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\u201cYou are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.\u201d (Matthew 5:14-16)

Is the church building a bowl?

Maybe it\u2019s not a nice or fair question to ask, but it\u2019s a question that came to mind while speaking with the leaders of TrueCity churches last week.

It was interesting to hear what they were doing. 15 of the churches that responded have remained online. Only 5 have gone back into their building at this time. Among those who have remained online, about 8 have begun inviting their people to gather in backyards in smaller, socially distanced groups for worship.

That got me thinking about this text: a town built on a hill cannot be hidden; a lamp should be put on its stand.

Sure enough, one church reported that as congregation members have begun worshiping in their backyards, their neighbours have begun to notice. It\u2019s not every day that you see a group of people praying, singing, and listening together for something that isn\u2019t a party or a sports event. Especially when those people gather weekly, especially when those people are people you know: your neighbours.

All of a sudden a new light shines into the world: Christians visibly worshiping God. All of a sudden, conversations start with neighbours. Not because you were \u201ctrying to witness,\u201d but simply because you were living as a Christian where you are, visibly, and so have been asked what you\u2019re up to.

So back to the first question: is the church building a bowl? Does the church building hide us away from the world more than it should? Hiding our worship, our discipleship programs and ministries, our message safely away where no one else can see or hear?

I don\u2019t know the answer to that question. Maybe the church building is a bowl sometimes, hiding a light that should\u2019ve been put on a stand. And, maybe sometimes the church building is more like the hidden reservoir of oil that feeds the lamp that burns outside where everyone can see.

Whatever the case, what I do know, is that this moment is the perfect time to be asking that question. Has the church building become a bowl for you? What do your neighbours see of your light when the building is removed from the equation for a time? What should they see?

Wednesday is Canada Day. We won\u2019t be putting out one of these devotions for Wednesday, July 1. But as you go through the festivities of the day, whatever they may be, maybe you can be pondering the same question asked here:

Is my light shining? Or have I hidden it under a bowl?

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