build great marriages — real commitment that makes a positive difference in practical ways.  And thus we build the Kingdom.