Brand loyalty or "Before you accuse, criticize, and abuse- walk a mile in my shoes".

Brand loyalty or "Before you accuse, criticize, and abuse- walk a mile in my shoes".


I have been going to church since I was a little girl. I went by myself and I remember I used to walk at least a mile on Sunday Mornings to go to the First Baptist Church of Santa Fe. I had to have been nine or ten when I started, perhaps younger, and I clearly remember little white patent leather shoes and a navy sailor dress. I was an angel in the Christmas pageant and attended Awana on Wednesday nights. I also had terrible bangs. When I was about twelve, I was invited to Santa Fe Christian Church which had recently split from another church and was meeting in yet another church’s building. I was there when they finished their new place of worship and it was there I was baptized and where I made many friends who I am still in contact with today. In the middle of my junior year in high school, we moved to La Marque where I attended Mainland Church of Christ. There I really did some deep Bible study and started to understand the small and sometimes large differences between denominations. When I graduated high school, I headed to Dallas to attend Dallas Christian college (where I still attend today) and visited many area churches. There was Valley View Christian, Farmers Branch Church of Christ, Park Cities Baptist, Preston Crest Church of Christ and many others. I somehow never really found a church home during those years but I got married, had a baby and moved to Wylie. Our first Sunday in Wylie, nearly seven years ago, we attended the First Baptist Church and I knew when we pulled into the parking lot that we had found an honest to goodness Church home. We were met in the lobby by a deacon and he helped us get Corwin settled in the Church nursery. I had never left Corwin with anyone before. Then he gave us the grand tour. He took us back to the choir room, up to the Baptistery and into the video sound room place (still don’t know what they call that room). We saw the track, the gym, where the youth met, the adult Sunday School rooms and every nook and cranny in between. I felt at home, I was home.

Now seven years later I have seen some pastors come, go and move around. Families have joined and families have moved on. There have been changes in services and structures. Many new things have been tried and some have been wildly successful while others have been dismal failures. I love this church. I am invested in this church. I love the opportunities that I have had to volunteer there and the amazing people that I am privileged to work with each week. They are my family. We have rejoiced together, grieved together and fought on the front lines of spiritual warfare together. Now when I use the word family, I mean it in the same way I would if I were to talk about my dad or my husband or my son. They are family, even if they move away, even if they make a mistake, even if we have a disagreement. And it pains me when my family hurts and when you have a large church you have the potential for a large amount of hurt but what hurts me the most and really gets my guard up is when people talk bad about my pastors. And I use the word my because these are men (and woman) who I support and pray for. I pray for their families and their health and the decisions that they make in their ministries so I can’t help but feel invested in their lives and in their happiness (even if they don’t know it). I feel they deserve my loyalty and trust but they also deserve the right to be free of any expectations of perfection. Until the good Lord comes down from heaven and proclaims one of them divine, I will not be surprised if one of them makes a mistake. I also know that when faced with a difficult decision, none of them are sitting around tossing coins to see what they should say or do. Each one of them takes their responsibilities as shepherds of God’s children seriously. They face nerve wracking, stressful, and heartbreaking situations in the profession they were chosen for and I really believe that what they say and do is bathed in prayer and study. God has handpicked them for leadership in my church and they will one day stand before God and be held accountable for the things that they say and do but none of us should ever attempt to step into that seat of judgment because that place is reserved for only one man. So unless you are willing to take one of their places and shoulder the immense responsibilities placed on them day after day ,(and good luck getting a real day off) then watch your tongue when you decide you are unhappy with how something is handled please I beg you. It hurts me when people talk bad about my church or my pastors. I hate to hear people talk bad about ANY church. I just don’t think it is necessary or constructive in any way. If you are unhappy with someone then yes you should feel you can go to them and voice your concerns but we should never resort to gossip and I know how hard that can be sometimes. The Bible tells us that “the tongue is a restless evil, full of deadly poison (Jms 3:8).” We must all pray for the Holy Sprits help in this because I don’t know if we can do it on our own. Please pray every day for God’s help in guarding both your thoughts and your tongue. I guarantee that God will be faithful and you will hear the Holy Spirit guiding you when you open your mouth and start to say things you shouldn’t but you must ask Him for the help and pray for it daily. It seems so simple but the Bible warns us over and over again about the power and pain our words can yield. And please don’t talk bad about my family in front of me or you will hear some powerful and painful words I promise you.

Phew I have been needin to get that off my chest for YEARS…….