Very good article by Bob Hyatt on Next Wave ezine, called "Why I'm not Done with Church." I found myself amening frequently, as he gently admonished those who abandon the institutional church (which--disclaimer--has been my bread and butter throughout my adult life).

Then I got to the comments...and found some really good stuff by people who have left the institutional church.

The author makes a flippant parenthetical analogy about liking Jesus, but saying you can't stand his "wife." The church is the "bride of Christ," according to Scripture. I wish he had developed that a little further. Imagine saying, "I want to spend time with you, just as long as your wife isn't around, because I don't like her at all."

My thoughts on all of this are evolving. But as for me--I wouldn't function well as a Christian apart from the church. Maybe some people can, but not me. I need to be part of an organized church, regardless of how messy it is. It keeps me focused. Maybe I'm just undisciplined. No, I AM undisciplined. I probably wouldn't be good at running a home-based business; the office environment keeps me in line. I appreciate being part of social security, despite its flaws, because I would be a major flop at managing my own retirement funds.

Other people are different. But I'll bet not the majority of them. I suspect that most people who "give up on" the organized church have their occasional spurts of spirituality, but for the most part increasingly become Christians in name only--good people, but not people who conquer for Christ. Unfortunately, the exact same thing happens to hordes of people who faithfully sit in pews every Sunday. So casting stones is problematic.

But in the end, I still maintain with conviction: Christians need the church. Not necessarily that specific church down on the corner, but a fellowship of Christians along with all of their flaws.