How is your church known? When I arrived at the church I served for most of my ministry, they had a label in the community that I did not find out about until I had been there for over a year: “The church that owns the liquor store!”

Long before I arrived, the congregation sold part of their property to a local businessman. There were some restrictive covenants in the sale where he agreed he would not use the property for a junkyard or a drive-in theater or a liquor store and a few other things. Because our county was “dry” in those days, the liquor store was a non-issue. Until the early 1970s when Denison voted to go “wet” and sell alcohol. The property the church sold was the first “wet” spot on the highway coming north from Sherman, which was still dry. The man who bought the property was a businessman, and he could not pass up the opportunity to open a liquor store. This upset some of the members more than a little bit. Unfortunately, the congregation decided to sue the man. This was big news in Sherman and Denison. It made the papers every day, often on the front page. The case was settled out of court, but the congregation became knows as “the church that owns the liquor store.”

That was not exactly the reputation the congregation was going for. And eventually, we changed how we were known. In the early 90s a member suggested we put up a display of crosses on the anniversary of Roe v. Wade to represent how many abortions take place each day in the United States. We also put up a sign saying that “God Chooses Life,” and encouraged people to do the same. We reached out to those who had abortions with a message of God’s grace and forgiveness that was available for Jesus’ sake. And we became known as “the church that puts up the crosses.”

How is your church known? Are you like the grumpy old man who yells at kids “Don’t play in my yard!”???  Or are you known as a place that cares about people, a place that shows God’s love, a place that is welcoming?  Which will best enable you to share the Good News of Jesus?

1 Peter 2:12 Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.

You still need to proclaim the whole counsel of God, Law and Gospel. We must condemn sin and call people to repentance. But it must be done in a loving, compassionate and kind way. Lord, help your children to do this.