Jesse A. Schroeder

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We worshiped at La Fraternidad Christiana de Guatemala this morning, which apparently is a physically larger church than any in the United States (was built to match the dimensions in of the biblical ark - see pics to the right). Also interesting, the church was built debt free. Lots to think about there.....but that's not what really caught me this morning.

I love (LOVE) Spanish worship music. Something about the lyrics, the beat, the singing (even though I'm not always sure what is being said), it gets me moving and excited more than the American songs I'm used to. I couldn't help but laugh this morning when "Let Everything That Has Breath" was the first song. But it loosened me up, and after a few more, the singing took a more serious tone, and we sang "Shout to the Lord," which according to several statistics I've read was at one time the most widely sung Christian song on any given Sunday. In other words, all across the world, millions of Christians sing "Shout to the Lord" every week. For me, it cut straight to the center of God's good news and reminded me of several verses I had read that morning:

"Whoever comes to me I will never drive away." "I shall lose none of all that he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. For my Father's will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life." "If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world." (John 6:37, 40, 51). "After this I looked and there bfore me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb." (Revelation 7:9)

The reason these verses were in the forefront of my mind was because of their distinctly inclusive nature. This word - inclusivism - is one that I have wrestled with for a few years, mainly because it seems to the central claim of fundamental Christianity, namely that those who do not believe in Jesus will go to hell. I'm not trying to lay out a theology for the plurality of religions, but what I realized today was that for much of my life I had bought into the despair of Christianity, the despair that says that the majority of the world is going to hell, except us good Christians. Being in Guatemala, singing a well-known song (in Spanish), and worshiping with thousands of Guatemalans, reminded me that God's view is so much bigger than mine. He has a global perspective of salvation, of life. Thank God.

So I refuse to despair, and instead I am hopeful. I choose to believe Jesus' words that anyone who comes to him will receive eternal life. I choose to imagine a multitude so big I (and no one) could count, and then I add one more person - and I picture them praising God because he's great. I believe that Jesus wants to save people, not to damn them.

I also realized that i typically can only see religion from my perspective, particularly what I understand to be right and/or wrong at that particular point in my life. But worshiping with so many others who were so different from me, people I never think of on a typical Sunday, singing a song that millions of Christians sing every week, I realized that even Guatemala City with a church the size of the ARK for cyring out loud, even that is only one small city across this grand globe that God is bringing into his heart, day by day. I realized that only God himself knows the full perspective and number, and that number is probably way (WAY!) bigger than I could ever imagine.

So I'm thankful. I'm hopeful. I'm excited to celebrate the coming of the little baby Jesus, that came into the world in order to give up his life, for the entire world. Now that's one verse that I'll read literally :)