“A Hospital For Sinners”
 I have seen this meme, or variations of it, often through the years. On the surface, it is true. We shouldn’t come to the church expecting to find perfect people. However, I truly believe this is a faulty analogy and I also believe it sets up a false dichotomy. In my experience, I have yet to find anyone who came to church expecting to find perfect people, and then who leave because they found messy people. Quite the opposite, really. They expected to find real people. Honest people. People like us. Messy people. We are told that “the church is a hospital for sinners not a museum for saints”, and yet….. and yet so often what we find is a museum where people and ideals are held up and revered, and a place where we are expected to heal ourselves. Sure, come as you are, be messy…. Just don’t show me your mess or get it on me. Don’t make me uncomfortable. And please don’t make me get in the mess with you. Sure, God loves sinners, but then He changes them, and well…. You aren’t changing e...