Then he asked them, “You see all these, do you not? Truly I tell you, not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down.”

Matthew 24:2

Here’s what I dreamed last night (really):

I was standing just outside a large Sanctuary, with large stones and organ pipes framing the front. It was the end of a trustees meeting. I heard a rumble and looked. There, on the left, chunks of plaster and wood began to fall down, as if the roof was about to cave in. We rushed in, clearing out the space underneath the unstable wall and ceiling.

Then a fire began. Just a tiny flame, up at the top of the ceiling. Then another mid-way down, and another near the entrance. I shouted “Call 911” and then tried to do just that. They put me on hold, and I never could connect. Gratefully, the fires snuffed themselves out. There was damage, but we were okay, for now.

The trustees left, and I decided to post the phone number to the fire station in various places around the church. I walked from room to room, posting the number. One room had an outside group meeting. Another room had one of my former youth directors with a bunch of kids. I went to the church office and my secretary from another church was there, smiling hello. In the last room, my music director from yet another church was teaching piano lessons to neighborhood kids. Everyone seemed okay.

But the threat was not over. I found my wife, and we rushed back to the sanctuary so I could show her the damage. As we watched, another flame sparked into life, there up at the very front. Now it was spreading. This time I quickly pulled out my phone and called the operator, who connected me with the fire station.

But nobody picked up. So, Jan and I ran outside and down the street towards the fire station, desperately looking for someone to save the church.

And then I woke up. I don’t know what happened! Did the church survive, or did it burn to the ground?

That was my dream, more of a nightmare, really. It’s not hard to analyze, is it? The Church is burning! The Church is changing. The Church is always changing, yet we’re going through challenges beyond what any of us have ever experienced. I think my brain is slowly catching up to that growing reality.

I almost didn’t share this dream with you, because it seems so dire. So doom-filled.

But now, I realize something. It was the building that was threatening to implode, but not the people. People from every church I’ve served were in that church, doing ministry, reaching new people, celebrating Christ in their midst. There is hope!

Just as Jesus foresaw the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem, he speaks to us of what lasts forever, and what doesn’t. He reminds us that the body of Christ is more than a building, or an institution. The question is: Are we listening?

Somewhere, in the deep recesses of my dream brain, I guess I am. What about you? What are your dreams for the future of The Church?

Now, let’s see what the people of God can do…

when we’re truly awake.

Have a good week,

Mitch