Cotton Candy Church

How about that Cotton Candy!  When you see it at the fair, it looks so appealing to the sight and gives the impression that there's a lot of it wrapped around the paper stick.  You pull off a hunk, pop it into your mouth and the taste is so sweet.  Man, is it ever good...but, in a moment of time, it shrivels in your mouth and leave little to be found.  Needless to say, you could never live on a diet of Cotton Candy.  Though it has desirable outward trappings, there's actually very little to it...and no nutritional value.  It just can't provide what is needed to keep a body health and growing.  It's a whole lot of fluff.

Friends, the sad tale of our day is that we are inundated with Cotton Candy churches.  They have a desirable appeal to the human senses.  Their programming and events are advertised in such a way as to make them look "cool" and "today" as opposed to "that's so yesterday."  Sermon series and titles appeal to the "felt needs" of man's flesh...how to be successful, relieving stress, adding sex appeal to your marriage and on and on it goes.  The reality is that these churches have bought into a subtle lie.  What is the lie, you may ask?  Here it is...man must be lured into the church with the "stuff" that appeals to his flesh, it's the only way he will come.  Then, when he comes, we must present him with "Christianity Lite".  If the word is too hard, he will quit coming.  If the church can be as attractive as the world, then people will keep coming.  Dear Beloved Christian, we are not in competition with the world's appeal, we are to win people out of the world!  Our job is to give people what they need, not what their flesh wants.  A good mother does not feed her babies cotton candy for their meals...though it would likely appeal to the child...she feeds her babies strained peas (yuk!) and green beans and carrots.  None of these are very appealing to the flesh, but they provide the nourishment needed for health and growth.  The Word of God is not always easy on man and worship is more than fun celebration or emotional goose bumps.  The church is to give people what they need, not what their flesh wants.  Don't crave the fluff, but sink your teeth into the meat!  Unite with a church that gives what you need!