Over time I am slowly dropping the phrase “a relationship with Jesus” from my religious dialog.

I used to use it all the time. The analogy of the Christian faith went something like this: Faith in Jesus is not a religion but a relationship. The idea was that as a follower of Jesus you did not have a bunch of meaningless religious practices to participate in, rather a savior to connect to personally. I have said something about a “relationship with Jesus” more times that I care to recall.

Lately, I have been using the concept of a journey instead. I like to speak of all of us being on a journey with God. Either we are far away from him, and he is waiting for us to join him, or we are near, and we are walking side by side. I have slowly replaced saying we need to have a relationship with Jesus to we need to walk with Jesus on our journey with God.

Here is why I am changing my words and image.

1. Most People Do Very Little in Relationships. If you were to ask most men what they are doing to build their relationship with their wife you will be greeted with blank stares and confused looks. What do you mean build a relationship? We work and take care of things, and if the other person is mad, then we try to make them happy again. Usually, the only individuals who talk about working on their relationship are having a difficult time. When I view my life with God as a relationship, it can easily mean that I spend most of my time doing nothing to grow. That is until there is some crisis in my life.

2. A Journey Is a Daily Project. If you are on a trip then every day you must pack up your stuff and get moving. You have places to go and things to see. A journey requires you to keep moving one step at a time day after day in the right direction. Faith is active. Every day you are expected to go forward in knowledge, in service, and in hope. There is an expectation that today we may see and do things that we have never experienced before.

3. A Relationship Can Be Viewed Very Selfishly. What’s in it for me? When will my dinner be ready? Have you cleaned my house? Have you taken care of me? If you don’t, then I am out the door. I have encountered people whose marriage is all about what they can get out of it. I have also viewed Christian people who have the same concept of faith. What has God done for me? If he doesn’t make me happy, then I am out of here.

4. A Journey Has a Destination. When someone heads out on a journey, they hope to end up somewhere better and more exciting that where they are now. The reason we endure airports, long delays, uncomfortable seats and high prices are because of where that plane takes us. The reason we sit for hours in a vehicle with whining kids while eating fast food is that when we arrive at the beach, it will be priceless. The reason Christians live with sacrifice and service are because one day we hope to arrive at our own little slice of heaven.

I know there is a lot more I could say about these two images. The contrasts can be kind of interesting.

Maybe I am making a big deal about a small thing, but I feel the analogies we use are important. I do not want anyone to get the wrong idea of what it means to follow Jesus. Yes, Christianity is about a relationship with God through Jesus, but that relationship is not about setting up a house in the suburbs and living the American dream. That relationship is about locking arms with Jesus on the journey of a lifetime that will take us places we never dreamed until the day we reach our new home.

I was waiting for my boys to come out of the locker room after the game. They were taking their time, and everyone else was quickly clearing out, so I soon found myself almost alone. A little bored I began to look in the trophy case.

In the case, I found there were trophies of all sizes. Large trophies from placing high in State competition to small ones for local tourneys. I also noticed that these rewards were given for all kinds of activities. They ranged from clubs to sports to academics. The dates for these prizes ranged from recent dates clear back to the 1950’s. It was an eclectic collection of wood and metal for achievements from student’s high school careers.

I noticed three things about the trophy case and the contents it held.

First – of the making of awards there is no end. Honestly, I thought the best part of this collection is that it keeps some people employed somewhere. Every year there are more trophies to make for the next group of teens who come along. As long as there are students, there will be prizes to be handed out.

Second – No one besides me cared at that moment. I am sure those trophies were once held high as great achievements from hard work and dedication. I am sure there were individuals who had spent hours practicing and preparing to receive their prize. They represented teams that practiced and practiced until they hurt from their commitment. Now, as people stood in that hallway waiting no one even looked beside me. With no personal connection and experience, these splendid little creations were just metal and wood.

Third – The dust on each was thick. I am not mad at some janitor for their lack of work to keep the case clean. I sure it is a huge job. That was not my thought process. I was focused on how these prizes were once considered invaluable. There was a moment when a person or a group of people accomplished something they thought would hold an enormous impact on their life. Now there were old possessions that no one cared to tend to anymore.

My final thoughts were very clear, “How much sacrifice did these trophies represent?” There were families that gave up money and time to make put these trophies in the case. There were people who missed families events, skipped Church and lost sleep to obtain these rewards. There were individuals who gave selflessly in every way so that each trophy could be in that case. The final result was that no one cared anymore.

The words of the Apostle Paul clearly came to my mind as I stood there that night. 1 Corinthians 9:25 “Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.”

Following Jesus requires the same hard work and dedication it took to get those trophies. We do it to obtain a crown that will not collect dust but the crown of eternal life.

When you decide what you are going to give your time, money and talent to, I ask that you would stand in front of a trophy case and ask, “Is it really worth it?”

Every complex machine is composed of a number of little nuts and bolts that hold it all together. Ministry in the Church is very much the same way. Worship on Sunday, Sunday School, Vacation Bible School, Christmas, and Easter are all significant parts of the overall Christian machine, but those are all held together by a series of smaller items.

1. Church Communications – Every week is an attempt to communicate the events and activities in the life of a Church. Here at ACC, we use the printed program each week. I encourage everyone to read it thoroughly, especially the announcements as we are continually adding new ones and updating old ones. We also have an email newsletter that goes out the first week of the month. The third option for us is our website. I personally help update the site each week with the most up-to-date info. Next is Facebook. If you follow the Adrian Christian Church page, then you will receive notice of our posting on there also. Finally, is an announcement at the beginning of the program. I limit those items I share each week to just one. Each week I try using one, two or even all of these forms of communication to keep everyone informed of activities in the life of the Church. It is everyone’s responsibility to read what we write and listen to what is said.

2. The Connection Card – Every week we have a “Connection Card” either attached or inserted into the program. This is a great way for you to communicate with the Church. There is a spot for your name and mailing info. New guests will receive a card thanking them for a visit. Longtime members can use the space to update me on changes in address, phones number or email. There is also a spot on the card for prayer requests. These are emailed to our prayer team on Monday and placed in the program on the next Sunday. Third, there are a series of places you can mark if you would like more information. A connection card is a simple place for you to keep connected with the office and the minister, just drop the card in the offering plate, and it will end up on my desk.

3. Personal Contact – There are two great ways to talk to me personally. First is immediately after the worship program. I always remain at the front of the auditorium for 5-10 minutes after worship so you can catch me there. There I can talk, pray or just plan a meeting for later. The second way to reach me is at the Church office. I am here Monday through Thursday from 8:00 till at least 3:00 unless there is an emergency. You can call the office and schedule an appointment, or you can just drop by anytime. Each week I have 1-3 meetings so sometimes it is best to schedule a time with a quick phone call. I am always willing to talk and help each of you out.

I know these seem like such tiny parts to the Church, but each one is vital. We can have a fantastic event planned, but if you no one knows about it then we will have a failure. You may be going through a big life event, but if you do not tell anyone, then I may never know so that I can pray and help. The success or failure of any part of Church is connected to these simple nuts and bolts that hold it all together. They may seem insignificant, but trust me, without them it all falls apart.